Trold

Trold had the task of opening the evening. The Danish band has built its identity around a particularly playful form of folk metal, mixing heavy riffs and harsh vocals with folk melodies and a healthy dose of theatricality. Their second album, I Skovens Rige, takes listeners further into their darker forest, while still retaining the festive character that made their debut so much fun. Their live performances have already earned plenty of attention, including a well-received appearance at Copenhell in 2025.

At Willemeen, that energetic side came across very naturally. Trold were active on stage without making the performance feel forced, and there was an obvious sense of enjoyment within the band. A few enthusiastics started a dance/pit. The music itself lends itself well to a live setting: catchy folk melodies provide something for the audience to grab onto, while the heavier passages give the songs enough weight to keep them firmly rooted in metal.

There is also something slightly mischievous about Trold. They do not take themselves so seriously that the folk elements become overly solemn, yet the musicianship keeps everything from turning into a novelty act. The result is an accessible and entertaining start to the evening.

The band has previously been praised for combining the festive and darker sides of folk metal, and that balance is particularly effective live. At Willemeen, Trold proved to be an active and engaging opener, setting a good mood without needing to rely on the fact that the other two bands were still to come.

Morgarten

After the cheerful darkness of Trold, Morgarten took the evening in a considerably heavier direction. The Swiss band combines folk metal with black and Viking metal, creating a sound that is more serious and aggressive than that of the opening act. Their music is built around heavy guitar work, harsh vocals, melodic passages and folk influences, with historical and heroic themes forming an important part of their identity.

That heavier approach worked well in the venue, particularly when the guitars took over and the black-metal influence became more prominent. There was plenty of weight behind the performance, and Morgarten certainly did not sound like a band trying to soften its edges for a folk-metal audience.

At the same time, this was where the evening became somewhat less varied. The heavier sound gave the set a strong identity, but after a while several songs began to blend into each other. The transitions between the different moods did not always create enough contrast, meaning that the impact of the heavier passages gradually became less pronounced.

This is somewhat in line with observations that have previously been made about Morgarten’s material. Their blend of folk, black and Viking metal can be effective, but similarities between songs can occasionally reduce the sense of progression. Live, that effect was noticeable as well.

That does not mean Morgarten delivered a poor performance. Quite the opposite: the band sounded solid and committed, and there were certainly moments where the combination of aggression and folk melody worked very well. The main issue was more one of dynamics. A little more variation in pace, atmosphere or arrangement could have made the set more engaging from beginning to end.

Apocalypse Orchestra

By the time Apocalypse Orchestra took the stage, the atmosphere had changed once again. The Swedish band approaches folk metal from a very different angle, combining medieval instrumentation and melodies with heavy, often doom-influenced metal. Their theatrical presentation is an important part of the experience, and visually there is plenty to watch.

That proved to be one of the strongest aspects of the performance at Willemeen. Apocalypse Orchestra are simply fun to watch. The medieval aesthetic, the instrumentation and the way the musicians occupy the stage create a performance that feels like more than a straightforward metal concert. There is a clear sense of character behind what they are doing, and that makes the band immediately recognisable.

Musically, the set drew from both The End Is Nigh and the newer A Plague Upon Thee. The Arnhem set included “Virago”, “Flagellants’ Song”, “Anchorhold”, “Tempest”, “Here Be Monsters”, “Glass and Sun”, “Saint Yersinia” and “The Garden of Earthly Delights”. The latter remains an obvious crowd moment, while the newer material fits naturally within the band’s established sound.

There was, however, a small downside as the set progressed. The atmosphere remained strong, but towards the end some of the songs began to feel a little too similar in their overall approach. The performance had plenty of character, yet it could have benefited from another change of pace or a more pronounced contrast between sections of the set. After a while, the distinctive medieval/doom combination started to lose some of its initial impact simply because there was not quite enough variation.

Still, Apocalypse Orchestra left a strong visual impression. This is a band where watching the performance is an important part of understanding what they are doing, and the theatrical elements make their music come alive in a way that a studio recording cannot completely reproduce.