Mortal Sin & Hidden Intent - Musicon The Hague, 10 August 2026

Festival season means bands looking for shows on weekdays. So it could happen that on this warm Monday night we did not get one, but two Aussie thrash metal bands playing Musicon. Mortal Sin coming from Alcatraz, while Hidden Intent played Bloodstock. Monday nights are always a challenge and even more so in a month where we get flooded with shows and festivals. So I was glad to see that Musicon had some 60 in and we were not in an empty place.

Hidden Intent opened the evening and I knew that would be fine, a I saw them before at Little Devil some years ago. Although they are only with three, their overwhelming sound is impressive. If you than add fingerpicking great guitars, we did get another great show by these guys. I don't have any of their music, so to me all was new, but I do keep my beers cold in their canholder I bought at LD. A very nice opener they were.

Mortal Sin tour their 40 year existnce, releasing their debut album in 1985. Now I don't remember even knowing the name Mortal Sin in the eighties. Turned out that was my loss, as they were awesome live. The cover of their debut Mayhemic Destruction is classic eighties, which might make you think of a band like Attacker. Their sound and especially the voice of Mat Maurer made me more think of Testament at times. We got a long set and the outstanding track to me was Lebanon, what a classic and still relevant 41 years later. Shouting along with Blood, Death , Hatred also worked out well. So in the end we got two great bands and  I doubled my Aussie thrash can holder collection. With 30 degrees coming up, I should try them out this week. In two weeks time this package plays Sounddog. Go see them  if you are around, you won't be disappointed.

Armored Saint & After All - De Boerderij Zoetermeer, 8 August 2026

Armored Saint back in The Netherlands, So I had to be there obviously. The last times I saw them live, they always managed to enter my top gigs of the year list. Why? because the Saint never disappoints. OK one minor disappointment upon arrival, their very nice white Tees were sold out in larger sizes. Due to an anniversary Hans and Mary  went to see te band in Essen already (combining with Crimson Glory and Wings of Steel, so what a midweek) and I ended going with Magchiel. Inside de Boerderij I knew I would bump into some friends as Musicon moved the Mortal Sin show to Monday in order not to collide with this show. Still de Boerderij could have filled up more, but good music is not always defining audience sizes. Well I was there and looking forward to yet another highlight of the year.

Opening band tonight were After All from Belgium. Now I saw them before at Alcatraz years ago, when it was still held indoors and at a parking stage. In Musicon and at Metal Experience Fest I was not around, so I was curious about their set. I remembered a bald vocalist, who now either suddenly grew long hair or was substituted over the past decade plus. Their set was pretty fine and their style of metal comes close to eighties US metal, so a fine band they are indeed. I might want to check out their next album as the new song sounded promising.

But in reality I was looking forward to Armored Saint as from entering de Boerderij, so let the Saint conquer once again. Well they did. Opening with a new song Close to the Bone of their latest Emotion Factory Reset it already started fine, which only improved with the March of the Saint thereafter. I can start mentioning highlights, but the overview of their discography was fine from start to finish. The band was pleased when the audience continued singing along with the guitars after Creepy Feelings finished (a first this tour) and I must say even if not packed, de Boerderij rarely looked this lively before. This all because Armored Saint know how to entertain, without taking themselves all too serious. Aftermath had John Bush singing from the hall again and when I cycled home from the station tonight I could not stop singing Last Train Home, even if riding a bicycle.  Maybe becaiuse it is among my five favourite songs ever? Thank you Armored Saint for doing everything right again tonight. This show was crammed inbetween Alcatraz and Keep it True Legends. Next year Alcatraz confirmed John Bush playing his Anthrax years. If like the US shows this year that means a support of Category 7, count me in please for a Dutch show. Metal as it was meant to sound is what we got tonight and I realized once again why I prefer smaller venues over huge halls. And thanks Magchiel for the awkward pic.

Savatage - 013 Tilburg, 1 August 2026

Savatage coming for a headline show to the Netherlands. Obvious I would not miss that, as last year's return after a long hiatus I missed being in Brazil and Europe on the wrong dates. Setting the ball park first. Savatage are among my favourite bands and one of the three I saw most playing live in the nineties (next to Psychotic Waltz and Riverdogs). The last time I saw them was at Bospop 2001 so already 25 years ago. Like most people I thought for years, that I would never see them again live on stage, but than last year they came back to life and now seem to keep on touring for years to come again. And yes, Jon Oliva is sorely missed, but his health does not allow touring really. Stories about this version being a tribute band because of his absence can be binned as the current line-up is very similar to the latter period of the band, before disappearing.

So off to Tilburg we went and we meant Hans, Mary and Magchiel joining me by car. Car on a Saturday? yes as trains were unreliable again and meant a bus part I preferred driving down south. We agreed to leave early and have a bite and a drink in the centre of Tilburg. Arriving around 17:30 we were not the only ones with that plan as many black T-shirts covered Tilburg's terraces. Seeing familiar faces en route we ended up a bit further back, enabling us to eat something. So would it be busy I thought? The answer was yes, when we entered 013. Very busy and that brings me to the only low of the evening, I don't like a busy 013. The hall is too big for my taste and you get stuck when it is (almost?) sold out. Now knowing there were at least some 50 FB or real life friends walking around I did not see most of them. I once again got confirmed that I prefer small venues, or possibly up to 800-1000 capacity like Nobel, Patronaat or Boerderij. 013 is a bit too massive for my taste, but Savatage draws larger crowds (not so much in the nineties as I saw them in places like Scum those days) so it is either massive or nothing. Luckily the Savatage crowd is a social one, meaning people of my generation who let others pass by if they wish.

At 20:30 the lights went off and an intro started bring us up to the rampestamper bit of Morphine Child. Following this by Dead Winter Dead and Jesus Saves and the mood was set. The sound was good, the band in form (Chris Caffery and Al Pitrel both shining on guitars tonight) Zak's voice holding well and the stage looking busy. I don't really know why they brought two keyboardists along, nor their names as introductions were not needed apparently. Well they both sang along with the complicated bits of Chance, so maybe there is a reason. The setlist was a trip through their discography indeed and surprises came mostly from the distant past, being to me Warriors (sung by Chris) and Unusual.

Playing a long set, meant two hours and as I just saw 23(!) songs. Now that is a proper show. Maybe for some abums I might have picked other songs, but I loved the set being a long trip from start to finish indeed. For me Hourglass could be left out and I would also like to see Fight For the Rock being represented by a song like Hyde. Well no matter the possible changes in the setlist, when a band ends with possibly the best song of all their four best albums it can't get much better really. These songs were Believe opened by Jon on Video and people crying in the crowd,  Gutter Ballet, Edge of Thorns and Hall of the Mountain King. We are talking Heavy Metal Champions League here, so  everyone left pleased. I was glad I got to see Savatage once again and the music did beat the venue for me. Savatage ruled from the mid eighties till the late nineties. Glad to see they still do.   

Armored Saint - Crown Lands - Master Massive - Voivod

Four albums you might like to check out for an even better summer.

Armored Saint - Emotion Factory Reset

Underdogs, but that was Raising Fear almost 40 years ago. Still I never got why Armored Saiint are not huge in metal land. Like on Alcatraz where they play again before shitbands like Body Count and Slaughter to Prevail. Well not my problem, as they released another winner for me with Emotion Factory Reset. Heavy metal with lots of groove gives us with Hit a Moonshot and Buckeye new highlights in their discography. They almost make you dance here. The rest of the album is also very fine and rather heavy for their standards. 8 August Boerderij, if  you are not at Alcatraz, I guess you have to be there.

Crown Lands - Apocalypse

Fearless was my first introduction to Crown Lands and it almost became my album of the year. Who does release albums nowadays that sound a lot like 70's Rush? well Crown Lands did. Than their double Ritual albums scared me off with their ambient soundscapes.Now they are back in good form and Apocalypse should please fans of Fearless again. The closing song is the 19 minute epic title track (just like ...). My favousire song is the Fall, what an earwiurm is that, almost as danceable as Armored Saint it should be a live highlight. That is if they ever come to Europe. Progpower booked lots of bands at the border of progmetal this year, so maybe these 70's Rush soundalikes deserve a place next year. 

Master Massive - White Shadows

Sometimes it is good to read magazines for dicsovering bands I missed online. Master Massive formed in Sweden in 1993, but released their debut full lenght in 2015. I discovered them in Aardschok who reviewed album #3 White Shadows. Namedropping old Queensryche and Fates Warning made me interested at least and yes it is a good album. The different bit about Master Massive is that they have three lead vocalists. All three good, but my favourite is Masken, whose rawer edge gives the sound more of an eighties US metal feel. 7 songs over 49 minutes brings you mainly back to the eighties and that is always a good thing when done this well. Curious if they do tour as well.

Voivod - Symphonique

Metal bands with full orchestra has been done before and shall be done again no doubt. It does not necessarily mean an enhancement of the sound and results might differ. The music of Voivod has always been different and it turns out that these versions do work well. The show is an overview of mainly eighties Voicvod with some songs from more recent albums blended in. The highlight to me is Tribal Convictions when tribal drums are enhanced by a threatening soundtrack of the orchestra. The voice of Snake is always a matter of taste, but he fits very well with this orchestra backing. So overall a very nice album, that might not be for every moment.

Riot City & Aquilla - Little Devil Tilburg, 22 July 2026

"Hey mr DJ play this one for me, you now the one with the crashing and the screams" Manowar sung to us on their majestic debut album Battle Hymns. Well anyone who was into just that kind of metal in the eightes and still is now, should have been at Little Devil this Wednesday night..Riot City and Aquilla transferred us way back to the eighties for some top class speed and heavy metal. Since our national rail would work against culture again, I drove down to Tilburg with Hans and Ton. Holidays did not make highways emptier, but to compensate the feared Tilburg Kermis also did not result in busy traffic or parking garages. On time we were in and let the madness begin.

Aquilla are from Poland formed in 2014, but looked more like 1984. Tight leather pants in white sneakers and the hair of the era. I once checked their music out, when they played a festival I was planning to go, but did not in the end. I remember quite liking them at the time and now got this confirmed live on stage. Heavy metal in it's purest form, with lots of fiery guitars and a strong vocalist to match it all. As far as openers go, this was one of the better matches with the headliner I saw in recent times. They went down well with the audience and won over some new fans I guess. One detail the antfucker (dutch expression) in me found funny was the shouting along bit. We were asked to shout along with something and steel. Now I read that the song is called Steel & plunder. I guess they mean either Steel & plumber or Steal & plunder. But they are forgiven as the song was pretty good. They closed their set remembering one year since Ozzy's passing away and Barking at the Moon we did.

And then came Riot City for their first proper headline show in The Netherlands, I saw them in 2023 in Germany and was completely blown away by their power and energy on stage. Last year they played the Roadburn Pre-party and that was awesome too, even if not the whole Roadburn crowd was getting their metal brilliance. Now in Little Devil they got a venue filled with people loving their music and reactions were accordingly. As from the first notes and more important screams of Warrior of Time the place was set on fire and would not cool down for the next 75 minutes or so. Or as vocalist Jordan told us, this made it all worth the ten hour flight followed by a five hour ride. With more time on their hands we got some songs that I never saw played live before and that included 10 minute epic Severed Ties. I loved every second of thsi set and it flew by while Burning the Night with an Eye of the Jaguar and a Tyrant from Beyond the Stars. Riot City proved once again to me, that they are the future of speedmetal. Pitty that most people in were from my generation or about. Can it really be that young people prefer metalcore over this masterclass? Does not matter as long as I can attend shows this good. So when In the Dark closed the evening we could go home with a huge grin on our faces. Realizing we just witnessed one of the highlights of gig year 2026. Their European tour is short, but if you have the chance to catch them, don't miss out. Rest me to thank Mario and the crew at Little Devil for giving us this evening. For those continuing the metal today at HOA: enjoy and I should definitely look more seriously into HOA 2027.

Dutch Prog Matinee - Musicon The Hague, 19 July 2026

Dutch Prog Matinee was it called and three to me unknow bands came to Musicon. Now I was worried for it being a Sunday afternoon show during school holidays. Apart from that Musicon does not really program a lot of prog anyway. So there I went supporting the venue and the prog scene, being surprised that some 30-40 people showed up. No faces I recognized from Musicon, but opening new markets makes sense always. Today's beers came in plastic cups, as last night's national grunting championship had a fuller house. Opening band were Proxima Flare. Their prog was metal light and moody. At times making me think of A Liquid Landscape, especially on the moody parts. They were pleased with their T-shirts and stickers. Me not being a cat-man not so much impressed. Their presentation was comfortable, but they did not mention song titles. I liked the last two songs best, when the metal bit and guitar soloing increased somewhat.

Next band were called Hurryland. With a name like that I hoped for some speedmetal blended with their progmetal. Well I hoped in vain, as they mixed more jazz with progmetal. Actually instrumentally a very strong band, but with no bass on stage I heard loops and tapes I guess throughout their set. The keyboardist played his first gig with the band, so looking a bit uncomfortable with headphones on, should be forgivven. I actually liked the vocalist's voice and considered the three songs where she sang stronger than the three instrumentals. When she sang and the band played their technical bits I thought of District 97. Nice band, even if their presentation has space to evolve a bit.

Last band were Artemis from Delft. They played more hardrock, than anything prog really. The band was fine, but the voice did not click with me, being a bit over the top at times. At a certain moment did he also ask for a circle pit? well that did not happen. It was sounding fine, but after some songs I decided to go home to watch the tour de France. Turned out that when I was on my bicycle, Vingegaard fell off his. That ended the last bit of tension of this tour, but I can still enjoy the stages. Finally musically I should have gone to Breda today to see Ruthless and Mindwars in Sounddog. But I preferred staying close to home and see some sports in the afternoon and evening. Wednesday it is time for metal in Brabant. Next Prog must attend do in Musicon is in November when Changeling comes over bringing Obsidian Tide and Hyla along.

Werfpop (Textures) - Leidse Hout Leiden, 12 July 2026

Summer festivals are suffering. With the increased fees for bands, plus all additional costs the many free festivals in our region are falling one by one. Over the years (decades) cycling distance from The Hague lost Parkpop, Schollenpop, Vlietpop and Westerpop to name a few. Werfpop is still running and this year they included two metal bands to the bill. Now Werfpop is not at cycling distance on my city bike, but we have trains going to Leiden. Well that is until our national rail gets involved. So I had to make a mix, cycling 10 km to the nearest station with trains to Leiden and than train and walk. Why telling all this unnecessary travel information? Because it made me decide to go for the shorter version of Werfpop and only attend the evening. This resulted in me missing the second best band of the bill The Curse Made Flesh. I say this without even knowing them, but by seeing bits of Prins S en de Geit and Postmen, I guess it is not hard to know. Actually of the bands I did see before Textures, Arson were pretty nice. These Belgians play a sort of modern punk, post hardcore and dressed up nice they presented this in such a way, that the crowd had to move along. Not unlike Martyr they let a bottle of booze go rond, but kept control by holding the bottle themselves. Well they did get pits and even joined one at the end. plus a wall of death was made upon request by people whose dayjob obviously was not attending a wall of death.

The closing band, reason to head to Leiden and festival headliner for me were Textures. This year Textures came back after an eight year hiatus, with the very strong album Genotype. I followed Textures from the beginning and remember them playing Polars when OLS was still called OLS. Swandive! Later on I would see them several times and before their end they headlined a Saturday at Progpower too. The current line-up of six is very strong and live they always prove why they are Holland's biggest Progmetal band. Vocalist Daniel de Jongh was also playing Werfpop with Crown Compass last time I was at Werfpop, but for Textures it has been ten years to be back. Now I don't take notes and with Textures I cannot place all songs immediately with title and album it came from. So opener was a tape Void from Genotype and I think we did get A Seat for the Like-Minded too. Basically what we got was one hour of progmetal build on grooves and melody. with vocals going from clear to extreme and heads would bang. A very nice way to end a pleasant evening in the park, which justified taking poor train connections.