Bangalore Open Air 2025: Flying the metal flag high

The recently concluded Bangalore Open Air was a study in how the festival has grown in leaps and bounds

The 12th edition of metal festival Bangalore Open Air (BOA) held on February 8 this year, was arguably not just about metal offering something for lovers of heavy music, but also in their own capacity. That is often the true mark of a festival’s growth.

There is something to be said about choosing between staying the course and evolving and Bangalore Open Air has steadily done that since 2012. When they returned a full four years after the pandemic-enforced break in 2023, American metalcore band Born of Osiris were among the headliners alongside black metal veterans Mayhem. Then, in 2024, the festival ambitiously scaled to a two-day edition at a new venue, hosting thrash metal legends Kreator and Swedish melodic death metal favourites, In Flames.

While a two-day edition was promised for the 2025 edition as well, plans were readjusted when the lineup came out — progressive metalcore band Jinjer from Ukraine and avant-garde American act Cynic were headliners and BOA returned to its home in Royal Orchid Resort and Convention Centre in Yelahanka.

This time, there were more bands and two stages, which BOA had not done in a while, plus stalls ranging from fashion to art and a wheelchair-accessible ramp. Meet and greet sessions, another time-tested tradition at the festival, also took place. More ticket packages included accommodation and airport transfers, as well as an elevated area for viewing.

One of the highlights of the 12th edition was seeing the indoor area — the Kadence stage officially named Halford’s Altar after Judas Priest’s legendary vocalist Rob Halford — in total light and sound mode for Sweden’s synthwave duo Midnight Danger, who played the penultimate set. The hypnotic synthwave doled out by these gents, complete with wild haircuts reminiscent of 80s glam metal bands and ghoulish facepaint, was captivating.

Oscillating between guitars and a synthesizer, while the drummer stayed put thrashing dramatically behind his elevated kit, Midnight Danger proved that fans in India, like metalheads globally, enjoyed synthwave.

Of course, there was plenty of brutal, primal metal for fans who know the festival — Greek act Suicidal Angels were clear favourites for the crowd, who showed up in numbers and milled about in the moshpit early in the evening. While Sweden’s death metal band Necrophobic had a few sound issues starting off, they kept it to business as usual when they steadied their performance flow. Early on, Pune thrash metal trio Kasck at the indoor stage received plenty of mosh action and fists pumped in agreement, while veteran act Demonic Resurrection’s first Bengaluru show in more than five years was met with plenty of reverence.