Summer Breeze 2025 – Patrik’s Retrospection

To start right off: Summer Breeze 2025 was, once again, an absolute success. Every year I’m amazed at how well-organized the festival is, how feedback is taken seriously and improvements are made – even if it’s usually just nitpicking at a very high level.

As always, my Breeze crew and I set out early Wednesday morning to arrive at the festival grounds as soon as possible. This year we were one man short, since one of us just became a father – congratulations! The organizers had introduced a new system for the entry gates this year: you had to pre-register your arrival time slot. We booked the slot we usually hit every year, and I have to say, I’ve never had such a relaxed arrival. Everything went smoothly, and by around 9:30–10:00 we were already at our assigned spot, set up camp, and cracked open the first beer.

Our first band of the day was August Burns Red. You could still see lots of Gutalax fans around, with toilet brushes raised high in the pits and the crowd. The concert was solid – nothing extraordinary, but I’m not the biggest Metalcore fan. Still, they’re good at what they do. After catching a bit of Hellripper (which I regret not seeing in full – it was a blast), my friends wanted to see The Halo Effect, being Dark Tranquillity fans. Again, a solid show. But my personal first highlight came right after: Múr. Those Icelandic guys blew me away. Forty minutes of being screamed at in Icelandic while modern Post-Metal hammered down – simply fantastic. I can wholeheartedly recommend them. I caught a bit of Sólstafir afterwards, but fatigue hit me, and I headed back to camp. Thursday was going to be tough anyway, with lots of bands I didn’t want to miss.

Thursday, August 14th

Thursday started with a few minutes of Allt, which was a nice warm-up. My first real must-see was the all-female J-Core group Hanabie. on the main stage. Despite the blazing midday sun, they radiated so much energy and power onto the crowd – I loved it, and I’m certain we’ll be seeing a lot more of them on European stages soon. After that, I watched Ensiferum with my group. Not really my thing, but I must admit it was an excellent concert – great sound and strong crowd interaction. Then came Mr. Hurley & Die Pulveraffen, one of the few fun bands I actually like, and they delivered a great performance with solid stage presence and song selection. After that we retreated to the camp due to the heat – we had some big shows in the evening, and otherwise I wouldn’t have survived. Unfortunately, this meant I missed the highly praised LANDMVRKS and Gojira, but energy-wise that just wasn’t possible.

Shortly after 11 p.m., armed with coffee, I stood in the third row in front of the main stage, waiting for Cult of Luna. And I was not disappointed. The impact they had live was immense – I enjoyed every single moment. Being that far up front turned out to be pure luck, because immediately after came Kanonenfieber. During the Cult of Luna set the front area had gotten so packed that it was impossible to leave or get in – so I stayed put. And Kanonenfieber turned out to be my absolute highlight of the whole festival. Noise and his crew delivered 60 minutes of sheer brilliance. They had even expanded their stage show specifically for Summer Breeze, which was obvious. Comparing it to their show two years ago, the band has grown immensely in stage presence. I even wrote in our TMB group chat: this performance was basically their headliner application for two years from now. I sadly missed Mantar afterwards – I really wanted to see them – but the heat of the day had taken its toll. Hopefully they’ll come back soon, either near me or at the next Breeze.

Friday, August 15th

On Friday, we had planned to hit the infield in the afternoon, but a storm put that on hold. Heavy rain and strong winds kept us busy holding down everything for over an hour. Completely drenched, we didn’t feel like rushing back in, so we waited to see if it would clear up. We only made it back for Blind Guardian in the evening – and I have to admit, I was really disappointed. The sound was strange, the vocals way too quiet, and Hansi Kürsch seemed surprisingly unprepared and off his game. That stung even more since great alternatives like Slope and Antrisch were playing at the same time. But disappointment didn’t last long, because next up was another highlight: Wardruna. I was worried their type of music might not translate well at a festival, but I was dead wrong. Together with 20–30k others, I absolutely felt the spiritual energy of the show. I’d love to see them in a more fitting acoustic setting someday, but even here it was unforgettable. Wardruna definitely goes onto my “must see again” list, right next to Heilung. Afterwards I caught a few songs of Harakiri for the Sky – on paper, a band that should be perfect for me, but I just can’t stand the singer, which was unfortunately confirmed live. Shame. I went back to camp, but my friends stayed for Non Est Deus, Noise’s second project, which they said was another absolute highlight.

Saturday, August 16th

Saturday, the last day, was more relaxed – not too much on my list or my group’s. We caught the last songs of Annisokay, and like with August Burns Red, I can only say: fine for the genre, but nothing earth-shattering. My first real show was Fiddler’s Green, who rocked the main stage for 45 minutes. They’ve known how to fire up a crowd for 35 years, and they proved it again this year – including their violinist crowdsurfing in a dinghy. Then came Wind Rose, one of my surprises of the festival. Sure, many songs sound quite similar, but the show was one hour of pure entertainment, with one of the best sounds of the whole festival. Also, Francesco Cavalieri really impressed me as a vocalist. Singing Diggy Diggy Hole with thousands of fellow metalheads waving inflatable pickaxes – unforgettable. Another surprise was Machine Head. I had largely ignored them in my personal music history, but their show was fantastic – a perfect final headliner.

As I said in the beginning, you can clearly see how much the organizers care about giving visitors the best possible festival experience. The Summer Breeze app regularly sent weather updates, hydration reminders, and safety notices. During Friday’s storm, they informed us repeatedly that cars were the safest place during lightning, advised turning on hazard lights to show available space, and even gave accurate time estimates for the storm’s duration. At the T-Stage, trees were planted for future shade. A dedicated non-alcoholic drink stand was added and received very positive feedback online. The food options were more varied than ever. At our camping spot, we definitely noticed the +15% increase in showers and toilets – I only had to wait for a shower once, and never for the flush toilets. The only two things I’d really wish for would be a dedicated water station inside the infield (so you don’t have to fill bottles at the toilet sinks) and sunscreen dispensers. But the first probably clashes with beverage sales, and the second with the huge number of visitors – so once again, just nitpicking at a high level.

One thing, however, did really annoy me: shortly before Fiddler’s Green, EMP ran a promo on the main stage, handing out 20+ inflatable beach balls with their logo. The result was that for the entire show you kept getting smacked in the head by these balls every few seconds. Even in the evening, some of them were still bouncing through the crowd.

My ticket for next year is already booked – the lineup looks very promising. I’ve wanted to see Alestorm for a long time, and with a bit of luck, Gloryhammer might show up too. One absolute highlight for me will be Alcest, one of my all-time favorite bands. I also came to appreciate Deafheaven this year, Der Weg einer Freiheit are excellent Black Metal, and Orbit Culture and Parasite Inc. are must-sees as well. And of course, another 100+ bands will be announced in the coming months. The excitement is already visible: 25,000 tickets sold in the first two days.