«10»: Picks for day four of ArcTanGent Festival
The final chapter at Fernhill Farm will be written in gold
Από την Ειρήνη Τάτση, 21/08/2026 @ 11:15
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Thirteen years in a wonderful place, and in the time between these articles we learned that this year will also be the last time that, for a great many reasons, ArcTanGent Festival will take place at Fernhill Farm. Don’t be disheartened, though-it isn’t ending, but rather coming back stronger just a little further down the road. We hope we’ll manage to be there then, too. Consequently, the fourth and final day of this year’s edition will carry a different kind of significance as well.
Within an utterly impressive lineup, making choices is incredibly difficult. Still, it is also true that it features many bands and artists we love, so ultimately no one really loses out. Of course, one of the festival’s biggest highlights, even before we get to the bands, is the live edition of the 2 Promoters, 1 Pod podcast, where ArcTanGent and 2000 Trees organiser James Scarlett, together with Damnation organiser Gavin McInally, share their secrets and adventures every week from the world of festival promotion and their love of music.
1
Erotic Secrets Of Pompeii (Bixler Stage, 11.35 - 12.05)
It is almost impossible to be a connoisseur of groove, stumble upon Erotic Secrets Of Pompeii, and not fall in love with them immediately. As progressive as they are technical, as emotional as they are mathematical, Erotic Secrets Of Pompeii are here to sweep you away with their intoxicating rhythms, which flirt with the boundaries of dance music-or even go beyond them. So far, they have built up a formidable reputation for live performances brimming with theatricality and emotion. All that remains is to see whether that reputation lives up to reality.
2
Meatdripper (PX3 Stage, 12.10 - 12.40)
Four ladies from the city of all our forefathers-we are, of course, talking about Birmingham and Black Sabbath-who have devoted their art to a strain of garage doom heavier than you could possibly imagine. Although they have yet to release a full-length album, their striking stage presence, along with the carefully crafted and aesthetically distinctive artwork of their singles, has attracted just as much attention as the music itself. Now all that remains is to experience it firsthand-doom, after all, has always cried out to be a women’s affair.
3
Reclus.E (Yokhai Stage, 12.45 - 13.15)
Now imagine going to a festival completely unsuspecting-not this one, but Outbreak Festival earlier this summer-and stumbling upon a band that has you mesmerised from the very first minute. Reclus.E immediately stand out, despite the fact that they, too, have released just two singles so far. On the one hand, there is their name, borrowed from Élisée Reclus; on the other, there are Soren Bryce’s vocals (formerly of Tummyache), which leave you dizzy with their sheer immediacy. The result is a glorious outfit with a punk soul and an indie heart. They describe themselves as "Bad Brains Meets Boygenius", and I don’t think I could put it any better.
4
Forlorn (PX3 Stage, 13.20 - 14.05)
There is always something utterly compelling about heavy, slow music meeting pagan themes, and given that our own country honours this subject matter through its traditions, it would be strange not to find yourself intrigued by Forlorn’s music. Also hailing from England, Forlorn have blended these elements extremely effectively and clearly seem determined to keep pushing forward. We are still waiting to meet the successor to the wonderful "Aether", but in the meantime the band has hardly remained inactive. Quite the opposite: they continue to release new music while tirelessly making the festival rounds. It promises to be a beautiful, yet fateful encounter.
5
Oathbreaker (Main Stage, 16.15 - 17.05)
Once at Roadburn Festival wasn’t enough. Belgium’s Oathbreaker have carved out their own history in heavy music, starting from post-metal and reaching into every conceivable extreme. Their long absence only added to their legend, making the handful of shows marking their reunion some of the most eagerly anticipated events of the year. From their full performance of "Rheia" a few months ago to a show promising a dive into their entire discography, there was simply no way we could miss either.
6
Chat Pile (Main Stage, 18.00 - 18.55)
How many puns that sound like "Mask" and how many references to rotten, obscure movies can one band possibly contain? As many as it wants, is the real answer-and that answer comes straight from the heart of the United States in the form of Chat Pile. Year after year, their hometown’s most famous hillbillies continue to climb both in popularity and in their output of great music. With their new, third album just one step away from its official release, Chat Pile promise a ferocious, revitalised performance that will flatten everything in its path.
7
TTNG (This Town Needs Guns) (Yohkai Stage 19.00 - 19.50)
This particular performance may well be the decisive reason why yours truly concluded that there was simply no way she could miss this festival. The band that changed its name because it did not want to be associated with gun ownership in America has long occupied a place in the pantheon of second-wave gems that fans of Midwestern emo and math rock would discover after moving beyond the obvious names. Their album "Animals", in particular, is arguably and deservedly regarded as one of the finest examples of where these subgenres intersect. After a long period out of the spotlight, TTNG are back-and with new music, no less. There will be tears.
8
Pupil Slicer (PX3 Stage, 20.00 - 20.50)
Our first live encounter with the more-than-local Pupil Slicer came after an extremely early wake-up call so we could catch them at another festival. This time, in a slot far more befitting of them, and now with "Fleshwork" in their arsenal, Pupil Slicer’s distinctive fusion of hardcore and alternative elements will take centre stage in what may well be their biggest performance to date. Having grown even heavier with their latest release and leaving behind any trace of how reserved they might be as individuals, Pupil Slicer will devour the stage with absolute confidence.
9
A.A. Williams (Bixler Stage, 21.00 - 21.50)
Our first love affair with one of the high priestesses of the dark music we adore-and this festival features quite a few of them-began during the bleak days of lockdown with "Songs From Isolation", and that relationship has remained strong ever since. A.A. Williams is a songwriter unafraid to stare directly into her deepest darkness and transform it into art that draws us down our most personal paths-sometimes, unintentionally, into places we are afraid to revisit and whose very existence we have consigned to oblivion. With the recent "Solstice" accompanying her, we will hear old and new favourites alike. Time to prepare ourselves for the absolute emotional chaos to come.
10
Cult Of Luna & Julie Christmas performing Mariner (21.55 - 23.00)
"This album was never meant to be played live." That was how Cult Of Luna and Julie Christmas introduced the short tour that followed the release of "Mariner". Our city was among the lucky ones, and we were there. Ten years later, a mere handful of performances are set to celebrate one of the finest collaborative albums heavy music has to offer. The crushing live weight of Cult Of Luna, Julie Christmas’ spectacular stage presence and her dresses designed to be destroyed could, together, represent the absolute pinnacle of the live music experience. Actually, that’s a lie-we already know they do. And there could be nothing more fitting with which to bid farewell to ArcTanGent Festival’s first home, letting it sink while setting its bow towards new horizons, together with the SS Needle.
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