Written By Lucien Drake
Wacken Open Air 2027 lineup
The mud has barely dried on Wacken 2026, but apparently nobody in northern Germany believes in sleeping.
Wacken Open Air has revealed its massive first wave of bands for 2027, with Five Finger Death Punch, Electric Callboy and Helloween leading an announcement that stretches from power metal and thrash to death metal, hardcore, metalcore and some particularly intriguing reunion and special performances.
The 36th edition of Wacken Open Air 2027 lineup will take place July 28–31, 2027, once again transforming the tiny village of Wacken, Germany, into one of the loudest patches of dirt on Earth.
And the first announcement isn’t exactly easing us into things gently.
Wacken Open Air 2027 Lineup Brings Electric Callboy to the Holy Ground
One of the biggest surprises is Electric Callboy, who will finally make their proper Wacken debut in 2027.
The German electronicore wrecking crew appeared at the 2026 festival in their Electric Bassboy DJ incarnation, but next year the actual band gets its turn on the Holy Ground.
They’re joined near the top of the first announcement by Five Finger Death Punch and German power-metal institution Helloween, whose Wacken appearance continues the band’s 40th-anniversary celebrations.
But things become considerably more interesting once you start digging deeper into the bill.
DragonForce will make Wacken their only European festival appearance of summer 2027, adding some genuine exclusivity to the announcement.
The first wave also brings Halestorm, Heaven Shall Burn, HammerFall, Jinjer, Knocked Loose, Overkill, Dark Tranquillity, Napalm Death, Avatar, Beast In Black, U.D.O., Metal Church, Primordial, Crypta, Belphegor, Dethklok, Carnifex, Shadow Of Intent, Malevolence, Sylosis and plenty more.
In other words, Wacken has once again approached genre boundaries with the subtlety of a bulldozer driving through a record store.
Edguy Prepare to Say Goodbye
There is also a bittersweet name sitting in the Wacken Open Air 2027 lineup.
Edguy will appear at Wacken as part of their farewell tour, bringing Tobias Sammet and company back to the festival as the veteran German power-metal band prepares to close the book on its career.
Their appearance gives the 2027 festival another emotional farewell moment, and considering Edguy’s history within the German metal scene, Wacken is about as appropriate a place as any to begin saying goodbye.
Norther Return After More Than a Decade
Then there’s Norther.
The Finnish melodic death metal band have reunited and will perform at Wacken in what is set to be their first concert in 15 years.
Norther originally called it quits in 2012, making their appearance one of the more unexpected names buried inside an already enormous announcement.
Sometimes festival posters reward people who actually read the smaller print.
This is one of those times.
Children Of Bodom Return to Wacken
Another Finnish name immediately jumps off the poster: Children Of Bodom.
The reunited band will appear with new frontman Samy Elbanna, stepping into the formidable position once occupied by late founder Alexi Laiho.
It will inevitably be one of the more emotionally complicated performances of the weekend.
Children Of Bodom’s music remains inseparable from Laiho’s playing, voice and personality, but the Wacken appearance gives fans another opportunity to hear that catalogue thunder across a festival field rather than remain permanently frozen in history.
Wacken 2027 Is Loaded With Special Performances
Wacken isn’t relying exclusively on ordinary festival sets, either.
Former Anthrax vocalist John Bush will perform a special show centered on material from his years with Anthrax, while Kanonenfieber will bring the production from their own Kanonenfest to Wacken.
There’s also Between Two Worlds, featuring Abbath, Ice Dale and Armagedda, performing the album Between Two Worlds in full as an exclusive show. Wacken’s initial announcement also includes Belphegor’s Sanctus Bestiam Procession, along with appearances from Gaerea, Crypta, Witch Club Satan and returning grindcore institution Napalm Death.
And because apparently the poster wasn’t crowded enough already, Alissa White-Gluz’s Blue Medusa is also scheduled to appear.
Wacken Open Air 2027 Lineup: Bands Confirmed
The bands confirmed in the initial Wacken Open Air 2027 announcement include:
Avatar, Beast In Black, Belphegor, Between Two Worlds, Blue Medusa, Carnifex, Cavalera Conspiracy, Children Of Bodom, Creeper, Crypta, Dark Tranquillity, Dethklok, DragonForce, Edguy, Electric Callboy, Feuerschwanz, Five Finger Death Punch, Gaerea, Halestorm, HammerFall, Heaven Shall Burn, Heavens Gate, Helloween, Hiraes, Imminence, Jinjer, John 5, John Bush (Anthrax Show), Kanonenfieber, Knocked Loose, Make Them Suffer, Malevolence, Metal Church, Mittel Alta, Napalm Death, Norther, Overkill, Primordial, Seven Blood, Shadow Of Intent, Sylosis, Tailgunner, The Browning, The Narrator, The New Roses, Towards The Sinister, Tyketto, U.D.O., Victorius and Witch Club Satan.
About The Author:
Lucien Drake is a writer and archivist at Metal Lair, contributing across features, essays, cultural commentary, and long-form series including Deep Cuts, Road Riffs and editorial projects exploring music, memory, and resistance.
Known for treating heavy music as living history rather than nostalgia, Drake focuses on influence over canon, context over hype, and the stories that survive outside official timelines.
Read More From Lucien Drake:
DEEP CUTS: METAL’S HIDDEN GEMS
The Underground Never Needed Your Approval – Only the Real Ones Survived
Before Algorithms Hunting Metal Was Bloodsport
The Metal Sex Playlist: Bang Your Head… and Each Other
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