Fortress Festival announces Gris, Gràb, Yellow Eyes and more in first wave of 2027 bands

Fortress Festival have unveiled a stacked first wave of bands for next year's festival, which is full of exciting world exclusives and UK live debuts and.

They’ve already confirmed Emperor will be headlining the fifth year of the event, but the rest of the undercard has some truly massive stuff, including the worldwide live debut of Canadian atmospheric black metal project Gris.

“We have been hesitant for years to bring the music of Gris to the stage,” they say. “The idea has been undulating in our minds for more than a decade now, swaying from doubt to possibility, and to doubt again. We knew that it would require us to adapt the music we’ve done with great respect and care, and it seemed daunting at times. But seeing the dedication of Fortress Festival to make their event unique and of high quality, it felt like a perfect context for us to embrace the challenge of making Gris alive for the first time."

Bavarian black metal outfit Gràb are also returning live at Fortress for a world exclusive performance.

"Last year I announced to step back from doing music due to health issues,” says Grànt. “However, things changed for the better. Like it or not, I decided to return. For years, Gary of Fortress Festival showed heavy interest in booking GRÀB. We, as a band, decided that the fantastic venue of Fortress is the right place to do a 2027 exclusive GRÀB concert. This marks our first concert outside Germany and Austria. We will bring Bavarian Black Metal to UK soil for the first time ever. Be there!"

Yellow Eyes are coming back to the UK for the first time in eight years, performing their acclaimed album Confusion Gate as a UK exclusive.

“Eight years after our last UK performance, Yellow Eyes will finally return to England,” they say. We’re honoured to make our exclusive UK appearance of 2027 at the legendary Fortress Festival. It is rare that we make it to England, and we don’t know when we’ll be back again. If you’ve ever wanted to see us in the UK, we hope you’ll join us in Scarborough. This will be something special.”

Quebecois black metal pioneers Forteresse are joining the line-up too, saying: “The ghosts of epic death and rebellion are returning to England once again to storm the shores of Scarborough. This time, a special set will be curated especially for this event that shall remain secret until the time draws near.”

Meanwhile, fantasy synth artist Dungeontroll has created a world exclusive set specially for Fortress, and they say: “Join Dungeontroll for a one-of-a-kind ritual at Fortress Festival MMXXVII. Tales of adventure and woe will be woven, calling forth the ancient spirits of the woods. These songs will be written and performed exclusively for Fortress; there are no plans to record or perform them again after this night.”

If that wasn’t juicy enough, they’ve also got Miserere Luminis, Tardigrada, Mourir and Trha playing in the UK for the first time. Rounding out the announcements are Slagmaur, Havukruunu, and Sinmara.

Fortress Festival will return to Scarborough across May 29-30, 2027.

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