Saturday
The program on Saturday starts as early as 10:00, basically in the middle of a headbanger’s usual night, ages before coffee and breakfast. But what can we do? Exactly: four of us conquer our weaker selves, get up early, have coffee and scrambled eggs, and stand in front of the first band right on time.
Dutch tribute band GOREFUNEST open the Frühschoppen on the Tent Stage with a spectacular set of Gorefest songs. Old-school groove and Death Metal reign over the not-so-small number of enthusiasts early in the day. Did I already mention that it is their first time at Party.San?
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It was worth getting up so early FOR VICTORY as well. The German Death Metal tribute band presents a thunderous selection of the British Death Metal legend’s finest songs. Like the previous band, it is their first time at Party.San, tearing down the Tent Stage.
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We need to rush a bit, though, because something happens at the Main Stage, and it is face masked but GUT. German Goregrindcore breaks out of its cage. It is rough, it is tough and the right band at the right time.
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Afterwards, it is time for, you might have guessed it, the noon drink at Seven Lords, when the others of our small group arrive. But today is our rum day, and once again a fine selection awaits us.
Then we open the GATES OF ISHTAR from Finland. In comparison, they are ear candy, even though their Melodic Death Metal is brutal enough to wake up the last sleeper and even the walking dead.
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Suddenly, we experience some INTERNAL BLEEDING but don’t need to see the doctor. It seems we remain at the front of the stage to be healed by US-American Brutal Slam Death Metal. There is no time for prisoners and no excuse for missing the mosh pit. Get over it and party(san) on at 13:45.
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HEXVESSEL from Finland invite us into their very own mystic world, close to Mother Nature and the myths of ancient times. Folk Doom indeed is an interesting genre if you like this stuff, those stories, tales and legends of the North.
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First-time Party.Saners BAXAXAXA open the regular programme on the Tent Stage today. German Black Metal, corps paint, raw and stumping rhythms, and some minimalist synthesizer sound pieces lead us in an unexpected direction of Metal. It is strange but convincing, even though it might remain a niche within the niches.
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A German band gets ready on the Main Stage as well. ACRANIUS blow our minds away with their Brutal Deathcore and the recent release “Whiteout” in their luggage, alongside songs from the previous four albums.
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Then it is time for what had to happen anyway: BLOODY VENGEANCE on the Tent Stage. They are another German band and another band playing Party.San for the first time. The set is intense; Death, Black and Thrash influences are undeniable and create a powerful wall of sound.
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On the Main Stage, a band from Norway leads us IN THE WOODS for the first time at Party.San. Now it is time for Avant-garde Black Metal, so you know what to expect. And you are not disappointed. It becomes very atmospheric and progressive now. It is a very welcome variety after all those really brutal guitar sounds so far.
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Meanwhile, the Tent Stage is again ruled by a German Death Metal band making its Party.San debut, and the tent is transformed into a TEMPLE OF DREAD and its sacrificial rituals. It is archaic, apocalyptic and dark, and that is what the audience deserves, nothing more and nothing less.
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Did we already have a Swedish band playing for the first time on the Main Stage today? No, we haven’t, but now it is time for FIRESPAWN, old-school Death Metal. This means no compromise but a tribute, a tribute to their former vocalist LG Petrov, who sadly passed away in 2021 after losing his battle against cancer. Thus, their full show is dedicated to him and only him. I’m pretty sure he watched the show from heaven above and loved it.
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We remain Swedish but move over to the Tent Stage, where IMPURITY awaits us at 18:25, close to dinner time. But there is no hunger for food, only an appetite for Death Metal back to the basics, without any nonsense or modern gimmicks. For the first time at Party.San and already fitting in as if it were their 10th time, they feed us well.
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I didn’t count the bands playing Party.San for the first time in 2026. The next German band is one of them, on the Main Stage. GROZA are dedicated to Black Metal with an intellectual attitude regarding the depth of their lyrics. There is not only destruction and aggression but also the sad world of isolation, losses and eccentric disunity. That’s the really heavy and dark stuff; that’s the music which demands your full attention. Faces covered with black cloth do its part.
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Back to the Tent Stage, and it is already time for CELESTE from France. Fog and mist are part of their live performances, and I have seldom had a clear view of the band whenever I watched them in the past. It is slightly different today. As extreme as the usual amount of mist on stage is the sound of the band, certainly nothing for soft eggs and the faint-hearted, but the crowd loves it.
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MURDER SQUAD on the Main Stage are from Sweden, and one would tend to call them a supergroup of Death Metal if that were a common phrase in the genre. They play Party.San for the first time as a band in their own right, and of course they present an old-school set of their Death Metal songs.
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Let’s cross the infield to the Tent Stage and the Kattegat to go down to the south of Scandinavia, to Denmark. Let’s welcome the next band for the first time at Party.San, and let’s get SUNKEN. Black Metal, grooves and atmospheric sounds invite us to explore another misty dimension of Metal which we did not expect to be so convincing and powerful.
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Let’s play Criss-Cross and return to Sweden. WOLFSBRIGADE dive into the metal world of Crust and D-Beat. Raw energy and live brilliance do their part for the last band on the Main Stage before the two headliners.
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But before it is time for them, it is time for the last band this year on the Tent Stage. TULUS from Norway are also playing Party.San for the first time. Black Metal rules in its fundamental elements, always pushed towards a new experience and evolution since 1991.
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The co-headliner of the last day is based in Sweden and has existed for more than three decades. MARDUK fit Party.San like a glove; the show is tight and intense and allows no compromises, no betrayal of the core of true and honest Black Metal.
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Then it is time, time for the legend. The band could play everywhere; the band crosses the borders between extreme genres and softer elements of metal. We talk about HYPOCRISY and Peter Tägtgren. No words need to be said. This is the sound and show all of us came for tonight. This is the legend we all deserve and get to celebrate.
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Anyone who is not too tired or does not need to leave early the next morning has the chance for a last Metal Disco before 2027, same place, same time, same procedure, but different bands at Party.San 2027. Get your tickets soon; they are selling fast!
We sit down instead and let the festival pass by again. We liked almost all bands; our band highlights were IOTUNN, JUNGLE ROT, ALCEST, ASAGRAUM, MOONSPELL and HYPOCRISY, alongside all the other great bands of the festival. But the bands are not everything, just look at the otherwise super-serious security.
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There is something which makes Party.San at Airport Obermehler-Schlotheim so special and so different from most other festivals. It starts with the arrival: it is easy-peasy, with no long queues, even though the entrance control really deserves its name and checks all cars. It continues with the stewards on the campground, who lead you exactly to your parking lot, with more than enough space for your car, tent and pavilion. It continues with very clean Sh*t ‘n’ Shower facilities at very fair prices. The whole atmosphere on the campground is very friendly; there is no rush, no stress and no trash left when you leave.
The infield, with its merch and food stalls, is more than large enough for the audience and never overcrowded as elsewhere. There are no screens because nobody needs them. The selection of quality food is excellent, and the prices for food, beverages and beer are very fair, almost at the lower end of festival prices.
Seven Lords Pub is a little gem itself for good reasons. Thank you guys for the nice conversations! And the crew, no matter whether at the entrance, on the campground, in the pit, at the front of the stage or in security, is just perfectly nice. And so is the audience, the spectators.
All in all, it is a big little family which comes together for a few days once a year. Experience it yourself; it is worth it, and don’t forget the Party.San Herbstoffensive!
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Online:
Please buy merch and physical music or downloads from the bands official sources and don’t stream it for free because it steals your artists’ income.
Text and photos by Friend.X aka Mr. Deep