Roadburn-2017_JDB

Baroness, Coven To Play Roadburn 2017

Roadburn-2017_JDB

Tilburg, Netherlands’ Roadburn Festival, which we happen to be quite fond of, has announced the first batch of artists for their 2017 lineup. As always, it’s a blend of the biggest names in the artsy side of the metal world as well as promising younger acts that are pushing the genre’s boundaries.

Each year, Roadburn gives over a part of their curation process to a special guest that also serves as a headliner. This year that honor falls on Baroness’s John Baizley. Since the release of Purple in late 2015, Baroness have been touring hard and this festival appearance feels like a coronation for the band’s return to prominence. Baizley is the archetypical Roadburn curator. On top of being a beloved personality within the metal world, Baizley’s extensive work as a visual artist means that he has a very deep rolodex of acts to call on for his curation.

Roadburn 2017 will also be hosts to the return of Coven, who will be performing their first ever European set on the first day of the festival, Thursday April 20th. Coven aren’t necessarily a metal band, but their spooky occult themes are a perfect fit for the festival’s metal-adjacent booking. In a similar spirit, the lineup will also include retro-synth act Perturbator and have tapped psychedelic weirdos Gnod as their Artist In Residence for the festival.

Another Roadburn tradition is the full album performance. This year will include Schammasch performing Triangle in full as well as a reunited Warning performing all of Watching From A Distance. If that alone hasn’t sold you, the festival are also bringing back Oranssi Pazuzu and Les Discrets and will host the live debut of John Haughm’s new band Pillorian and black metal spiritualist Zeal & Ardor. Judging from the names announced thus far, Roadburn 2017 looks to be just as challenging and eclectic as you’d expect, although right now the emphasis seems to be more on metal’s melodic side for the biggest acts. Still, the inclusion of Oranssi Pazuzu and Schammasch suggest that the festival will have plenty of heavier acts filling out the rest of the lineup.

Roadburn 2017 will be taking place April 20 through April 23. You can find out more about the festival’s lineup here.

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