Copenhell Opening Day: The Underground Unfolds on Refshaleøen
Refshaleøen has once again opened its gates, and Wednesday at Copenhell gets off to a strong start. While many visitors keep their eyes firmly fixed on the evening’s biggest headliners on the main stages, such as Iron Maiden and Alice Cooper, the true soul of the underground is found in the early festival hours and on the smaller stages. The opening day’s program takes the audience on a journey through countless genres, ranging from theatrical 80s nostalgia and atmospheric shoegaze to uncompromising modern aggression.
It is precisely this enormous diversity that makes Copenhell an exciting destination for any metal enthusiast. There is something for everyone, and both local, international, and completely unknown acts are introduced here. For better or worse, this is exactly the place where the underground truly gets to show its teeth.
Dogma
In 2026, it is the scantily clad nuns of Dogma who open the festival. Although the band’s visual aesthetic as ‘blasphemous nuns’ often attracts a great deal of attention, beneath the surface lies a musical style rooted in classic hard rock and traditional heavy metal. Their sound draws heavily from 1980s melodic metal, where heavy guitar-driven patterns are combined with catchy, pop-influenced song structures.
The songs are built around memorable hooks, often evoking occult rock in the style of Ghost. However, the main focus is the stage show and the raw sexual energy the entire band delivers. They enjoy engaging with the audience and openly flirt with the crowd. Despite the sweltering heat and the early time slot, a significant crowd has gathered, and Dogma delivers a dramatic, theatrical performance that divides opinion as much as it entertains. It is accessible, pop-infused rock music filled with sex and occult themes, and it will likely always find its audience.
Split
The Copenhagen hardcore act SPLIT has quickly made its mark on the Danish metal scene. The band was formed on Amager as recently as August 2024 by frontman Benjamin Jeppesen and has already established itself as one of the most hard-hitting new additions to the Danish hardcore scene. Their style is simple yet effective, stripped of unnecessary technical layers, and driven by direct, energetic intensity in what they call ‘Amager Hardcore’.
Their musical identity sits at the raw intersection where hardcore meets modern metalcore. The sound is defined by heavy, downtuned guitar riffs, explosive rhythms, and relentless breakdowns. Tracks from their debut EP 2300 and newer material are tightly structured, maintaining a constant peak of energy without losing rhythmic control. The vocals are aggressive, shouted, and filled with raw anger. The set begins with guest appearances from well-known names in the metal scene, including members of Neckbreakker and Lifesick. The area in front of the Gehenna stage is packed from the start, and it does not take long before the first circle pit erupts.
Thrown
The Swedish band Thrown is one of the first pleasant surprises of the day. The quartet was formed in Stockholm in 2021 by experienced musicians from acts such as Vildhjarta and Humanity’s Last Breath, and with the EP Extended Pain and the album Excessive Guilt, they have built a strong reputation on pure aggression.
Their music is based on an extremely angry and direct form of nu-metalcore, where hardcore energy and heavy grooves dominate the sound. The band has deliberately dropped the bass guitar. Instead, a thick, suffocating low end is created by extremely downtuned seven-string guitars producing dissonant and almost manic riffs. The songs are short, explosive bursts of energy, rarely exceeding two minutes, blending trap-influenced rhythmic shifts with mechanical breakdowns. Vocalist Marcus Lundqvist effortlessly switches between deep growls and a fast, spitting rap delivery full of intensity. The crowd responds enthusiastically, turning the area in front of the stage into a massive party.
Twenty One Children
It is always fascinating when cultures collide, and this is no exception. Twenty One Children completely breaks with expectations of what raw underground music is supposed to be. The trio was formed in Soweto, South Africa, in the early 2020s by friends Abdula, Thula, and Biko. While garage rock is often associated with Western scenes, they have created a movement rooted in their local environment that is now reaching a global audience.
Their music is an extremely fast and chaotic blend of skate punk and old-school thrash, with deep influences from South African kwaito and underground culture. The songs are short, explosive outbursts built on simple punk structures and driving drums. The vocals sound like desperate, piercing battle cries. The lyrics may sometimes lack variation, but the band performs with full conviction. Unfortunately, they played at the same time as Tom Morello on one of the main stages, resulting in a modest audience. However, this did not deter them, and they engaged strongly with the crowd, even managing to spark a small circle pit.
Loathe
Loathe is one of the most intriguing names on the current British metal scene. The band was formed in Liverpool in 2014 and initially relied on more conventional metalcore formulas, but over recent releases such as I Let It in and It Took Everything, they have developed a highly distinctive musical identity.
Their sound balances extreme aggression with dreamy atmospherics. It merges heavy, mechanical metalcore and nu-metal grooves with floating shoegaze textures. The guitar work constantly shifts between deep, angular djent riffs and expansive ambient layers filled with reverb and distortion. The compositions are fluid and unpredictable, with chaotic and dissonant breakdowns suddenly transitioning into beautiful post-rock passages. The contrast is especially evident in the vocals, where Kadeem France and Erik Bickerstaffe alternate between deep, desperate screams and clean, whisper-like melodies. A portion of the crowd left during the set, as this layered and complex style is not for everyone.
Photo’s (c) Morten Holmsgaard Kristensen
