Whether you are a fan of post rock music and are looking to see one (or several) of your favourite artists live, or you play in a band looking for festivals to apply to play at, this list of post rock festivals should give you a starting point to get you on the road in 2023.
A Colossal Weekend
(Copenhagen)
This post rock festival in Copenhagen is in its 7th edition in 2023, catering for “music nerds, metal freaks and other adventurous beings” who are inclined towards heavy and gloomy alternative niche-music. With 30 acts over 4 festival days, concerts are held in various venues around VEGA in the danish capital. Alongside live music, there is an assortment of entertainment including exhibitions, talks and performances as well as a vinyl market and an ample supply of food and drinks.
Previous acts include Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Anna Von Hausswolff, Cult of Luna and Russian Circles. The festival lineup also includes the VEGA artist in residence.
AMFest
(Barcelona)
AMFest is a post rock festival organised “by music-lovers for music-lovers” at La Farga de L’Hospitalet in Barcelona.
Previous headliners include post rock stalwarts Yndi Halda, Maybeshewill, Her Name Is Calla, God Is An Astronaut, and PG.Lost. And So I Watch You From Afar, Mono, 65 Days Of Static and Deafheaven.
Arc Tangent
(Bristol, UK)
Arctangent is an award-winning, 3-day outdoor post rock festival that takes place yearly in Bristol on the south coast of England.
Catering to a diverse range of artists from the post rock, post metal, math rock and progressive rock spectra, Arctangent has attracted bands such as Tesseract, Russian Circles, 65daysofstatic, TTNG, Shellac and Pelican.
Concretion Festival
(Italy)
Concretion Festival is a self-proclaimed post rock festival on the coast of Italy in the town of Aquileia. The summer festival takes place in early July and attracts bands and music fans from all over Europe “with dreamy melodies and powerful walls of sound.”
Previous lineups include God Is An Astronaut, PG.Lost, Lost In Kiev and Törsz.
Dunk!FEST
(Gent, Belgium)
If you’re looking for a post rock festival, look no further than Dunk! Belonging to a collective of passionate post rock activists with a record label, recording studio and vinyl production lab, Dunk! Festival is held yearly in Gent, Belgium.
Usually a traditional outdoor festival, complete with a forest side stage, 2021’s COVID version was held in the city in a single venue.
Previous artists include pretty much every band you could ever associate with the post rock festival scene. Russian Circles, Caspian, Her Name Is Calla, The Ocean, Long Distance Calling, Pelican.
GLOOMAAR
(Neunkirchen, Germany)
Gloomaar is a post rock festival held yearly in the Neue-Gebläse Hall in Neunkirchen, southwestern Germany. Bands of the genres of Post-Rock, Post-Metal, Doom und Dark Ambient convene for one night only on the 46,000 population town on the Saar River.
God Is An Astronaut, We Lost The Sea, The Ocean, Long Distance Calling and The Intersphere have all graced the stage with their presence over the festival’s five year history.
Portals
(London, UK)
Portals, a fesival for experimental rock music is held yearly in London, 2023’s version is at EartH (Evolutionary Arts Hackney).
This indoor post rock festival has been held at different locations and at different times of year over recent years, featuring acts such as Yndi Halda, We Lost The Sea, And So I Watch You From Afar and Shy, Low.
Le Guess Who Festival
(Utrecht, Netherlands)
Le Guess Who is a music festival held in Utrecht, Netherlands. The festival hosts a diverse range of genre-crossing music and is curated every year by an established band or artist.
Venues include concert halls, theaters, churches, warehouses, and clubs. Le Guess Who is held in November every year and is in it’s 15th edition.
Post in Paris
(France)
Post in Paris is a festival specialising in post rock held in the french capital every spring.
The festival has been held at different locations over the past 5 years, with post rock acts such as Wang Wen, Lost in Kiev, Mutiny on the Bounty and Shy, Low.
Post. Festival
(Indianapolis, USA)
Post. Festival is a post rock festival held in September in Indiana, USA. An indoor festival held at music venue The Vogue – a former movie theater – it caters for post rock fans presenting artists such as This Will Destroy You, Holy Fawn, Coastlands and This Patch Of Sky.
VIVID
(Norway)
VIVID is a music festival held annually in autumn in Kristiansand, Norway, that caters for fans of the post-rock and post-metal genres. It is a unique festival showcasing innovative rock music, audiovisual artists while focusing on inclusion and hospitality.
Over two days, gatherings are held with workshops for artists from around the world to present their work and discuss their knowledge and experience of the music and audiovisual art scene.
Previous lineups included acts such as Sleepmakeswaves, Caspian, Spoiwo and We Stood Like Kings.
Roadburn
(Tillburg, Netherlands)
Roadburn is a festival for heavy music held every April in Tilburg, Netherlands. A self-proclaimed “boutique festival”, Roadburn presents both established artists as well as emerging bands in diverse lineups.
Over two festival days, Roadburn attracts approximately 10,000 visitors with the large majority coming from outside the Netherlands.
Acts include Russian Circles, Brutus, Deafheaven and Emma Ruth Rundle.
Webpage cover poster (Dunk! 2018) by Error Design.