12/8 • Hell Militia - Ares Kingdom - Wodensthrone - Drawn And Quartered - Dispirit - Oak - Hellvetron

12/9 • Root - Inquisition - Demigod - Stargazer - Nunslaughter - Demonical - Weapon - Adorior - Loss - Grave Upheaval - Ritual Necromancy - Aldebaran - Warmaster

12/10 • Mortuary Drape - Pagan Altar - Dead Congregation - Zemial - General Surgery - Ignivomous - Tribulation - Cianide - Disma - Evoken - Adversarial - Midnight - Plutocracy - Blaspherian - P.L.F.

12/11 • Mournful Congregation - Strid - Worship - Antaeus - Impetuous Ritual - Interment - Akitsa - Valkyrja - Anatomia - Funebrarum - Mitochondrion - Cruciamentum - Vasaeleth - Hour Of 13 - Ilsa - Anhedonist

:: pics :: live stories ::

Controversy and negativity surrounded the RITES OF DARKNESS III fest before it began. Big name bands dropping off at last minute. However, doesn’t that come with any big festival territory? I think so. Some fans took it personally and decided not to go and sell their tickets. This was a stupid move for those that chose to do so. They missed out on one of the best metal underground festivals the US has to offer. Based in the southern Texas city of San Antonio, the RITES OF DARKNESS festivities kicked off on Thursday with a pre-show at a tiny club called Bonds Rock Bar. Featuring such acts as VASAELETH, WODENSTHRONE, DRAWN AND QUARTERED, DISPIRIT and old school thrashers ARES KINGDOM. Three of these bands played for a second time over the weekend. It took nearly an hour to get into the club and by that time VASAELETH was ready to take the stage. Throwing the crowd into a frenzy with their old school black metal which sounds similar to Arch Goat. Muddy as fuck. Next to take the stage was England’s WODENSTHRONE, putting everyone under a spell and giving a different vibe with more of a melodic black metal tone, also the only band on the fest to have a keyboard that I can recall. Next up was the Seattle three piece DRAWN AND QUARTERED. With their dose of doom impending blackened death metal. Quite appeasing to the crowd. After their performance we skipped out figuring we’d catch DISPIRIT and ARES KINGDOM at the fest over the next 3 days.

story & pics © Goddess Sioux