As has become a wonderful tradition and something to look forward to every year, the friendly chaps behind the Dark Essence Records moniker organised Tuesday’s Beyond the Gates Kickoff event, which is the perfect precursor to the four-day festival that has become a major draw for fans of extreme metal. Truth be told, the unholy Tuesday shenanigans have always appealed to me the most, as I think the slightly more intimate vibe and eclectic, stylistically different line-ups generate a sense of excitement, variety, and the unexpected that somehow sets it apart from everything else going on that week. The evening was a case in point, in that Antinoë, Draken, and Malum have few things in common other than the fact that they are all on Dark Essence Records and that they are absolutely superb and great at what they do. The funny thing is that although they may be said to cater to different tastes, they all went down a storm and received heaps of positive feedback, which can undoubtedly be attributed to the quality of the music and just how compelling it was. What better place than Hulen to throw a memorable event such as this, right?
Antinoë from Spain went on stage at 8 PM, sat down at the piano, and more or less instantly transported everyone in the room somewhere else thanks to her darkly romantic and deeply touching compositions rooted in neoclassical music and, to some extent, dark ambient. The 45-minute set was mesmerising, and rarely has this writer witnessed anything as remarkable and moving as this. What made it even more impressive was the fact that it was her first performance. Simply incredible! The majority of songs were culled from the near-flawless The Fold (2025) and then interspersed with a few tracks from a previous offering containing cover renditions of classic Norwegian black metal tracks from the 90s. From the opening strains of ‘Night Falls’ until the perfectly climactic version of Emperor‘s ‘I Am the Black Wizards’ that closed the show, it was just one consistently immersive and unforgettable journey that served up such highlights as ‘Flock’, ‘Chaos in the Sky’, ‘Lightbringer’, Darkthrone‘s ‘En Vind av Sorg’, and Mayhem‘s ‘Life Eternal’. When I glanced to the left at one point and saw my brilliant friend Otto-Egil hovering slightly above the earth while crying in sheer ecstasy, I knew that I was hardly the only one there who felt like they had witnessed what must surely be the most unique booking yet in relation to Beyond the Gates. It felt like a special occasion.
Draken is impossible to label or pigeonhole, which is what makes the band so interesting to this scribe. Actually, I wish that more people would check this band out, and after their energetic and energising gig Tuesday night, one can only hope that more listeners will get to experience them in a live setting too. Somewhere between intense stoner rock, heavy metal, doom metal, and space rock gone to hell performed by a trio and… No, wait. Let us go with “they sound vicious and in-your-face, yet they possess a strangely appealing charm too,” and maybe just stick to that description instead. Their songs are rough around the edges and fuzz-laden, and the unit is a tight and determined proposition on stage, harbouring a subtle touch of humour. Sometimes thunderous, oftentimes pummelling, occasionally full of unexpected twists and turns, these chaps are anything but boring. The crunchy, groove-infested ‘The Great Deceiver’ opened the proceedings and immediately set the tone for what was to follow, and the rumbling, slow-burning ‘Here Be Dragons’, as well as the aggressive combo of ‘It Serves You Right’ and ‘Bastards’, made a huge impression and ensured that we all had a fabulous time in their presence. You should check out the latest LP Here Be Draken (2026) by the musically adventurous Norwegian act as soon as humanly possible.
Norway’s foremost authority on how to purvey earth-shattering nihilism and negativity by means of frighteningly well-executed black metal was up next, and who else could this writer be talking about than the inimitable Malum? Hulen was packed to the rafters by this time, and one can easily understand why, given how stunning the group’s latest effort, titled From the Voids (2026), is. Four cloaked and hooded characters appeared on stage while a sinister soundscape and incense filled the air, and when they launched into ‘Stare into Darkness’ and subsequently served up such future classics as ‘Ignorance Made Bliss’ and ‘In Gloom II’, you just knew that what you were seeing and hearing was something to remember, while simultaneously accepting the fact that existence is pointless and that humanity is worth less than a fucking postage stamp. And you know what? That actually felt unsettlingly liberating, if not exhilarating, somehow. It is all about context, of course, and the thing about Malum is that they sound fiercely focused and assured both on record and when playing live, as evidenced on the night. Deeply atmospheric, eerie as hell, and akin to staring into the abyss, the charismatic outfit’s brand of trance-inducing musical darkness worked like a claustrophobic charm at Beyond the Gates Kickoff, and we all knew that we had experienced something decidedly unearthly. What could be better?
