LIVE REPORT
Bosphorus Metal Festival 2026 — Two Days Under the Sign of Metal
Performances, atmosphere and perspectives converge
Once again, the PitStop team comes together to offer different perspectives on this year’s Bosphorus Metal Festival. Bringing together our impressions of the performances and the festival as a whole, this collaborative review reflects the experience from both in front of and behind the stage. Each team member focuses on different bands, moments and details, creating a collective account that goes beyond a single point of view. Here is this year’s Bosphorus Metal Festival, as seen through the eyes of the PitStop team.
Greetings, everyone,
Even though it has been almost a week since the fifth edition of Bosphorus Metal Festival, I think we can all agree that when we close our eyes, great memories still come flooding back. I know we are still humming the melodies we heard at the festival.
We can say that a sustainable metal festival culture in our country is finally developing with this festival. The organizers are clearly working toward that goal as well. Regardless of attendance or the various problems our country faces, the fact that this festival continues to exist is something that deserves appreciation in its own right. Especially considering the number of canceled shows, this achievement gives everyone who listens to this music a sense of hope. In this context, the announcement of bands for the following festival on the second day has also become a Bosphorus tradition over the past two years...
Talking about 2027 before I have even started describing this year's festival actually says a lot about the excitement I feel inside. Every year, my first thought is always this:
As music fans who love the extreme side of metal, we generally want bands that have never played in our country, or bands known, listened to and adored by only 50–100 people, rather than mainstream acts. And what a coincidence, and what a joy, that the organizers have the same goal and enthusiasm. Therefore, more than anything else, we want this festival to reach more people, sell enough tickets somehow and simply go well.
After that introduction, let's get to what we experienced and felt this year. Once again, as the Pitstop team, we did our best in various roles both behind and in front of the stage, working to ensure that the festival ran smoothly and that it would live on in our memories afterwards.
Just like last year, the festival began with a conference featuring bands and guests who talked about music. Unfortunately, I couldn't attend because I couldn't get time off work, but Hüseyin and Eylem from our team took their places at the conference and later joined the boat trip, again just like last year, where the bands and press were invited. Needless to say, they were very lucky to be part of this special event.
I arrived at the festival on the first day, before Kampfar took the stage. I was very curious to see the band I had previously watched at Brutal Assault Festival perform on our own stage, because the Norwegian band has earned the respect of many listeners within its genre and has continued to build on its established path without compromising it, producing strong work along the way. As expected, Kampfar came onstage with plenty of energy and repeatedly drew the audience into their show, opening the festival for me with a great setlist. Since the earlier bands on the first day didn't really appeal to me, I started my festival with this band, as I said.
Of course, this underground band in our country still played to a respectable crowd before leaving the stage, but I was left wanting more. I find it extremely valuable that this kind of band comes to our country as part of the festival.
The second band we watched was Exhumer. Since I wasn't particularly familiar with the band, I initially watched the show from further back, partly to rest, but their energy was so high that they managed to pull me all the way to the front of the stage. The band's vocalist managed to win over the audience with his Turkish, helped by the fact that he had previously lived in Turkey, but speaking Turkish was obviously not the only thing that impressed the crowd. The guitars sounded genuinely sharp and machine-like, and everyone suddenly came alive with the adrenaline of thrash metal. Heads started banging and people began preparing for the mosh pits. The band went all the way back to their first album and delivered a real feast for the people who had come to see them. The thing we kept saying to each other was how great the sound was. Anyone who regularly attends concerts and festivals will understand this very well: at events in our country, we all care enormously about the sound system being satisfying, often even more than the bands themselves. I can say that this expectation was met completely at this festival as well.
After roughly 50 minutes of performance, Moonspell slowly took the stage. I think this was my fourth or fifth time seeing the band, but I have to say that I get excited about Moonspell every single time. I especially love how their setlists always combine songs from their older and newer albums. At this festival, however, we think the band fell victim to the sound engineer a little. The sound after Exhumer was extremely bass-heavy. Since most of us knew the songs by heart, we were completing them in our heads, but perhaps those seeing the band for the first time were not quite as pleased.
With their new album now released, the first three songs of their set came from it. Despite the album being new, the audience's response to these songs was very strong, and I can say that everyone enjoyed them. The reviews and album coverage had already been saying that the band's latest record was highly satisfying. After those first three songs, the band gave us an autumnal atmosphere with tracks from Irreligious, Extinct and Wolfheart. The only slight disappointment for me was that Herr Spiegelmann, a song played at every Moonspell show I have attended so far, was left out. Still, I can say that everyone was happy with the performance.
And finally, I Am Morbid slowly made their way onto the stage to close the night. Without getting into the band's sensational news, if I have to briefly share my thoughts, we watched a band that was thoroughly in command of the songs they played, with the instruments sounding exactly as they should, and that genuinely felt like a headliner. The people who had come specifically to see this cult death metal band were watching the stage with admiration. However, when we look at the interest from the Turkish audience once again, the number of people watching the final and headlining show of the night was quite low. Seeing a band that might have played to five or six times as many people at a festival abroad like this was a little sad, I have to admit.
That was how the first day ended. On the second day, there were two bands I was particularly interested in. Still, I was at the venue around 6 p.m. to chat with friends and watch some of the bands I wasn't particularly interested in live. When I arrived, Sarcofago were performing onstage. I heard from friends who are fans of the band and interested in them that they had some very positive impressions. Afterwards, one of the old and beloved names of German thrash metal, Tankard, took the stage. I would say that those who love this genre got to see two great bands this year. After Exhumer, Tankard also delivered a performance that fired up the crowd and got everyone involved in the show.
Then it was time for Kataklysm, the band I had been excited about seeing at the festival. A considerable number of people were excited because they would be seeing the band in our country for the first time. At festivals like this, death metal and metalcore bands that entertain the audience, get people headbanging and, simply put, let everyone blow off some steam are always very popular. Kataklysm fully lived up to those expectations and, if I may say so without overstepping, we witnessed a performance that even surpassed the interest surrounding Satyricon, the band everyone had been waiting for. We had so much fun and spent so much energy that we had nothing left for Satyricon.
The band was constantly communicating with the audience and made an extraordinary effort to entertain people and make sure they enjoyed the show. We had actually talked about their trademark crowdsurfing before the concert and thought it probably wouldn't really catch on in our country, but that wasn't the case at all. When Maurizio announced As I Slither, we all looked at each other and smiled. Maurizio asked everyone to make their way to the stage on top of the crowd's hands, but what he didn't know was that the guards in our country weren't familiar with this ritual. The audience didn't care and started crowdsurfing anyway, and some genuinely great moments came out of it. I couldn't resist either and threw myself onto the hands of the crowd. Having the chance to experience something I had previously only experienced at festivals abroad, for the first time at a festival in my own country, felt absolutely incredible. For that reason, I would like to thank the band and the organizers once again.
Unfortunately, the performance of the band that everyone couldn't get enough of, and would happily have watched play again, came to an end. It was finally time for Satyricon, perhaps the most anticipated name at the festival since they had been announced last year...
As a music fan who has been attending concerts for years, we have watched many bands that could be called legends, but one of the things we have always said to each other after concerts was, “Man, I wish Satyricon would come here one day so we could finally see them with our own eyes.” That moment had finally arrived, and we were going to see Satyricon live.
I can't move on without mentioning this. The fact that the organizers allocated only one hour each to the co-headliner and headliner left all of us feeling short-changed. Being able to watch a legendary band like Satyricon for only one hour was something that upset all of us before the concert had even started. Still, as soon as those first notes came through our ears, we stood there gazing at the stage in awe. The band's energy was also quite impressive, regardless of the music they were playing. With a great setlist that fit into that one-hour slot, they left us all in awe.
One of the band's classics, Mother North, was played — the video for which we had all watched on the TRT 2 Rock Market programme and which, as every teenage metalhead knows, features that famous scene. The response to K.I.N.G., another great live song, was also excellent. I also have to mention that the light shows from all the bands added two or three times more to the pleasure we got from the festival. The flames rising along with the songs and the light shows were a great detail that complemented the music.
For us, the 11 songs Satyricon played seemed to start and end in the blink of an eye. We were all humming Satyricon as we left the venue :)
By the way, three names from next year's lineup were also announced, and once again the organizers revealed three bands that have not yet performed in our country and that I am sure many metal fans would love to see.
Kanonenfieber, Vreid and Textures impressed many of the people who were there, but of course we were all expecting bigger and more exciting names. Not hearing a major name like last year was a little disappointing. Of course, there is absolutely no question about the standing of the announced bands within the metal scene, but as I said, there is a slightly different demand in our country.
And so we reached the end of this year's festival as well. Even if only for two days, we escaped from the real life we live in and spent an amazing time inside the illusion of this music.
I remembered one of the festival's other highlights while writing this: the food and drink options also included things I love, such as coffee and churros. As for food, I think the choices of hamburgers, pizza and hot dogs were more than sufficient. I'm not going into the prices, because everything is already expensive enough in normal life, let alone at a festival. Another point I wanted to mention this year was the presence of stalls in the indoor area next to the venue, selling things such as jewelry, guitars and clothing. In fact, we can say that every year this festival is starting to resemble similar festivals abroad. The photo exhibition by our friend Serkan Tekin, who has taken photographs at many concerts held in Turkey, also attracted considerable attention.
In short, we have once again reached the end of a festival that put a smile on our faces. My biggest wish for next year is for the festival to receive more of the recognition it deserves. Come in force next year, and let's grow this great event together.
3000 AD.
As the opening band on the first day, New Zealand thrash band 3000 AD. were onstage — an interesting and surprising choice. The band's highly energetic performance made a major contribution to getting the audience warmed up to the atmosphere despite the hot weather. Watching drummer-vocalist Bones was particularly enjoyable. It was the first time I had personally witnessed a thrash band with its vocals handled by the drummer, and it was a rather interesting experience. At all festivals around the world similar to Bosphorus, this kind of national and stylistic diversity is given great importance. From that perspective, I have to say that I found the choice of this band very successful.
KHEPRA
Khepra, one of the important bands in our country and part of the Turkish band selection at the festival, stood out with their stage presence and attention to detail. Seeing this level of care from Turkish bands onstage genuinely makes me very happy. Not only through their stage presence but also through their performance, Khepra delivered one of the festival's stronger sets and have recently been representing our country very well abroad in the symphonic death metal scene. I think they were another very good choice in terms of the festival's diversity. Perhaps their stage time could have been pushed back a little.
CUTTERRED FLESH
The Czech brutal death/core band brought an incredible amount of movement to the festival stage on the first day with their performance. Their energy and eagerness to perform made them one of the festival's spark-plug bands. Vocalist Jirka's tremendous stage presence in particular made for a highly entertaining performance and shook off the lethargy brought on by the hot weather. I find the energizing force of bands like this at long-running festivals extremely valuable because keeping the audience's pulse high throughout is genuinely difficult. In that sense, I once again found the choice of this band very fitting.
FLESHLESS
The second Czech band of the first day, Fleshless, gave the impression that they had literally taken the energy flag from Cuttered Flesh. The death metal band not only got the audience moving but also fully integrated them into the festival spirit. Despite it again being one of the hotter parts of the day, they delivered a highly lively performance. In terms of audience participation, I can say that they gave us one of the most energetic moments of the first day.
Day Two's Daytime Bands
YAŞRU
I had been listening to some of Yaşru's songs with great affection for many years, and thanks to this festival, I finally had the chance to see them live for the first time. What I saw onstage was a performance that genuinely made me happy and managed to capture the audience despite the early hour of the day. I already loved Yaşru's originality and their folk atmosphere, reflected through sound, visuals and lyrics, drawing on old Turkish culture, but their stage presence was also genuinely successful. Another point I want to mention is the courtesy and gentlemanly manner displayed by the members of this band, something unfortunately missing from some foreign bands. I think they represent what a true Turkish person should be like very well through their gentlemanly presence and politeness. I want to give them a special mention not only for their musicianship but also for this aspect of the band.
NAHUM
Once again, Czech metal set the festival grounds ablaze in the early hours of the day. The band's death/thrash hybrid style, which I was hearing live for the first time, was perfectly suited to the festival atmosphere. The audience's response was equally fitting despite the early hour. Particularly notable for their strong drumming and vocal performance, Nahum quickly broke through the lethargy caused by the hot weather and knew how to get the area in front of the stage moving through their sincere interaction with the audience. Successfully becoming one of the day's energizing bands, they were definitely one of the festival's memorable acts.
ATROX TRAUMA
One of the important names in Hungary's thrash/death metal scene, Atrox Trauma immediately managed to win over the metal fans filling the area despite the early hour with their energy. With solid guitar riffs, high-tempo drumming and their vocalist's clear style, they unleashed a full-on modern thrash metal storm. They completely turned the disadvantage of an early stage time into an advantage through the professional presence and energy they displayed from the moment they stepped onstage.
For these reasons, I am certain they received full marks from the Istanbul audience and that they will definitely want to come back.
Annnnd, the festival’s host band, Moribund Oblivion, takes the stage. I knew there would be some changes to the lineup, but honestly, I wasn’t expecting this much. I knew Feyzi abi had left, but finding out that İlkay abi wasn’t on drums either (I don’t know whether that’s permanent or not) was a big surprise. Around noon, when Bahadır abi said, “Come downstairs, we’ve got some things to pick up,” I thought we were going to carry something to the back. But when we got to the door and I saw Utku (Black Tooth) abi, I was genuinely surprised. He was the last person I expected to see. Then we picked up the drum equipment from the car, and when he said we should take it backstage, the penny dropped :). The stage preparations began, there was laughing and talking, and they rushed down the stairs. At that moment, Bahadır abi involuntarily said, “There’s stuff going on backstage and then there’s going onstage too... phew, this is stressful, Hüseyin,” which brought a smile to my face :). If it creates that much stress even for a man who has spent so many years onstage, then there must be some serious effort behind it, I’d say. Actually, that nervousness was probably not fear, but a mixture of pride and excitement that comes with being the host band.
As it turned out, that feeling only lasted until they rushed onto the stage. Once he stood in front of the microphone, all that excitement had disappeared, and the only thing visible in his eyes was the connection he wanted to establish with the audience. It was inevitably a strange feeling to see Dou abi from Khepra onstage this time instead of Feyzi abi. As you know, when you watch a band, you naturally look for the faces you are used to seeing onstage. Fortunately, Dou abi played the songs flawlessly and like a machine, as if he had been in the band for years.
Moribund Oblivion last played in Turkey in April as part of their new album tour. I can definitely say they seem much more comfortable outdoors than at indoor shows. It was also nice to hear some songs from the new album.
By the way, they had a minor technical problem during the show. This conversation took place among the crew at the time:
“Broooo, somehow it always happens to Bahadır. They had a technical problem at the previous show too.”
Someone else chimed in from the side:
“Come on, guys, let it happen. The evil eye has to be warded off. If it’s going to happen to someone, let it be them :)”
Haha, actually, they’re absolutely right. Just think about it: you bring dozens of bands here, and every single one of them gets through their set like clockwork and leaves the stage. So let Moribund have the glitches and technical hiccups. That’s not something they’re going to get hung up on. They’re already up there, happy to be giving you a great festival.
In a nutshell, Moribund Oblivion are a band I enjoy seeing live. Whatever anyone says, seeing Bahadır abi and his bandmates on that stage is a great feeling. Long may they continue — they are loved...
Photos
https://https://www.bosphorusopenairmetalfest.com/