«10»: Picks for the first day of Arctangent Festival

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Arctangent Festival keeps growing year after year. The small prog (and not only prog) sibling of 2000 Trees has become one of those festivals that show how a properly organized effort can win both respect and attendance. That is why this year will be the last time Arctangent Festival takes place at Fernhill Farm, south of Bristol. However idyllic the place may be, it can no longer contain it, and so the festival is preparing for new paths. This year, in its twelfth edition, the festival is getting ready to celebrate and say goodbye to its first home, and we are very honored to be part of that celebration. It is not exactly a random celebration either, since medium-sized British festivals continue to gain ground and popularity. In our humble opinion, that is because their organizers, instead of fighting each other, work together; many of them share common activities and do not try to undermine one another. More on that in our next pieces.

Here, we will explore together the surprises of Arctangent Festival’s opening day. On Wednesday, August 19, the festival will not yet be in full swing-at least on paper-but the live options are impressive. With two of the four stages operating, the good news is that there is no overlapping. We will try to catch a little bit of everything, but it is also the perfect opportunity to get familiar with the site. Some performances, however, are not to be missed, and we will explore them below.

You will also find, in all the articles, a music playlist with our selections.

Spotify Playlist

1

Swamp Coffin (Yohkai Stage, 13.00 - 13.30)

Perhaps at a festival with such a strong alternative presence (and therefore many options for a gentle start to the day) Swamp Coffin may seem like an unusual choice. But as veterans of festivals that combine the heavy with the ethereal, a vampiric doom/sludge metal sound like theirs is exactly what we need to wreck our necks from the very first minute of the event. With three albums to their name, Swamp Coffin combine the Victorian era, undertakers, epic elements, and doom dirtied by the swamp: a little Louisiana in the British marshes. Who really needs coffee when it can be replaced with slow, black poison of a musical nature?

2

Chalk Hands (Yohkai Stage, 14.10 - 14.40)

Here at Rocking, we love screamo, and so we have supported Chalk Hands from their earliest steps, because this is a band that claimed its place and earned it. From a defiant debut to this year’s radiant "The Line That Shapes The Coast Of Us", Chalk Hands have now learned how to channel raw emotion through a palette of varied influences, from midwestern rock to post-rock textures and post-hardcore intensity. They also have a very strong reputation for their live shows. Since this may very well be a breakthrough year for them, this particular appearance carries extra weight.

3

Overhead, The Albatross (Yohkai Stage, 15.25 - 16.10)

 My introduction to Overhead, The Albatross came at midday on the first day of last year’s Damnation Festival, when, quite unexpectedly, thousands of us burst into tears in broad daylight, as their performance was dedicated to a late member of the organization. Overhead, The Albatross, however, are much more than that. Their take on modern post-rock, kinetic and cinematic, with images of immense power and an openly political voice, can move even the most tired former devotee of the genre. Their live performance of the song "Paul Lynch" has been etched into my heart like a scar from a happy memory. I cannot wait for us to meet again.

4

Sans Froid (PX3 Stage, 16.15 - 16.50) 

Finally arriving at the sweetest point of the day, Bristol natives Sans Froid, with that wonderful name, carry in their quiver polyrhythmic elements ranging from prog to math rock, and more broadly an art-rock approach that impresses first through the percussion, then through its interaction with the vocals and inspired lyrics, and finally through the guitar’s concision. Their fresh second full-length album, "Back Into The Womb", offers a very good description of their musical identity. I think we are probably talking about a band that, if it continues steadily on its path, many people will soon be talking about.

5

Lost In Kyiv (Yohkai Stage, 16.55 - 17.40) 

In their now fifteen years of existence, Lost In Kyiv are anything but newcomers to the creation of emotional, atmospheric instrumental music. Though lost in Kyiv, the band comes to us from Paris and this year draws momentum from a newly acquired sense of intensity. Some lineup changes, as well as this year’s release "We’re All Going To Be Fine" under the wing of Pelagic Records, arrive like a punch against the misery of our times. Thus, Lost In Kyiv arm themselves with hope and use it against the depression and bleakness of our era in a way that existentially revives them. We are certain that their performance will win a major bet: that post-rock may have succumbed to the loop of itself, but over the last two years it has been reborn stronger in every way.

6

Dimscûa (PX3 Stage, 17.45 - 18.20) 

One of the most promising presences in the modern post-sludge sound has been Dimscûa, who impressed last year with the EP "Dust Eater" from the very first sample of their work. For better or worse, after such first impressions, the five-piece have a lot to prove, and we are eagerly awaiting a first full-length album. Until then, the band continues to impress on stage. A first introduction last year was enough to convince us of their quality; now they remain to be tested under sunlight. Yet their aggressive, melancholic atmosphere and guitar crescendos are more than capable of briefly extinguishing the sun and dominating it.

7

Svalbard (Yohkai Stage 18.25 - 19.10)

And the absolute highlight of the day for this writer is found in a name that sounds like a faraway place. The truth, however, is that Svalbard, despite their name borrowing the Norwegian designation, are children of Bristol. In a bittersweet moment, Arctangent will not only say goodbye to Fernhill Farm this year. Along with it, it will also say goodbye to the small miracle of Svalbard, with what will probably be their final concert forever. The moments we have shared with the feminist rage of Svalbard and Serena are precious. Their melodic crust in dialogue with their post-black quality has given discographic gems to those of us who love this music, as well as lyrics that live rent-free in our hearts. The final farewell will be as magnificent as it deserves to be.

8

Cardiacs (Yohkai Stage, 20.05 - 21.05)

We have written in great detail about the much-discussed story carried by Cardiacs’ final work, titled "LSD". But the chance to experience this band, or at least what remains of it, live will be one of those opportunities a person does not easily forget. Jim Smith, with select musicians by his side, will complete his brother Tim’s work and legacy on stage, presenting live at last the final musical work that, ironically, a heart attack almost deprived the entire world of. Twenty-six years later, a full stop can now be placed. Their experimentation has inspired generation after generation of British and non-British musicians alike. It will surely serve as a good omen for the rest of Arctangent Festival as well.

9

SikTh (Yohkai Stage, 22.00 - 23.00)

Before metalcore became yet another hugely popular musical genre, when the birth and rise of nu metal had flooded the label of new blood in heavy music, and when progressive metal dared to push forward, somewhere among all of that stood SikTh. A historic band at the crossroads between popular and underground metal, inspired by Strapping Young Lad and serving as a foundation for many who followed, especially in the djent subgenre. With polyrhythms and thunderous bass, SikTh, as the festival’s last "heavy" live band of the day, intend to shake the fields of southern Britain, leaving us full of anticipation for the days to come.

10

God Alone, silent disco set (Yohkai Stage, 23.45 - 00.35)

What on earth happens at Fernhill Farm after midnight? Well, the decibel limit has its advantages. Overcoming problems, Arctangent Festival created the tradition of silent disco sets: late-night performances in which the band plays and the audience listens through headphones, naturally provided by the festival. On the first day, this task will fall to God Alone, the multifaceted group from southern Ireland who, somewhere between math rock and electronic sounds, will send us jumping around like maniacs while, to all appearances, the rest of the world hears nothing at all.