10 Unmissable Acts at Desertfest London 2022


Desertfest London is back in Camden this week! Today I've got an article with a few bands that can't be missed at the festival. The lineup is strong enough that every band on the bill would be a worthy mention on here, but unfortunately, I'm on a time constraint and no one would read to the end of it anyway. I've gone with ten because it's a nice, round number. Come say hello if you're going and you see me there. 

1. Electric Wizard (the Roundhouse, Sunday, 21:45)
The main attraction at The Roundhouse on the Sunday. As far as I can see online, it's their first show in about two and a half years. Do they need an introduction? No. 


2. Dvne (the Roundhouse, Sunday, 15:00)
If you've got one of those coveted Sunday Roundhouse tickets, do yourself a favour and get down early for Dvne. The Scottish prog metallers are going from strength to strength at the moment and you wouldn't bet against them eventually being revered in the same way that this festival's headliners are, on their current trajectory.


3. Stöner (the Electric Ballroom, Saturday, 17:30)
Stöner has two ex-Kyuss members, and their next album has a picture of a pizza on it. What's not to love? Far from a nostalgia act, the strength of 2021 debut Stoners Rule is enough to warrant seeing them alone, but they'll be on for an hour so there must be at least half a chance of a cover from that other band Oliveri and Bjork were in.


4. Konvent (the Underworld, Saturday, 15:45)
At virtually the opposite end of the Desertfest spectrum are Konvent. The great Danes are rising stars at the moment and have made themselves known through an incredibly uncompromising mix of black metal, death metal and doom. These four women make heavier noise than your ever band could, but more importantly have hardly had the chance to play in the UK up to now and don't have anything else planned over here (for now). An essential watch.


5. A tribute to Eric Wagner (Powerhaus, Sunday, 17:30)
The metal world mourned the loss of Eric Wagner, the enigmatic frontman of doom pioneers Trouble, last summer. We know for sure that there will be a covers set on the Sunday afternoon. We don't know who'll be in the lineup, yet. I can't pretend that I'd feel like a fool to miss out on this.


6. Truckfighters (the Electric Ballroom, Friday, 17:30)
Make sure to book a half-day in at work on the Friday because the legendary Swedish stoner rockers are back in town! Gravity X has achieved cult status by now, but with almost six years separating their most recent album and now, you wonder if there'll be any new material to treat the fans. This was surely one of the most exciting announcements when the lineup dropped.


7. Opium Lord (the Black Heart, Sunday, 21:00)
The West Midlands sludge crew return to live music for the first time since the world shut its doors. Blending all sorts of sounds into a relentless, memorable gig experience, you can expect a lot from 2019's Vore and possibly a few unheard numbers too. Just don't try searching the band name on Facebook. Something about promoting drugs. 


8. Shrykull (the Black Heart, Sunday, 17:00)
If you're going on the Sunday but didn't manage a Roundhouse ticket, Shrykull would be a worthy watch. The duo throw all sorts of extreme metal styles into an industrial blender to create facemelting cacophonies with more blunt force than some bands with double the number of members could conjurer up. They're a fairly recent discovery of mine so I'm looking forward to experiencing them in concert for the first time. 


9. Desert Storm (the Underworld, Sunday, 17:30)
The Oxford progressive sludge titans were tighter than a (...finish that one yourselves) on their recent UK headline run and the unreleased material they teased fans with on that tour sounds promising. Through their long career they've never done two albums the same, so you're sure to get a varied gig, full of powerful, groovy riffs. As far as I can see, they're the only band on at Desertfest with 'Desert' in the name, too. 


10. Alunah (the Dev, Friday, 21:30)
Those that know me, know I'm biased. So I'll say that Alunah released their 6th album earlier this month, it's had a ton of great reviews, and they'll play most if not all of it at the Dev.


This is by no means an exhaustive list and obviously, there are more than ten bands I'm looking forward to next weekend. See you all in a few days. 

MN

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