Damnation Festival 2022: Extreme Metal’s Wild and Wonderful Playground
Ah, Damnation Festival—a sacred pilgrimage for the black-clad metalhead masses, and this year, it made the jump to Manchester’s Bowlers Exhibition Centre. Some feared the move from its intimate Leeds setting might strip the fest of its cult charm, but as they say, go big or go home. Damnation went big.
With a lineup designed to make any metal fan giddy—Pig Destroyer, At the Gates, Wolves in the Throne Room, and a surprise appearance from a dancing Pikachu—it was clear this wasn’t going to be a mild-mannered affair. The venue might’ve hosted trade shows in its day, but on this chilly November weekend, it became a three-stage metal paradise filled with enough blast beats and growls to send a shiver up your spine.
Frayle kicked things off with their signature doom-infused witchcraft. Frontwoman Gwyn Strang, with her ethereal, almost hypnotic presence, might have been casting spells between each bass-throbbing track. Their sound was a blend of Portishead’s brooding atmosphere, Björk’s off-kilter oddness, and Sabbath’s fuzz-laden guitar work. It was a slow burn, the kind that crept up on you like a fog rolling in off a moonlit lake. Strang’s voice slithered through the thick, cosmic haze of sound, wrapping itself around the audience and leaving them entranced. Sure, Frayle could’ve fit right into a new-age shop selling crystals, but hey, there’s a place for doom with a bit of cosmic sparkle in the metal world.
Over on the second stage, Distant wasted no time reminding everyone that deathcore is still alive and kicking—kicking you in the face, that is. The Dutch band was brutal, in the best way possible, unleashing a sonic assault that woke up any latecomers still nursing their first beer.
Irist followed with a nuanced set that somehow made the chaos feel calculated. Mixing death metal growls with post-rock atmospherics, they created a sound that was both expansive and punishing. One minute you were lost in their lush, melodic soundscapes, and the next you were being hit over the head with a sledgehammer of blast beats. It’s like Gojira had a baby with Converge, and then that baby went on a road trip with Deftones.
Meanwhile, Bruit< brought an entirely different flavour to the proceedings. Their blend of classical instrumentation and post-rock textures added a sense of calm and beauty, something sorely needed amid the noise and fury. Violin and cello wailed as the band conjured a haunting atmosphere, their set feeling more like a cinematic experience than a concert. It was one of those rare moments where you almost forget you’re at a metal fest—until the next band punches you in the gut with a wall of distortion.
Speaking of getting punched in the gut, Austria’s Insanity Alert arrived to remind everyone that metal can, in fact, be fun. With thrash riffs fast enough to give you whiplash and lyrics that were downright ridiculous (see: Run to the Pit, a parody of Iron Maiden’s Run to the Hills), the band had the audience eating out of their hands. When a guy in a full Pikachu costume started crowd surfing, it was official—Insanity Alert wasn’t just playing music, they were throwing a party. And in a genre where bands often take themselves a bit too seriously, it was refreshing to see these guys just let loose and be stupid in the best way.
Then there was Stygian Bough, the collaborative project between Bell Witch and Aerial Ruin. This was doom metal in its purest form: slow, mournful, and devastatingly heavy. They opened with The Bastard Wind, and it felt like the entire room was collectively being pulled into a black hole of sadness. Every note lingered in the air, stretching out into eternity, while the drums crashed down like waves of despair. By the end of the set, it wasn’t just the music that was crushing—emotions were too. If you needed a soundtrack to a messy breakup, this would be it.
In stark contrast, We Lost the Sea brought the crowd back up with their instrumental post-rock epics. Their ability to weave emotion into every riff and melody was nothing short of breathtaking. Closing your eyes during their set felt like stepping into another world. They may have been instrumental, but every note seemed to speak louder than any lyrics ever could.
Pig Destroyer, though, was the main event—at least, that’s what it felt like judging by the sheer number of people crammed into the room. Playing Prowler in the Yard in its entirety, the grindcore legends didn’t so much play a show as they did unleash chaos. This was music distilled into pure, unfiltered aggression. Every riff was razor-sharp, every blast beat a punch to the gut, and vocalist J.R. Hayes howled like a man possessed. Pig Destroyer managed to turn a massive arena into a claustrophobic pit of noise, and the crowd loved every second of it. By the time they ripped through Cheerleader Corpses, it was clear why they were one of the most anticipated acts of the fest.
Wolves in the Throne Room followed with a set that felt more like a ritual than a performance. Drenched in smoke and bathed in red light, the band remained almost entirely hidden, letting their music take centre stage. This was black metal at its most immersive, a hypnotic, trance-inducing wall of sound that swept over the audience like a storm. It was chaotic, sure, but there was a strange beauty to it, too—like finding poetry in destruction.
And then there was Slaughter of the Soul. At the Gates, legends in their own right, performed the album front to back, much to the delight of the diehards in the crowd. This wasn’t just a set; it was a moment. The Swedish band, pioneers of melodic death metal, still commanded the stage like they did in the ‘90s. The title track had the crowd in a frenzy, and the combination of old-school aggression and melodic sensibilities felt just as fresh today as it did nearly 30 years ago.
As the night wore on, Pallbearer, Converge and Godflesh delivered the final, crushing blows. Pallbearer’s doom-laden, melancholic riffs washed over the crowd, each note heavy with sorrow. If doom metal was a hug, Pallbearer would be the band that gives you a long, comforting squeeze before breaking your heart.
Godflesh, meanwhile, brought industrial metal back from the ‘80s with a performance of Streetcleaner that was as relentless as it was awe-inspiring. With drum machines and crushing guitars, they created a mechanical, dystopian soundscape that felt like the perfect end to a long day of sonic brutality.
Converge’s performance of Jane Doe was nothing short of a sonic assault, but the kind you line up for willingly. With over two decades under its belt, Jane Doe remains as fresh as a cold slap to the face, its intensity somehow amplified by the years. The band’s fusion of punk’s raw chaos and metal’s calculated ferocity was on full display, proving that they’ve lost none of their edge—or volume control, for that matter.
Launching into “Concubine,” the crowd went predictably wild, with moshing so intense it resembled a heavy metal ballet. Converge didn’t just perform Jane Doe, they bled it out, note by note, leaving the audience utterly spent by the time the title track crashed down on them. You could feel the weight of the years, but not in a way that felt tired—more like witnessing a masterwork that’s aged like a fine wine. A very loud, very aggressive wine.
The surprise Entombed cover of “Wolverine Blues” was a cheeky nod to death metal purists, a delightful palate cleanser after the cathartic intensity of the main event. Frankly, after Jane Doe, any encore felt like a bonus. Converge gave everything, and then some.
Sure, there were some hiccups—food queues that threatened to become an infinite loop, and the odd technical glitch—but those were minor distractions in what was otherwise a festival masterclass. Damnation’s heart and soul survived the move to Manchester, and it’s clear that this festival is only growing stronger. From doom to deathcore, thrash to grind, Damnation Festival 2022 was a celebration of everything that makes extreme metal wonderful, weird, and wild.
And really, where else can you see Pikachu crowd-surfing to death metal?
Review & photos – Steve Gerrard
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