By Jase W

Today also begins a bit late owing to massive traffic jams outside of the site because I’m not waiting nearly 2 hours for a shower on site. A round trip to Cheddar took a bit longer than we thought but we’re back in the arena to enjoy the last day and I’m beginning it with itoldyouiwouldeatyou.

ATG as usual, booking bands with bizarre names, itoldyouiwouldeatyou lie in the realms of math rock with a bit of an indie rock tinge. Somewhat similar to the likes of Delta Sleep, these are absolutely on the right vibe for me today, nothing mega intense but super pleasant to listen to. Dancy songs, lyrics that sound playful but frequently aren’t, sparkly riffs, all that mathy goodness. This for me is what ATG excels at putting on and having itoldyouiwouldeatyou kick things off today for me is exactly what I needed.

Oathbreaker however, takes that vibe and completely blindsides it with a shifting of gears to blackgaze. Quieter moments are pierced with huge blastbeats and droney riffs while the vocals sit in that odd position in the layers that feels like it’s sitting amongst the melodic texture rather than being at the forefront.

One thing that stands out to me about a lot of bands like this is how their lightning production very often casts them as shadows on the stage, very little light actually projects directly at the band. Oathbreaker sound absolutely crushing and are now another band that I need to make a point of seeing at their own show. They’ve crafted a fantastic live set and production but again due to the mid-day nature of it, robs it somewhat of an atmosphere that grips you and keeps you paralyzed through the whole show. I feel like this is the sort of show that done in a super dark theater with no other light barring the stage would really drive this to another level so I guess I need to keep my eyes peeled.

After a camp rest, it’s time to get some more math rock in my ears in the form of TTNG. These guys don’t do live shows super often so catching them again after almost a decade in ATG as we draw in the final day is going to be an experience worth drinking up.

As the sun steadily declines towards the horizon, being sat here amongst friends and listening to skillful music being played out like this reminds me of why I love festivals, ATG in particular so much. The wonderful shimmer of mathy playing, matched by busy bass and drums while their singer belts out the words is why I love math rock so much.

TTNG themselves are such fantastic musicians, true performers in every sense of the word which makes seeing them do it live that much more special. I’ve ended up taking this moment to reflect on the whole feel of this year’s festival as we play out to the last few bands. As the sun sets and TTNG finishes up, I’ve become a bit sad that 2026’s edition is almost over and Fernhill Farm will become a memory for ATG. Not long now. 

Next up today is Eivør, someone who I’ve somehow missed a bunch of times every time she’s toured through the Netherlands for the past three years. Anyway now is as good of a time as any and being a direct sub to the forthcoming Julie Christmas & Cult Of Luna show is a fantastic choice.

Eivør rolls with a similar vibe to other prominent Scandinavian artists such as Myrkur, Gåte, Aurora and Björk, the latter of which is a much stronger alignment with Eivør’s vibe, rather than leaning strongly on the folk instruments specifically, it’s rooted in the musical history but works with more electronic sounds.

It’s a fascinating show to listen to, so full of air and atmosphere and surrounds you in an immense captivating manner. I’m kicking myself for missing this before considering the venues I’ve seen her play over the recent years. Genuinely stunned through the entire set, I’m completely blown away by this, in a way I genuinely couldn’t have anticipated. It started out as fully engrossing, leading to a finish that wrapped up a set screaming that it could have been a headliner set in its own right. Properly immense performance. 

And finally, ATG 2026 draws to a close with a show that is about as close to once in a lifetime as you can get to it. Julie Christmas & Cult Of Luna play Mariner in its entirety. Julie joins the stage in her newly reworked stage outfit, although still using the pulsing lights across it.

The slow, ambient start eventually gives way to pounding low-end riffs and disgusting gutturals while Julie dances around the top end, lending her signature voice to the picture. The light show is every bit as intense as the music itself, often strobing bright white or a combination of intense blue and red.

I’ve often said that full album shows don’t always make for great live setlists but in the case of the Mariner, this seems so fantastically suited for it, I genuinely wonder if this album was written with the intent of doing this some day. I’ve settled in for the evening, this isn’t a particular show that I want to go mental and get stuck into the crowd for, but one I want to get comfortable and soak in the music in a nice relaxed position.

The sky gradually darkens as the album goes on, the atmosphere builds and the light show grows ever more intense. The pacing of the line-up has been truly awesome and the intent of tying things off with a once-in-a-lifetime set like this is a magic way to wrap it up.

 

Review content © Über Röck 2026.