BRUTAL ASSAULT 2026 – 1st day, 5th August 2026

5-8.08.2026, Josefov Frotress, Jaromer

BRUTAL ASSAULT 2026 is already history, so it is time to summarise what happened during 29^th edition of Czech festival located on the grounds of Josefov Fortress. Those who were never there, a short info that this huge construction is a perfect place for such musical event. Two main stages are in the central part of the place as it has the largest area for the fans plus the green area located on the walls of the fortress which is perfect for those who would like to sit and see the stage from the distance and not in the crowd. The stages are called Marshall and Sea Shepherd. Third stage is called Obscure and is located on the other side of the area, but if you are in a hurry I think you can get from one place to the other within 5-10 minutes depending on the crowd on the way. The later it is, it usually takes more time to get through. Fourth stage is called Octagon and it holds just a few shows per day and usually those are the underground bands or those who started their career recently. There is one more stage called KAL, it is placed in the club and it offers some experimental music usually associated with electronics and other experimental sounds. There are four main days and a warm up day that only takes place on KAL and Obscure stages.

5.08.2026 – Wednesday – first day

I always skip the warm-up day, but try to arrive on the first day as early as possible. This time, I managed to get to the festival’s grounds around 3 PM in the middle of the set of VENDED and immediately rushed to catch the very end of ARMORED SAINT concert. I did not have a chance to see them two years ago in the same place and this time I only saw the very last song… Still, I was happy to see another band on that stage NOVEMBER’S DOOM. As the name suggests, they play Doom Metal, but with quite big portion of Death Metal. Vocals are mainly growls, but there are melodic ones here and there too.  They performed a few songs from their latest album “Major Arcana” including the tiltle track and “Mercy”, which is a beautiful, melodic ballad with really heavy moments in the refrain. I really like them on albums, so I was glad to finally see them live as the concert sounded great. I also never saw SAMAEL live, because I am not a big fan of their music. It is not that I do not like them, because they have some great songs everybody who listens to heavy music should know. This is just not quite my style when it comes to listening to whole albums. They definitely are able to take the public by the storm with their catchy, rhythmic “hits”, for example, as the concert’s opener “Rain”. This is the track that immediately makes you jump or bang your head, but for me, in the long run they seem to be monotonous with their musical offer.

NEVERMORE was supposed to play on the stage next door, so I went there during SAMAEL’s show to “book” a good place almost at the front row – luckily it was right in front of Jeff Loomis. While waiting for their show I once again wondered what this talented guitar player had to go through with his and Van Williams’ decision to bring this band back to life. Everybody knows that Warrel Dane was one of a kind singer and with his passing it would be hard to replace such artist. Jeff and Van took “new faces” on board and, in my opinion, that was the best possible choice. On the other side, they did not have an easy job to survive the criticism of those who preferred not to relaunch the band as original members – Dane and Jim Sheppard could not join in. All in all, everything that matters is the final effect on public and the musical outcome. Definitely, the fans on BRUTAL ASSAULT were very enthusiastic about their show. Many sang their lyrics and hummed the guitar lines as loud as possible. What about music? If you are a fan and hear “Inside Four Walls”, “Engines Of Hate”, “Beyond Within” or pure thrasher “Enemies Of Reality” you definitely feel nostalgia after so many years of band’s hiatus. Yes, it did sound tight and flawless when it comes both to Jeff and Van as well as the new guys. New guitar player Jack Cattoi showed his craft and many times stood right to Jeff and played his parts without any hesitation. He is so young and talented, I am really happy for him, because we definitely got the job he deserved. Surely, the singer Berzan Önen had the most difficult task to replace the one that was impossible to replace. Warrel’s parts on the albums are so diverse and now I can say that he definitely deserved respect for standing on the stage and doing his job the best he could. I did not notice any changes in vocal lines, everything was perfectly performed the same as on the originals. He did not say much, but just focused on the performance and only thanked many times for the active participation and support for the band.

Wednesday was probably the hottest day on the whole festival, so after the show I went to one of the pubs, located close to Octagon stage, to cool down with some beer. There are tents for food and drinks, but there are also pubs within the walls which are not that hot as on the outside. Octagon was the place where I was aiming to see IOTUNN. I decided to miss FIT FOR AN AUTOPSY and PERIPHERY on main stages and see this unique band from Denmark. They play emotional and melodic music with lots of “cosmic” atmosphere, but at the same time the band mixes it with more extreme elements in quite unusual blend of styles. It is hard to explain their music in words as there are so many things happening there. Unfortunately, the sound from Octagon stage ruined the effect this music could have on the listeners. It was generally too loud, double kick on drums dominated everything and both guitars were blended into some weird sound. Anyway, it was still nice to see this band perform with enthusiastic approach. The singer had a long coat with hood which must have been a real challenge to wear in such high temperatures and humidity on that day. Still, he sang flawlessly all his intricate parts with mixture of clean and growling vocals. They had 45 minutes and they played only four songs, but very long ones. Three of them were from their second album “Kinship” including first two on that one called “Kinship Elegiac” and “Mistland” while the closing one was from the debut album – “The Tower Of Cosmic Nihility”.

After they finished, I went right to Obscure stage to watch SÓLSTAFIR which was a natural continuation of more atmospheric side of music. However, the Icelanders started with their black metal song from the latest album called “Hin Helga Kvöl”. That one was a suprise to listen for the first time when the album was about to come out – they did not play that harsh in a long time. Still, the rest of the show was typical SÓLSTAFIR performance with long tracks and building up tension to the final climax in songs like “Náttmál” “Otta” and usual closing track  “Goddess Of Ages”. This last one has one specific moment, namely Aðalbjörn – singer and guitar player went to the public only with his microphone during the first phase of this very long song. He stood on the gates that separate the audience from the stage and he kept standing there by holding some fans’ hands by his one hand and sang the song. He wandered from one side of the stage to the other during this whole phase in which he did not have to play the guitar. It was a real challenge to do it, but I guess he does that often on their shows during that very song. I saw SÓLSTAFIR once a few years earlier in a club show and he did exactly the same. Closer to the end of the first part of this track he reached the other side of the stage, left the gates, took the guitar and finished the second part that was purely instrumental. The band definitely had great reception from the audience.

After that, I went to the main stage to see the second part of MUNICIPAL WASTE concert. I do like their version of Thrash Metal – short and simple, just straight to the point. That is what this genre is all about in its original form. Yeah, it is a bit repetitive, but the energy coming out of the riffs is worth it. They definitely made the audience move and scream their lungs out. The singer motivated the fans for even more effort and to create bigger and bigger circle pits. TRIPTYKON on the Marshall stage was going to be a total contradiction to laid back music of American thrashers. However, Tom G. Warrior and his team actually started with thrashy classics by old-schoold CELTIC FROST – “Circle Of The Tyrants” and “Into The Crypts Of Rays”. First impression? They sounded perfectly well, as the guitars were so crunchy, the bass was well heard and the drummer was super energetic. Tom’s former band appreared again in two more songs: “Progeny” and “A Dying God Coming Into Human Flesh” that in live version was really impressive thanks to atmospheric fragments that turn into really heavy parts that you felt even in your guts. The concert was a mixture of songs of three bands Tom was in, as we also got the song called “Messiah” by HELLHAMMER. TRIPTYKON had a few representatives in the form of “Goetia”, “Aurorae” and some others. It was definitely one of the best shows on the whole festival when it comes to sound experience, the setlist and performance of the whole band. They definitely deserved to be one of the main acts of that day. I think I do not have to add that night time is the best moment to witness such intense and emotional music.

It definitely also refers to another band that played on the stage next door – AMENRA. Bright light of day would decrease the effect of mystic aura that Belgian post metallers create with their intense music. Those are definitely the sounds for the chosen ones as their songs, especially for newcomers, are not easy to digest. Sledgehammer guitars, intense screams by the singer as well as pounding bass and drums … All the musicians are totally focused on their instruments and the music they perform. It was a ritual you either let yourself sink into or you stay and wait impatiently for the end – I guess there was nobody in between…

Polish BATUSHKA was the last group on the main stage and I was glad that the band from my country played as one of the main acts. I feel a little strange knowing there is second band, PATRIARKH, that has similar performance, outfits and musical direction, but there is a good side of it too. Thanks to that we now have more quality music and the dispute over the name is finally over. Both groups can now focus on their own careers and we do not have to double check which BATUSHKA we are going to see. When everything was ready, the musicians were lighting the candles while entering the stage in the company of choir singing. Of course, we cannot expect spontaneity of typic metal concert like stage movement, contact with the audience, etc. That is the convention as it has to resemble some kind of ceremony, but still the music is what mattered here as well. It also souned quite well as for such massive onslaught of black metal riffs. They started with songs from their second album and played them one after another from the very first one. Unfortunately, I was too tired to watch the whole hour show, so I did not see last 20 minutes which might have been devoted to the first album as well. It was high time to recharge the batteries for the second day…