Soulfly, Billy Idol and more: 3rd Night at Copenhell Festival
Copenhell Festival delivered an eclectic mix of metal performances this year, showcasing everything from Brazilian-influenced thrash to theatrical horror rock. The festival’s diverse lineup catered to every metalhead, featuring performances ranging from energetic newcomers to legendary veterans. Here’s a breakdown of the standout acts that graced the festival’s stages in Denmark.
SOULFLY
Soulfly graced the stage at Copenhell this year, led by charismatic frontman Max Cavalera, sporting a classic red and white football jersey from Hummel, like those found in most football clubs in Denmark. The band started hard and maintained that energy throughout the entire show. Not as many people were there to see them as one would expect from a band this big, but they gathered a full crowd not long after, and people kept joining steadily throughout.
Max Cavalera has excellent crowd work and knows exactly how to lead and inspire an audience. During the show, there’s a lot of participation from the crowd, for example, during the song ‘Fire’, where he has them chant, followed by an immediate circle pit. The music of Soulfly ranges from high-intensity thrash metal to soulful and even a bit folksy. Bassist Chase Bryant ranges from slapping to groovy and slow, and the drumming is complex and precise.
The elements from Brazilian tribal culture are amazing, both in the music and the visuals, and Mr. Cavalera even busts out his ‘bow-guitar’, called a Berimbau, and plays a song while people are chanting “Soulfly” in the audience. He is more than happy to share his culture, which he is proud of, and doesn’t downplay or gatekeep his heritage. As he says, “from my tribe to your tribe.”
SARCATOR
Sarcator was officially formed in 2018 by a group of minors from Sweden. The band’s name is a portmanteau of Sarcófago and Kreator, and especially the Kreator part is apparent in their brand of blackened thrash metal. Sharp guitar riffs, fast drums, and aggressive vocals, all reminiscent of the thrash metal of yesteryear.
Even though the band has three full-length albums and quite a few live performances under their belt, unfortunately, they can’t quite rile up the tired audience that fills up about half of the Gehenna stage. But a lot of that can probably be attributed to having an early time slot, playing to an audience that has been drinking for three days in the scorching sun. The music is proficient, the band has good energy, but the place never really gets started.
BRAT
In the four years since Brat was founded in New Orleans, they’ve been on tour with some well-known names in the hardcore scene, like Cro-Mags and ACxDC, sludge metal band Eyehategod, and even Napalm Death. During those years, they’ve released both EPs and their debut album ‘Social Grace’, which is an absolute blast if you’re a fan of the genre. The frontwoman of the self-described bimbogrind band, Liz Selfish, at first glance looks like the quintessential dance studio instructor with her tight clothes, perfect body, and long blonde hair. But as soon as she breaks down the first guttural scream, you realise this woman is a dance instructor straight from hell. She has a huge stage presence, too, dancing all over the stage, shaking her hips, and she isn’t afraid to flaunt what she’s got.
The music is both intense and at the same time, doesn’t take itself too seriously. The intro is from DJ Scooter, and they cover songs by Britney Spears in a way that is both fun and impressive. Blast beats, deep gutturals, and lightning-fast guitar shredding make the crowd go wild, and with the firm command of Liz Selfish demanding mosh pits, crowd surfing, and circle pits, everyone leaves sweaty, tired, and satisfied. It is always great to see more badass, talented women in metal, who aren’t there as novelties but because they have the metal spirit!
I interviewed a few of the women in the crowd who stayed after the show, and the consensus was that while none of them had heard of Brat before, and they didn’t come to the show just to support women in metal, they were all grateful that they did attend and happy to see not just how many female leads there were at Copenhell this year, but that they were all picked because of talent and not just because of their gender.
GUILT TRIP
Guilt Trip from Manchester, UK, plays the Gehenna stage about an hour after Brat, and the place isn’t quite as full for this one, but a decent number of people have shown up. Their musical style is a blend of hardcore, punk, thrash, and I even sensed some melodic death in there at times. The vocals are mostly raw, but allow for a few bits of clean singing as well. Unfortunately, while they genre-bend a lot, nothing particularly stood out to me about their performance.
The interaction with the crowd was good, and their technical skill wasn’t bad either, but in my opinion, they need to pick something definitive to be their style and make it their own. One thing I’ll give them credit for, though, was their buildup for a wall of death, which was probably the best one I had seen so far.
BILLY IDOL
Billy Idol was by far one of the most talked about headliners for Copenhell this year, and not for his musical talent. Most people were surprised to even see him on the list of bands. The ageing punk rocker turned pop-rocker hits 70 years later this year, and it showed in his performance. People who have lived long enough to experience him in his younger days were disappointed at the lack of energy, and the younger generation barely knew who he was until he played “White Wedding.”
Billy was accompanied by his long-term guitarist, Steve Stevens, who wasn’t slacking at all. Granted, he’s played those songs so much by now that he probably hears them while sleeping, but he still injected a lot of much-needed vitality into an otherwise rather tame performance. Still, though, a lot of people were probably stoked to see him just for the bragging rights and to say they were there. Nostalgia is a powerful drug after all.
KING DIAMOND
The king has returned! Denmark’s own Kim Bendix Petersen, otherwise known as King Diamond, closed the main stages on Friday with an unforgettable show. First of all, the stage set was one of the most impressive we’ve seen by a large margin. A 1920s hospital of some sort, but a grotesque, dungeon-like version of it, with the drummer placed on top, dolls playing keyboards, and weird machines in the background. King Diamond performs dressed like a crypt keeper and tells the story of the set in between songs. It’s an engaging mix of theatrics, storytelling, and, of course, his signature countertenor singing and falsetto screams.
And being a native of this land, he switches between Danish and English when addressing the crowd, which gives all of us a sort of familiarity. He’s an expert at interacting with the audience as well, telling short anecdotes and making them choose songs. Everyone is spellbound by his charisma, and unlike most closers, no one left until the very end. At the end of the show, he switches from his ‘doctor’ costume to his signature corpse paint and top hat and plays a few classics before ending on the all-time fan favourite, ‘Abigail’. Here is a man who hasn’t let his age of 69 slow him down and still maintains the same energy as he has for the last 51 years of playing.
Copenhell Festival once again proved why it’s one of Europe’s premier metal festivals. From Soulfly’s cultural celebration to King Diamond’s theatrical mastery, the festival offered a perfect blend of established legends and emerging talent. While some performances fell short of expectations, the overall experience reminded us why live metal continues to be such a powerful and unifying force. The festival’s commitment to showcasing diverse voices in metal, particularly the impressive female representation this year, signals a bright future for the genre.
Photos (c) Morten Holmsgaard Kristensen
