Mystic is unlike just about any other summer festival in Europe. Hosted in the city of Gdansk since 2022 - before that it historically bounced around cities including Krakow, Katowice and Wroclaw - it's one of the first major metal events in the summer calendar and has hosted headline sets by everyone from Mercyful Fate and Judas Priest to Ghost and Machine Head.
But what's it actually like? By this point, we all know there's more metal festivals in the year than actual weekends to host them, so between your Downloads and Bloodstocks, Wacken and Hellfests, it's easy to lose sight of what the festival experience is actually like on the ground.
With Hammer returning to Gdansk for Mystic's fourth edition in the historic shipyard, we figured we'd share a few insights into what made Mystic Festival 2025 so brilliant (erm, spoiler).
Getting in and out is a breeze
When it comes to festivals, you generally expect to turn up to some out-the-way field and set up camp. Not so with Mystic. Although the festival did used to offer camping on-site, this year it was discontinued.
But with the festival taking place in the Gdansk Shipyard, the city itself is literally a quick walk up the road, meaning finding the festival (and getting out of it) turns out to be ridiculously easy - handy for if you've had a few over the course of the day.
Hotel beds are a godsend
Yeah, yeah, we know we should be more hardcore and relish standing knee deep in mud listening to Slayer riffs as thunder rolls overhead, but we're also old and have bones made of powder and pain.
Mystic being basically right in the city of Gdansk (or just out of it) means there's a tonne of accommodation options from the cheap-and-cheerful to the "this is basically a luxury holiday". That also means a warm bed to go back to every night, hot showers and a general sense that doing the festival isn't going to shuffle you off your mortal coil by the end of the weekend. Huzzah.
Gdansk Shipyard looks badass
Going right back to Black Sabbath, metal's always had an inclination towards post-industrial landscapes. So where better for a massive metal festival than an actual post-industrial landscape? The sight of huge shipping cranes behind Main Stage is one that stuck with us immediately, but there's also the matter of old buildings, shipping containers and old rail lines lending the whole thing a Fallout-like vibe. Post-apocalyptic thrash? Fuck yeah.
You can actually explore the city
Yeah alright, this is the last time we'll bleat on about how well placed the festival is. But with bands not starting till after 3pm, there's plenty of time in the days to explore the city and nearby locales. Gdansk itself has a fascinating history mixing different cultures (Baltic, German and Polish chief among them) and played a huge part in the Second World War, with the first battle actually taking place just half hour out of town at Westerplatte (which now houses a museum, ruins and a monument to the forces who fought the Nazi invasion in 1939).
Across the week of Mystic, it's common to spot metalheads not only filling out the many bars and restaurants in the city, but also popping up at touristy spots like the metal-as-fuck skull chamber beneath the Basilica of St. Bridget. Our personal favourite was running into a lad in a Deicide shirt leaving St. Mary's Church (which has a massive tower offering views of the city - but is also a killer hike that's best done before you've spent a few days moshing and headbanging till the wee hours).
You don't have to remortgage for food and drink
A biggie, this. European festivals on the whole seem to have a much better grasp of the "let's not charge £15 for the worst beer you've ever tasted" concept that has infilitrated some of the more mainstream festivals and Mystic is no exception. Even factoring in exchange rates, beers come out to around £6 or £7 a pint (so, not too dissimilar to prices at your bigger local venue) while options like Kraken and Jagermeister cocktails still drop in just below the £10 mark. Tasty.
As for food, Mystic had all the usual suspects: Burgers, noodles, burritos, pizza... All again under £10 a meal. We were particularly impressed by the Kielbasa stand, which proved cheap and incredibly filling (especially with the goulash).
Mystic loves its extreme metal...
Finally, onto the bands. Considering Emperor headlined the first edition of the festival way back in 99, it probably shouldn't be a surprise that Mystic still has a strong connection to the world of extreme metal. Even with more mainstream bands like Slipknot getting booked in recent years, the 2025 edition had plenty of visceral nastiness to sink your fangs into, whether that was death metallers like Nile or Vader (who actually provided this year's "festival anthem") to a host of black metal acts like Witch Club Satan, Beherit and the almighty Bathory tribute Blood Fire Death.
...But isn't above a bit of RAWK
For all the thrash, death and black metal on its stages, Mystic 2025 also had a clear love for old school rock. A well-populated Jerry Cantrell set saw the singer/guitarist elicit big sing-alongs for Alice In Chains tunes Them Bones, Rooster and Would?, while W.A.S.P.'s triumphant run-through of their self-titled debut pulled one of the biggest crowds we saw at the Park Stage all weekend.
And that's to say nothing of the sing-alongs to Van Halen, KISS, Ugly Kid Joe et al. that would often serenade us into the night as bands finished each day and DJ sets took over the PA.
There's many ways to party
While the bands are a huge part of what Mystic offers, they're not the be-all, end-all. A basement filled with retro consoles offered a handy spot to duck out for a quick match-up on Mario Kart or Mortal Kombat 3 between bands, while the official festival "chill out zone" had its own wrestling ring with match-ups each day.
Watch out for drones
Alright, so you're not actually at risk, but we'll admit to being a bit surprised at how low some of the official festival drones fly overhead at Mystic. Mounted with cameras to capture the action both in the crowd and on-stage, they add a dynamic sense of movement to the big screen coverage that makes it extra thrilling (though certainly perturbed a couple of artists, Dani Filth warning he would "bite off it's fucking head" if it got too close during Cradle's set).
It turns out, you've not properly seen a circle pit on the big screen 'till you've seen a drone flying in circles overhead. Mad.
The stages are a mix of indoors and outdoors...
Although Mystic is an outdoor festival, it has a couple of indoor stages. The club Drizzly Grizzly is used for the super-intimate Sabbath Stage, while the Shrine stage is a bigger hangar-like room which even has a balcony area with a bar and settees. Fancy.
Which is handy when the weather takes a turn
Look, it's June. In Europe. You don't have to be a hardened festival vet to know that means the weather can suddenly go tits up right as you're watching a band and sure enough grey skies over Gdansk across the weekend at Mystic 2025 did occasionally dip into downpours.
While that was hardly going to stop us enjoying the likes of Jinjer or Hatebreed (who played up to a particularly heavy shower by playing Raining Blood. LADS) it can dampen the spirits when the sun goes down and you're suddenly stood in soaked shorts and a t-shirt. So, you bugger off to one of the smaller stages, cram yourself in like a sardine to see the likes of Death Angel or Witch Club Satan and let the warmth dry you off. Creative solutions!
It's not an endurance test
Picture the scene: it's day four of a festival, you've seen a dozen bands a day and also spent most mornings criss-crossing the city to see the sights, somehow dragging your carcass up the biggest tower in town. But now, your legs feel like breadsticks with angry nerve endings and you've still got another day's festival to go. Time to go home right?
Daft (and obvious) as it sounds, Mystic having a whole bunch of respite areas is possibly one of the best facilities at the festival. Benches near bars and restaurants mean you're not spilling half your food and drink while trying to nourish yourself in the small window between bands, while the festival's official "chill out area" (more benches, bars and food stands) is a great way to just take a breather and gather your strength.
And that's to say nothing of the absurd but brilliant seating options available on some of the stages. We spotted (and yes, lounged in) hammocks (Metal Hammercks?) by the main stage, found comfy sofas up on the balcony of the Shrine and even pulled up a deckchair while waiting for Pentagram's set on the Desert Stage. There's also ample seating in the festival's indoor food court, meaning we still had plenty of energy to party it out with post-headliner sets like Inhuman Nature, Perturbator or I Am Morbid. It's a small touch, but something that makes a huge difference.
What makes a headliner?
Big debate topic, this. Some will surely tell you that any headliner worth their salt should be able to pack out arenas, or even stadiums. But we put it to you: headliners aren't dictated by the venues they play, but the kind of show they put on.
Although Mystic's had tried-and-true top liners like Iron Maiden and Slipknot in the past, the festival also feels special for its ability to offer smaller veteran bands a chanc to get top-billing. In 2025, we got In Flames, King Diamond and Sepultura - and let us tell you, all three absolutely smashed it - and for different reasons.
From In Flames' dazzling multi-screen displays which made their Thursday night headline a revelation (christ, that band has been long overdue top billing) to King Diamond's characteristically theatrical outing on Friday night and Sepultura bringing the hits to close out Saturday, Mystic feels extra special for affording bands who might otherwise languish lower on a bill a chance to shine in a massive setting.
There was plenty of theatricality to go about
With a headliner like King Diamond, Mystic was never going to lack for flair. But even lower on the bill, there were plenty of bands putting on eye-popping displays.
Stoner rock stars Castle Rat brought 70s style prog concepts to old school metal with their excellent set on the Desert Stage on Wednesday (all hail our new Rat Queen), while Witch Club Satan had a crowd spilling out into the street for their Sabbath Stage set straight after, incorporating poetic readings like Mother Sea amidst their more incendiary black metal offerings.
It's a truly international affair
We might've seen the likes of Employed To Serve or Green Lung a dozen times before, but there's something especially special about seeing them pull passionate crowds at an international festival. Both smashed it (naturally), but Britain wasn't the only country represented at Mystic Festival 2025.
One of the first bands to kick off the festival was Intrepid, the Estonian band pulling out some surprisingly Voivod/latter-day Napalm Death cosmic notes amidst their bludgeoning death metal. The festival also hosted a "Danish invasion" from its neighbours across the Baltic Sea, hosting the likes of Møl and Plaguemace.
We've no idea how King Diamond's set is going to fit into UK venues
With headliner status, it's not surprising that King Diamond had a mammoth set-up on the main stage. More akin to a big theatre production than your average metal gig, the set - complete with a chamber, rocking chair and staircase - underpinned the grandiose, Hammer horror vibe the King curates.
All day, tributes to Diamond poured in - from Green Lung, Opeth, Cradle Of Filth... even Hatebreed ("It's nearly time for tea!"), underscoring how influential the demonic Dane is. But it still falls short of capturing the sheer madness of his live show, complete with an on-stage actress and legions of fans howling along to the likes of Abigail, Voodoo and Welcome Home. "GRANDMAAA WHAT WAS IT LIIIIKE?"
But one band stole the festival
Even the King couldn't compare to one of the most unique - and rare - performances of the weekend, Blood Fire Death – A Tribute to Quorthon and the Music of Bathory.
Over 20 years since Quorthon passed, the reverence for Bathory's ground-breaking brand of black metal has only increased, and the all-star tribute (comprised of former and current members of bands including Watain, Mayhem and Enslaved) proved a serious draw before Sepultura closed out the Main Stage.
Kicking off with a choir-enhanced A Fine Day To Die and pulling out a pyro-filled set that certainly lived up to the "Fire" portion of Blood Fire Death, the set was an astounding runthrough of the legendary band's most beloved hits, even drafting in a few surprise guests to add an extra corpse-painted cherry on top, as when Mayhem's Attila Cshair popped up to gargle Born For Burning like the world's most infernal goblin.
So what's Mystic Festival actually like?
In a word? Brilliant. There's a whole bunch of metal festivals around the world now with their own unique elements and experiences, but Mystic holds its own as one of the most unique of all, a brilliant blend of extremity and enormity ensuring its line-up feels fresh and exciting each year.
Even with the weather not playing ball, the 2025 event was nothing short of a triumph, a massive celebration of all things heavy with something to cover just about every corner of the metal world. Confirmed to return to Gdansk next year from June 3 to June 6, it's an experience every metalhead should try at least once.
