Friday 26 June at 23:30
Johndoe (NO)
This is the concert for anyone who likes rock the way it should be: loud, tight and without unnecessary polish.
For years, Johndoe have been the band people turn to when they want guitars that bite, choruses that stick, and a live set that actually kicks. They come from Trondheim, they know their craft, and they play with the kind of confidence that only comes from having stood on many stages and knowing exactly what an audience wants.
With a new album in tow, they remain true to what makes them worth experiencing live: drive, punch and songs that hit you straight in the gut. Punk, power pop and dirty rock’n’roll meet here in a sound that is both melodic and hard-hitting. It does not sound polished. It sounds alive.
This is not a concert to sit back through. Johndoe are for those who like it when things get a little rough around the edges, when the groove hits hard, and when a band walks on stage with one task: to own the room. Late at night in Nordic Hall, this is exactly the kind of concert that can tip the festival atmosphere into something far rawer.
Why you should go: If you want guitar rock with teeth, power and choruses that refuse to let go, this is the concert to be standing right at the front for.
Saturday 27 June at 20:30
The Moontwins feat. Håvard Lund (FI/NO)
This is the concert for anyone who likes alternative rock that is far from smooth and predictable.
The Moontwins do not sound like an ordinary band, and that is precisely the point. Here, electric guitar meets a melancholic, almost haunted accordion, resulting in a sound that moves towards alternative rock, folk, garage and something harder to define.
Behind the band are PK Keränen, known from 22 Pistepirkko, and Leija Lautamaja, who brings weight, mystery and a completely distinctive nerve through her accordion playing. Together, they build songs that both drive forwards and hang in the air.
When Håvard Lund joins them, the expression becomes even more exciting — and even more unpredictable. This is not the concert for anyone looking for something safe and familiar. This is for those who like music to pull them into something of its own, something new and more distinctive — and for those who like rock to be allowed to get a little strange.
Why you should go: If you like alternative rock with dirty edges and a sound unlike anything you may have heard before, this is the concert for you.
Saturday 27 June at 22:00
Festspillfinale (NO)
This is the night for anyone who wants the festival to end with a bang, not a polite farewell.
With Turdus Musicus appearing as part of the festival finale, after Manna have got you properly warmed up, everything is set for a closing night with weight, pace and the kind of energy that grabs hold of the room. This is not a band that goes on stage to decorate the programme. They go on to raise the temperature, take things up several notches and make sure the final night is felt in the body.
Turdus Musicus have been going since the late 1990s, and are a name many associate with proper Northern Norwegian hardcore. There is nothing half-hearted here. The music draws its force from hardcore, punk, metal and post-hardcore, and the expression is tight, aggressive and uncompromising. This is the kind of sound that does not ask for space, but simply takes it.
This is the finale for those who like concerts that leave you sweaty, with high intensity and that particular feeling that everything is still vibrating afterwards. When a festival is to be rounded off, there are few better ways to do it than with something that hits hard, sounds heavy and refuses to be polite.
Why you should go: If you want to end the festival with hardcore weight, a racing pulse and a concert that goes straight to the chest, this is where you need to be.
