Messed!Up
The last day at the festival, and usually I just want to go home at this point after seven days of no sleep on a tiny air mattress and the back problems that come with it, but not this year. To be honest, I haven’t had this much fun at the Roskilde Festival in a very long time, and this is my 32nd Roskilde Festival! I didn’t know what to expect this year. Last year’s flu (and back problems – yes, I’m over 50) made it the worst festival experience of all festivals I’ve ever been to. In fact, all the festivals after the pandemic have had a sort of eerie feeling of not being a ‘real’ festival, but 2025 was the year it turned back to normal. Amazing parties at the campsite, lots of old friends coming back to the festival (their kids grew up), and surprisingly many good shows. I feel like I have at least 18 more Roskilde Festivals in me to make an even 50.
The last day was also the most exciting gig day with long-time favorites Nine Inch Nails and my first time seeing The Raveonettes live, and though I’ve seen so many good shows already – can anyone deliver anything close to Wet Leg? – I had high hopes of seeing some really bat crazy stuff on stage.
However, waking up with drizzling rain on the tent didn’t make it a good start. But there’s also something charming about staying in the tent and listening to the rain, and what’s better than sleeping it off for another two hours. A coffee and a Danish pork sandwich later, and we were ready for today’s gigs.
First out was Danish band School of X, aka Rasmus Littauer. I’ve been to two shows before, both times when he supported Trentemøller, and he made an impression commanding the stage with quite a confidence, and I had high hopes for the gig. Apparently, everyone thought the same, and the tent wasn’t big enough for all the people, which is probably proof of a national breakthrough for the young Dane. Of course, you can’t have an amazing gig experience when it’s not possible to get closer than three meters from the tent, but just seeing all the people at his show was satisfying enough because he deserves it. For anyone who has yet to listen to his music – what are you waiting for!?
A quick run to the Cava Bar for the last drink of the festival, and we went back to the campsite for a while, packed down some stuff to prepare for tomorrow’s departure, and had a few beers with the lads of Camp Vienna. It’s interesting to see how people’s mood changes over the course of a week. Seven days ago, it was party 24/7, and today, people sat sleeping in their chairs. Clearly, an eight-day-long festival takes its toll on the body, thus I’m surprised to feel in such good shape this year after one of the most party-intense Roskilde Festivals in years. As I was the only one in good spirits, I walked over to our neighbors, where the party was still wild, snatched a few Tuborgs, and headed back to the festival area to see if there was anything fun happening before the Nine Inch Nails gig. And luckily it was.
First out was London punks The Chisel. I’ve only heard a few songs, and it didn’t strike me as something new and exciting, but live was something completely different. Frontman Callum Graham was amazing, prowling the stage like he owns it, barking chants, commanding the pit, and whipping fans into a frenzy. He kept it interesting in between songs with the kind of British working-class banter you expect from UK punk bands – amazing! This is the type of punk show I grew up with in the 80s, and it’s still the type of punk show I need to get excited about a band.
A quick detour to the Gloria stage, housed in an old barn at the festival area, and we ended up at the Kollapse & Grava gig. However, although it was a full house, it wasn’t interesting at all, and we left after three songs. Instead, we popped by a soul/R&B show by Ravyn Lenae. I’ve never been a fan of R&B and didn’t expect much at all, but luckily it was more soul music and surprisingly good. Ravyn’s voice has often been described as ‘angelic and otherworldly’, and as a non-soul/R&B listener, I have to add that she had an amazing vocal range. She also interacts with the audience through anecdotes from her own life, such as reflecting on family or personal growth, giving the feeling that she’s authentic. This is why you go to festivals: to get that surprise show you didn’t expect. Just stay open-minded, and you will find 2-3 new bands/artists at every festival you go to, and some of them end up as your new favorite bands.
With a few songs left, we had to leave to get a good spot at the Arena stage before Nine Inch Nails were about to start. NIN is the highlight of the festival, but I didn’t think they would stand a chance against the fantastic Wet Leg show a couple of days ago. However, every NIN show I’ve been to since my first in 1993 has been brilliant. Trent Reznor’s vision on how to interweave music, lights, and video has been at the forefront of live music performances. Just check any video from his Lights In The Sky Tour back in 2008, and you’ll understand how far ahead he’s been in live music performances.
The lights fade out, people start screaming, and the band appears from nowhere, starting to play “The Beginning of the End” – it’s brutal industrial energy, and people go nuts. And then there are two fan favorites, both my favorite live songs. Without much of a break – Trent Reznor doesn’t spend much time on stage banter (thank you) – they start playing “Wish”, one of the best industrial/metal songs of the 90s. ‘I’m the one without a soul. I’m the one with this big fucking hole’. It took me two verses, and then my throat gave up on me, all while we’re being slammed with white strobes, laser barrages, and blinding pulses. It’s brilliant and it’s pure joy! Sorry, Wet Leg, you’ve lost your first place after two NIN songs. And then the best industrial punk song of the 90s was next, “March of the Pigs”, a sensory-shredding experience and at the same time unpredictable, violent, and unforgettable. That’s it, this is the gig of the year in my book. After three songs. A slower part follows, but with super hits like “Piggy”, “Reptile”, and “Heresy” – it was basically a best of show. After a quick beer break and changing my t-shirt that was soaked, I squeezed myself back to the front to catch the last four brilliant songs, “The Perfect Drug”, “The Hand That Feeds”, “Head Like a Hole”, and their commercial hit, thanks to Johnny Cash, “Hurt”. Massive! I knew there were still some great gigs left, but there wasn’t a chance in hell that it could get any better than this. My eighth NIN show, and my eighth amazing NIN experience.
Now, I had been looking forward to seeing The Raveonettes for the first time in my life. Their brilliant albums Chain Gang of Love, Observator, and Pe’ahi have been on heavy rotation at home, but I’ve never seen them live. Off I went to the Avalon stage, and by using the advantage of being accredited, I took a 5-minute shortcut to the stage instead of walking 20 minutes through a very crowded festival area. The problem? I wasn’t ready for reverb-drenched indie rock guitars, and though I was happy to finally catch them live, I didn’t stay more than seven songs, and only because it started to rain. As soon as the rain stopped, I left for a beer and a calm moment in the small ‘park area’ called The Garden next to the Avalon stage. What’s funny is that very few people go to this place during the festival. It’s calm and quiet, and you can chill (or have a bit of a sleep) for an hour without being interrupted by people.
After a short break, it was time for the last show of the night, the rowdy Lambrini Girls. The three-piece released their debut album last year and are one of the exciting bands of the new riot grrrl movement (which, music-wise, is far better than the original riot grrrl movement). I saw them in Hamburg at Reeperbahn Festival last year, and it was fantastic, but after standing waiting for half an hour for them to start, eight days of little sleep and too much partying struck me, together with realizing it was soon time to go back home. The sentimental me arrived.
As always, when the last gig is over and there’s only one night left until it’s time to get back home and wait a full year for the next festival, I always get sentimental. I’ve been like this at the Roskilde Festival since the first time I visited the festival in 1992. It’s like I don’t want it to stop, even after eight days in a tent with too much fast food and way too many beers and drinks that probably take a year to squeeze out of the body at the gym – I always feel like I don’t want to go back home. If there were a Matrix reality, Roskilde would be my matrix. The people, the fun, the food, the activities – everything is just so good for my soul. I wandered off from the Lambrini Girls show and walked all over the festival area to catch the vibe one last time, and made a pitstop in Dream City before walking back to the tent around 3 am to catch a few hours of sleep until it was time to squeeze everything into the backpack again.
Until next time (2026) – cheers! Much love, a lot more than a feeling!
