Balkan Metal Meet Sofia 2024 festival wrap

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Feeding Frenzy: Balkan Metal Meet Sofia 2024 festival wrap

In Summer, Slow Dragon Music revisited the Balkan Metal Meet festival series, this time in Sofia, Bulgaria.

As a city, there were some similarities to Tirana. The post fascist/post communist history is still palpable, as well as the influence of various religions, mainly the orthodox church. Roman ruins pockmark an architectural profile of domed spires and shattered factories. Meanwhile, out of town, lurks our destined venue for the weekend: Old Skulls…

After a healthy taxi ride, with the fare going up at a terrifying rate, we pass what looks like a bombed out apartment block and arrive at the location of this edition’s Balkan Metal Fest. Again, much like Tirana, the doors might say 4, but it’ll be a long time before anything kicks off.

Luckily, the venue also resembles an open MC bar, so they understand the need to not keep these punters away from a nice cold ale. We start off with a live beer, specific to Old Skulls. This seems to be a thing in a lot of Bulgarian pubs, and it is actually lovely. Even better when accompanied by home made chips, doused in a garlic and vinegar dressing.

Even for bands who don’t play here, this seems to be the spot to stop before and after local shows.

Signed posters adorn the walls from the likes of Nile, Vomitory, Crypta, Benighted, and others, all with messages of thanks for the hospitality.

Things kick off at 8:30 with S.E.E., semi-melodic death metal with some d-beat passages. They drop some surprisingly metal chart ready songs, but do feel a bit like they are still finding their feet on the live performance front. Although, they get their stride after a couple of tracks and one false start. They have of a bit of an early In Flames vibe, once things were rolling. This is combined with moments of Korn/Static X, swirled into a kind of Ramage Inc./DTP progginess, making it musically more than one straight up metal sub-genre.

It’s still sweating bullets weather in an early Balkan June, even outside, despite a noticeable drop in temperature, as we prepare for Italy’s Gravestone.

A long, creepy, orchestral intro suddenly gives way to solid death metal with some strong old school leanings. This lot are a bit more comfortable on stage, winding the crowd up when riffing allows. If I’m honest, the bassist’s fingering hand is kind of hypnotic. In general, it is a surprise hit of a set, with deluxe guitar melodies, but he is just a machine. The crowd gets visibly engaged; you can see this feeding the band, and things move up a gear as the frontwoman comes out of her shell.

Steaming Mad (from Switzerland) bring a much filthier vibe to proceedings.

Where previous acts were undoubtedly metal, this three-piece douse the bill with sweaty, whisky, rock n roll and old school. It all comes with a tinge of the more aggressive end of Sub Pop’s early 90s back catalogue meets Anvil. A truly strange concoction, yet charming in its own right. Slapping in a cover Timmy and The Lords of The Underworld from South Park is kind of a master stroke.

The day has been long, with alcohol flowing freely, and exhaustion is close at hand. Energy soon rises up again, though, as Martyrium hit the stage, after a slightly protracted and industrial sounding intro. This is, however., a black metal affair, with a good wedge of theatrical trimmings. Frontwoman, Sandra Misanthrope, slithers onto stage, cloak, horned mask, and all, launching into a rasping sermon. It’s like a summoning to a coven, and never turns off. She does an excellent job, and soon collects a front row of budding acolytes, backed by the sepulchral legionaries making up the rest of the band. From occult calling to militaristic stomp, this band has carved their way to a well deserved top spot tonight. It looks like the fact remains, Balkan Metal Meet know how to book an engaging headliner to fit their audience.

Bobby from Old Skulls did us a good turn by using his local knowledge to book us a taxi for about a quarter of the price we paid to get one up to the venue. Incidentally, there are very cheap buses during the day, we were just feeling lazy. Hitting the hotel, it’s time to stuff face, pass out, and not rise at any time with an AM in it.

Feeding Frenzy: Balkan Metal Meet Sofia 2024 festival wrap

PART 2

Aiming to turn up a little later for the second day, we head out for a bus just before 5. It doesn’t show, and we are treated to some fairly in depth historical interpretations about Russia, immigration, the Freemasons, and some related angles veering off into conspiracy theory. Still, it helped pass the time until the next 309 to the club.

Inflatable cock fights and party streamers is one way to kick of the evening. Germany’s Painkiller Party aren’t here to take things too seriously, mixing the most brutal DM vox and thumping guitar with pre-schooler TV melodies. It’s one fucked up sugar-pop industrial sonic massacre. Too hideous to fail. I would love to see these destroy a family party.

Please consider party-porno-grind rather than a magician when little Timmy hits his next birthday.

It’s now getting close, and sweat starts to pour. How people are dancing in this I have no idea, yet, here we are. CMOГ are dropping thrashy hardcore on us. Or hardcore thrash. The lines are blurred and it is genuinely hard to tell. The band clear this up after a few songs, as they suddenly open up the punk end of their canon, although still with some brutal vocals. Just when you think you’ve got them pegged, they throw out some rap-metal. Which is pretty weird…

The second of this evening’s home grown acts, Magnetic, ease in with some melodically eerie music, which seems to have flavours of Balkan culture. It doesn’t stay gentle for long, though, as they launch pretty quickly into highly developed, heavy, djent/prog. They absolutely destroy when they’re at full tilt (although, at times the flow between songs could have been smoother). This reminds me of when Meshuggah were a bit less set in their ways.

It’s amazing how quickly the last band has rolled around, and the changeover to Italians, Aetheris, is pretty rapid.

We’ve drunk the bar dry of pear cider. And passion fruit and orange cider. All the cider, basically. Most of the beer, too. This isn’t the first time we’ve seen this lot (see Balkan Metal Meet Tirana review here), but this feels like a better show from them. There is a superior sound production than in Albania, allowing the breathing space their intricacies deserve. Despite a more sparse crowd, the Mediterranean folk stained progressive black metal is shining through on this set, and it would be hard to find something to complain about. A technical issue quickly overcome, things power on, with blistering solos, and vocals occasionally dipping from black metal witchery to professional alto.

All in, this was a fun event, albeit a little quieter than expected. While distinct from the previous BMM, there is a connective character, and I think differences are mainly down to national cultures. Bulgarians seem to be a lot more chatty than their Albanian cousins, and Bobby deserves a special mention as the most spectacular host. Thanks for all the stories and rakia, dude!