John Peel used to describe The Fall as always different, always the same. I'm going to appropriate the phrase to illustrate how I feel about Damnation Festival. There is a wonderful familiarity about the place. After seven years, Leeds University Union feels like a home from home and every nock and cranny is filled with memories. As I enter, it does feel like only yesterday that I was last stood in its four venues. But Damnation does not rest on its laurels, every year it produces a new treasure trove of delicacies and oddities. Every year has it's own distinct unique feel, shaped by the exquisitely curated bill. This year there is less doom and post-metal than usual, but a high dollop of Black in all of its flavours and varieties. There is also a utter giganticus of a headliner in the shape of Opeth, by far the biggest name that they have managed to draw. But as I start my mammoth trawl of fourteen acts, Opeth are a whopping ten hours away. 

My starting point are sultry blues merchants Alunah. This is probably the nearest we come today to traditional doom, but this is a very seventies and sensual take on the genre. Sian Greenaway is an alluring and intoxicating front person. She exudes of the stage and possesses the most amazing deep sultry voice. The music that surrounds her is heavy blues, but with an organic warm feeling. It is stripped back and almost minimalistic in places, letting the sumptuous guitar work of Dean Ashton shine. Really rather wonderful, but as is sadly the way with Damnation I nip out five minutes early so I can make it downstairs to the titchy Cult Never Dies stage for my next appointment, authentic British Black Metallers The Infernal Sea. 

By the time I get down there they are already in their stride. This is as old Skool Black Metal as you can get without being Gorgoroth. The guitars are down-tuned and the sinister theatrics are turned up to eleven. The band are adorned in shrouds and plague mask and vocalist DL (not real name) is flanked on each side by faceless and motionless minions holding unlit lamps. The place is heaving and the crowd are absolutely loving this slice of true British Black Metal, especially when JE (also not real name) lays down some rather spectacular piece of Maiden like squealing guitar. Excellent and an early gauntlet is laid down for the Nordic legends to come. But I’m off again…

And it is back to the Eye Sore Merch stage for Wheel. Now there is no way that Damnation could ever afford (or fit in) Tool, so Wheel’s very Tool-esque math rock provides a very welcome (and far cheaper) alternative. Their new record is ace and the set is predominantly taken from it. As I said the Tool influences shine bright but Wheel’s sound also possesses a funky and forthright feel to it. Second track ‘Vultures' has an almost Status Quo intro, but then veers off into atmospheric technically proficient Prog Metal. They are great and show huge promise. There is something really really interesting in their melodic precise riffs and soaring vocals, but sadly I need to run as more Black Metal calls..

Like Wheel’s “Moving Backwards”, Dawn Ray’d’s “Behold Sedation Plainsong” is another recent release that has not just floated but levitated my boat. Tonight they are nothing short of awesome. The sound is minimal and stripped back, but full of immense power. There is just a guitar, drums and violin, but together they create a helter skelter of searing penetrating noise. Key to all this is the juxtapositions of primal warped guitar and mournful violin. It is disconcerting but fascinating the way that the pulsating crescendo of noise suddenly stops leaving you with the beautiful strains of the violin. The other thing that is so inciting about Dawn Ray’d is the fact that they wear their politics on their sleeves. In a scene that is in the main fantastical and a-political, it always warms my cockles to find those using Black Metal as a weapon for liberation.

Being Damnation I find a way up to the main concourse that I never knew existed and then I’m off to Lord Dying, yet another band that have highly impressed me with their new release (“Mysterium Tremendum” it’s a wonderful mix of chunky riffs and proggy overtures). They start off heavy and sludgy, but then Erik Olsen’s guitar strap breaks. But rather than call a halt to their intoxicating whirlpool of distorted cords he admirably carries on, balancing the guitar and also providing vocals. They are eclectically intriguing, with a sound that encapsulates primal riffs and also immersive Prog. Like High on Fire and Dream Theater got it on after a drunken night out and ended up with a bastard offspring. They also have huge amounts of presence and just burn off the stage. Yet again I find myself really really impressed, but I need to keep moving….

As my next stop is my first visit to main stage. After bemoaning to anyone who would listen the lack of cask ale this year (the Smoked Porter of the last couple of years was to die for) I settle in for cult polish outfit MGLA. They have a reputation for being an uncompromising live act and in accordance they seem to have attracted everyone in the building. They emerge faces obscured and in uniform hoddie and leather jackets and precede to be even better than hype. They are tight as fuck. Whereas Black Metal usually makes a virtue of being sloppy and under-produced, MGLA have an impressively full and pristine sound. Its weighty and almost anthemic in places, with huge soaring riffs that rain down on the rapt audience. This is very much Stadium Black, designed for huge enormo-domes as opposed to tiny clubs. There is a really good chance that when they eventually return to Damnation they will be headlining, they are that good.

My stepometer must be on overdrive as its another sprint across the building to the Eye Sore Merch for the exquisite Jo Quail. I was unsure how her sumptuous Cello work would appeal, however the room full sign is up long before she even emerges. As ever, she is ethereal and intoxicating as the packed room stand in utter rapture. I have seen her numerous times and on each and every occasion, I find what she achieves with a Cello breathtaking. For those unfamiliar with her approach, she plucks a note, captures it and then loops it back as a backing tracking. She does that again and again until she is accompanied for a towering soundscape of otherworldly sounds. 

Tonight however is a little special as for the first time ever Nick Sampson reprises on stage his blistering guitar solo from the recorded version of 'Mandrel Cantus’. The Cello and the guitar blend beautifully and it is plain to see that Jo is loving playing the piece as much as the audience love hearing it. It is obvious that for the uninitiated Jo has been nothing short of a revelation and the conclusion of ‘Mandrel Cantus’ is met with wild abandonment! For final (lengthy) track 'Adder Stone', she retains Nick’s services and adds The Vintage Caravan’s Stefán Ari Stefánsson on drums. As ever with Jo’s music it is a tale of juxtapositions, the sound building in texture and layers over two acts before it bursts with life and vitality in the third. For the last couple of years I have felt that Jo Quail brings something very special to our world and it was a joy to see so many other people enraptured by her.

And back to the main stage for Primordial (before anyone asks, no I didn’t break for food, I’m conclusive proof that man can live on cans of craft beer alone (did I mention there was no Smoked Porter this year). Now I love Primordial dearly but I don’t think I have seen them when they haven’t had some form of technical difficulty and tonight is no exception. They begin with a towering 'Where Greater Men Have Fallen’. It is big and chorale and fills the whole room. Alan Averill (Nemtheanga to his mum) is a commanding presence and looms over the crowd, encouraging them to scream along with him. 'Nail Their Tongues’ continues the rampant pace, but then suddenly (sadly not for the last time this evening) the sound cuts and band grind to a halt. Lesser bands would be thrown by this, but Primordial are gallant foot soldiers to the Celtic Metal cause and rise up against adversity. “From the second chorus” bellows the instructions of Nemtheanga and they are off again. As they plough into 'The Gathering Wilderness' a disgruntled death metal fanatic to my right mumbles something about “bloody power metal” and stomps off to something heavier. I guess that there is a bombastic element to their DNA, but there is something reassuring about their massive chorus (never mind planes, you could land airships on them) and their do or die attitude. As said I don’t think I have seen a single show of theirs where something doesn’t go array (lost voices, bust PA’s, dodgy mic’s the lot) but every single time, they rise above and show their true grit and determination.

There is a gap on the Damnation bill this year where the interesting post-metal should be. In the past they have offered Cult of Luna, Nordic Giants, MONO and Altar of Plagues to name just four. But tonight, the sole offering for those who like their metal introspective and challenging are France’s Birds In Row. They stand front of stage (as their name suggests) in a row (guitar, drums bass) and the music they produce veers widely in tempo and style. A times it is taught, heavy and caustic, then it becomes punky and brattish and then suddenly we are in indie territory. In fact, there is a lot of their stuff which sounds like a distorted The Smiths. Underneath the heavy juttering bass lines lies the type of jingly jangly guitar that would not sound out of place in Big Star or Teenage Fanclub. It is a weird combination, but it works and the rapidly filling Tone MGMT Stage (presumably bolstered by those that had given up trying to get in to see A Pale Horse Named Death) laps it up.

The Gallic theme continues as it is up the stairs I go (again) for French Blackgaze pioneers Alcest. They start wonderfully with the sumptuously beautiful 'Kodama’. The notes they play don’t disappear, they hang in the air like beautiful fluttering butterflies. This is a fragile and delicate take on Black Metal. The power and presence is retained but the harshness and darkness is replaced by warm soaring riffs that are full of colour and life affirming goodness. It may sound bizarre when describing a black metal act, but there is a real feeling transcendental joy coming from the stage. Alcest’s music are soundscapes (as the compere notes) and it fascinating to watch them weave their magic. There are more technical hitches (its becoming a running theme) but in the end they are stunning, spine-tinglingly stunning.

I can’t tear myself away from Alcest so when I finally arrive downstairs in the Tone MGMT stage, it is beyond heaving and more importantly HE is already on stage. I am going to go all gooey and fanboy here, as I adore Gaahl. I adore his voice, the fact that in a scene of one trick pony screamers, he possess such range and such power. I also adore and admire the fact that for all his career he has been an openly gay man in an predominately homophobic genre. Tonight, he is nothing short of incredible. He owns the stage, staring numerous adoring crowd members in the eyes (including myself) and singing directly at them. He reminds me of Nick Cave in the way that he plays off the adulation coming off the floor. He also croons, yes croons. There are moments in 'From the Spear' where he comes across like a lounge singer and that is meant as a compliment. Material wise, we get a mix of stuff off the excellent new album, “Gastir – Ghosts Invited” and nuggets of wonder from his stints with both Gorgoroth and Trelldom. I know I am biased but he has charisma and charm that you seldom find in extreme metal. Yes the music is heavy and gritty and yes he is adorned in corpse paint but he still manages to exude so much warmth. Just wonderful.

Back upstairs, quick toilet break and then the parade of Norwegian legends continue with Mayhem. This is all about the theatrics and the staging. Hellhammer has a drum kit the size of a small country and the band have hit the dressing box hard. That is apart from Necrobutcher who didn’t get the memo about it being bring your shroud to work day and is shirtless from the get go with a fine pony tail. Attila has however gone to town and resembles the bastard child of Papa Emeritus and the clown from IT.  It starts off well. Brooding, evil and intense. But then the sound keeps cutting out and Attila keeps disappearing. The glitches get worse and worse to the point where 'Bad Blood' is unlistenable even by their standards. There is lots of faff and they become in grave danger of losing the audience. But then they return in cowls and win back every single member of the crowd with a stunning 'Freezing Moon’. Suddenly the Mayhem that we know and love is back in the room and they are proving that they are the masters of disjointed evil metal. A game of distinctly two halves but they pull it off, just.

The juxtaposition between Mayhem and Tone MGMT headliners Venom Prison is astounding. The former is all about the pomp and circumstance. Creating a impenetrable façade. Venom Prison could not be more different. What you see here is what you get. No gimmicks, no ‘stage clothes’, no comprise. Primal Death Metal channelled through a filter of hardcore. This is very much their moment and don’t they know it. Jo Quail is back again providing a mournful intro to 'Matriphagy' and then they are off. The energy pulsating off them is intoxicating. This is a band giving every last drop that they have. They absolutely own the stage. Larissa contorts herself around like something out of exorcist. She lives every syllable that she spits out. It’s raw, caustic and angry. Ever so angry. The thing I love so much about Venom Prison is they have turned Death Metal into protest music. They have politicalised a genre usually content with being as gross as possible and that frustration with the wrongs of the world is channelled into producing the most heaviest and unrepentant music I have heard in a long time.  Jo Quail returns for 'Implementing the Metaphysics of Morals' but her Cello doesn't work (the gremlins are working overtime tonight). She is instead ushered off stage and the band dive straight into the final track, culminating with them all stood motionless, backs to the audience, fist in the air. A final act of defiance from a band proving that music still can be a power to change the world.

I will undoubtedly be seeing the University Union’s steps in my sleep as I yet again go up towards the Refectory for the coup of the century. Opeth, a band that commands such respect and adoration, a band that sold out Wembley Arena (admittedly they reduced the capacity by half) is headlining here at Damnation. The audience is a mix of disciples and curious on lookers as it is obvious that for many, ten hours of metal (and beer) is taking its toil. Opeth seem to have escaped all the sound difficulties as 'Svekets Prins' sounds divine. This latest evolution of their sound is almost psychedelic, full of rich deep organ and slices of minimal guitar. It just oozes class and you lose yourself in its layers of texture. There is some impatient shuffling from those not of a Prog disposition, but that is put to bed when they launch straight into ‘The Leper Affinity' from the majestic “Blackwater Park”. It was written eighteen years ago, yet it still sounds like nothing else. An astounding mix of guttural Death Metal and intricate melodies, it is one of those tracks that you lose yourself in.

The uninitiated and unconvinced peel off after the first few tracks, which means that the crowd becomes even more fevered and reverential as the set goes on. The clock heads towards midnight, last trains come and go and we are left with a throng that adore this band with every inch of their collective bodies. Mikael Åkerfeldt is his usual charming self-deprecating self and half way through seems to remember he his playing a festival and indicates that they will curtail the set accordingly. We still get a full hour and a half, so god knows how long the headline shows are. “Watershed”’s 'Lotus Eater' is another reminder that on their day Opeth could be as brutal and non-comprising as any other death metal act. It also signals the end of the main set. Though Mikael states that it is too cold to walk off and on stage again, so declares that we are going straight into the encore. 'Sorceress' is appropriately spellbinding and then we end big with ‘Deliverance’. Chunky juttering riffs that crash off the stage. And then with a final thank you they are gone. Utterly mesmerising and just just fantastic.

But we are not quite done yet. I drag poor Johann from the spot where he was attempting to curl up and go to sleep and frog march (apt) him downstairs one last time. Coz it’s time for band number fourteen, the curiosity that is Gost. We arrive to find a bare stage and Baalberith careering around it screaming into a microphone over what can only be described as the soundtrack from a bad episode of Miami Vice. This is Dark Wave, the bastard child of electronica and Death Metal. Actually it sounds a lot like what Gary Numan was doing in the late eighties. Baalberith is going full on Iggy Pop throwing himself around the shop, but it is not obvious whether he is actually creating any of the music live or whether he is just pressing buttons. Having said all that, the place is heaving and everyone else around me seems to be absolutely loving it.

Which proves and encapsulates the most wonderful thing about Damnation (well it is now the smoked porter is no more) and that is its diversity. Their bill this year is two fingers up to anyone who says that extreme metal lacks variety and depth. Across four stages, I witnessed fourteen bands, each doing something utterly unique. All (in some shape or form) coming under the catch all term of Metal, but all ploughing highly distinct and individual fields. And it is that care to the billing that makes Damnation so refreshing and so utterly different to anything else. This is not a thrown together bunch of bands, this is a carefully curated guided tour through the interesting and challenging music. And as I finally exit the university union, I know I am already counting down the 365 days until I can once more be entering it.