DARK MALTA FESTIVAL 2025 – Gianpula Village, Malta
written by Marko Jakob and Lucifera Noir
Dark Malta Festival 2025 is History
The atmosphere and the weather were similar to previous years. The event at Gianpula Village has now become something of a tradition and a little festival home for us. Some artists and bands weren’t visiting Malta for the first time either, drawn to the island by its unique blend of music, community, and Mediterranean flair.
DARK MALTA FESTIVAL 25th April 2025 – Day 1
HER OWN WORLD
Our festival journey began this year with Her Own World from Poland. Founded in 2018, the band impressed with their distinctive mix of electronica and industrial rock, and placed great emphasis on visuals with a compelling live performance. The charming band was overwhelmed by the number of people gathered in front of the stage during their show. Their latest release is the 2024 single “The Queen”, which was undoubtedly one of the highlights of their performance. Another unforgettable moment was the massive golden angel wings during “Guardian Angel”.
“I’m so moved and touched,” said vocalist Yu after receiving thunderous applause. “It’s a tradition for us to dedicate the last song to you,” she added. “My Darkling” was a beautiful conclusion to a great show by Her Own World.
Setlist Her Own World Dark Malta Festival 2025: 01 Parallel Worlds 02 Stalker Girl 03 Jessie 04 The Queen 05 Autumn Song Part II 06 Can’t Hear You 07 Guardian Angel 08 Mistrust 09 Like A Moth 10 This Fire 11 My Darkling
https://www.facebook.com/herownworldband
NEL BUIO
It was time for heavier sounds at this genre-spanning festival. Nel Buio brought Italian black metal to the stage. Founded in 2023, the band is technically a newcomer, but its members are seasoned musicians. Founder “Clod the Ripper” gained experience with death metal band Blasphemer. In summer 2024, Nel Buio released their debut EP, including a Twin Tribes cover, which was performed at Dark Malta.
After a 15-minute delay, the band hit the stage with full force, delivering top-notch metal with a powerful voice and striking stage presence. The singer and bassist stood out not only for his voice but also for his beard and head tattoos. A dance performance during the instrumental track “La Danza” added a nice touch. Unfortunately, the delay time wasn’t compensated, and the show ended quickly. Still, the band received loud applause for their brief but powerful performance.
Setlist Nel Buio Dark Malta Festival 2025: 1 Lei È (Intro) 2 Sola 3 Mi Avvelena (Twin Tribes Cover) 4 In Silenzio 5 La Danza (Instrumental with Performance) 6 Nel Buio
https://www.facebook.com/nelbuio
ASHBURY HEIGHTS
Next came a leap across genres and Europe, with future pop from Sweden: Ashbury Heights. Their current album “Ghost House Sessions” was released in 2024. The duo, founded 20 years ago, has been back in its original lineup since 2020. The band caused quite a stir on stage, constantly jumping and spinning. Singer Yasmine even climbed over the side wall into the crowd. “Thank you, Malta – you are super loud,” she said. Of course, their classic “Spiders” was part of the set, lighting up the stage beautifully. The Gianpula Mainroom was now almost completely packed—more so than any previous year at this time, hinting at a new attendance record. The crowd went wild for “Wild Eyes” (2020), and during “Smaller”, the band filmed the ecstatic audience. For “Anti Ordinary”, heads were banging in the front row like at a metal show. Yasmine returned to the wall and sang the last lines of the song right in the crowd.
Setlist Ashbury Heights Dark Malta Festival 2025: 01 Tunguska 02 Headlights 03 Tomorrow Is Dead to Me 04 Spectres from the Black Moss 05 Crescendo 06 Spiders 07 Is That Your Uniform 08 Phantasmagoria 09 Sleeping With a Knife 10 Wild Eyes 11 Waste of Love 12 Smaller 13 Anti Ordinary
https://www.facebook.com/ashbury.heights
SELOFAN
Now it was time for minimal electro from Greece. Darkness had fallen, matching Selofan’s moody, monotonous synth sounds. The duo, founded in 2012, has built a loyal fanbase through numerous releases and live shows. Their videos have hundreds of thousands of views. The latest album, “Animal Mentality” (2024), stands out just like Joanna’s outfit and her dramatic stage moves. The audience had a great time, tightly packed in front of the stage. Deep synth and bass lines created a hypnotic, intense atmosphere. During “Sacrifice Me”, Joanna played the keyboard while Dimitris sang. A dramatic intro followed for “Billie Was A Vampire”. The band thanked the crowd in multiple languages for their applause. For the final song, the electro drums thundered once again through the Gianpula Mainroom.
Setlist Selofan Dark Malta Festival 2025: 01 Bluebirds-Shadowmen 02 The Wheels Of Love 03 The One You Wanted 04 Lucille 05 Sacrifice Me 06 Billie Was A Vampire 07 I Am Addicted 08 Sto Skotadi 09 Ist Die Liebe Tot 10 Auf Deiner Haut 11 Give Me A Reason
https://www.facebook.com/selofan.official
CLAN OF XYMOX
Next up was a legend returning to Malta. Clan Of Xymox, the dark wave pioneers founded over 40 years ago, last performed at Dark Malta in 2019 (then held at Monte Kristo Estate). The Dutch band continues to produce new material, most recently the 2024 album “Exodus”. Their show was filled with good vibes and a relaxed atmosphere, thanks in part to the upbeat, talkative frontman Ronny Moorings. He asked the audience who were tourists and who were locals – and indeed, several hundred fans had traveled from German-speaking countries and beyond to attend the festival. With “X-Odus” and the new single “Blood Of Christ”, Clan Of Xymox delivered more dark wave gems. “Emily”, a favorite of keyboardist Sean, was performed while he stepped over the wall with a mini keyboard. Their show had fantastic sound and lighting – a true Dark Malta 2025 highlight and a triumphant return to the island.
Setlist (incomplete) Clan Of Xymox Dark Malta Festival 2025: 01 Stranger 02 No Tomorrow 03 X-Odus 04 Jasmin & Rose 05 Blood Of Christ 06 Emily 07 You’re The One 08 Loneliness 09 Suffer 10 She 11 A Day
https://www.facebook.com/clanofxymox.official
DARK MALTA FESTIVAL 26th April 2025 – Day 2
SYNTH ATTACK
Day two kicked off with SynthAttack from Germany. The aggrotech act made waves in March with their new dark-dancefloor banger “In Hell”, which shook the Mainroom with its pulsing bass. The show began with crowd favorites like “Addicted to the Thrill” and “Insomnia”. “Now I want to see you dance,” said singer Martin, and the crowd’s energy was phenomenal. Despite a busy pool party outside, the harsh electro fans were already filling the Mainroom.
Keyboardist Julia stepped forward to duet on “Electro In My Body”, from her and Martin’s side project Basscalate. Over the last 10 years, the Hannover-based duo has risen to the top of their genre, and they proved why in Malta. The crowd was electric from start to finish. Their final song, “Life Is A Bitch”, brought one last dance frenzy. “It was a pleasure to be here,” said Martin after his Malta debut.
Setlist SynthAttack Dark Malta Festival 2025: 01 The Purge And The Harsh Is Back 02 Addicted To The Thrill 03 Insomnia (Dark Remix) 04 Dirty Dark Electro 05 Enjoy The Pain 06 Circle Of Pain 07 Dance To The Death 08 Untamed 09 Blood Dance 2.0 10 No God 11 In Hell 12 Electro In My Body 13 We Are SynthAttack 14 Life Is A Bitch
https://www.facebook.com/synthattack
AESTHETIC PERFECTION
Daniel Graves and Aesthetic Perfection have haunted the music world for 25 years. The sound wizard from Los Angeles, now living in Austria, has just completed his new work – a re-release of his 2005 debut album titled “Closer To Human” (out June 2025). Aesthetic Perfection is currently touring with “Throwback Oldschool Shows”, one of which lit up the Gianpula Mainroom in late April. “It’s great to be back,” said Daniel, who also played Dark Malta in 2019. His pure electro set fit perfectly with the day’s vibe and the already dance-ready crowd. The setlist focused on early material, and the fans jumped non-stop. “One more time, Malta!” he shouted, and the crowd happily obeyed. “This is an honor,” said Daniel, celebrating the debut album’s anniversary. Whenever energy dipped for a second: “Are you tired, Malta?” and the dancing resumed. Even without recent hits like “Never Enough” or “Antibody”, Daniel kept the crowd moving for a full hour.
Setlist Aesthetic Perfection Dark Malta Festival 2025: 01 The Great Depression 02 Schadenfreude 03 Fix 04 Architect 05 Pale 06 The Siren 07 Beautiful 08 I Belong to You 09 Master 10 Coward 11 The Dark Half 12 Inhuman 13 Spit It Out
https://www.facebook.com/aestheticperfection
SOLITARY EXPERIMENTS
Next came smooth, ear-pleasing future pop from Germany. Solitary Experiments, active for over 30 years, are beloved in the scene with a stream of club hits and millions of plays. The guys in red shirts got everyone dancing at Dark Malta as well. “We are Solitary Experiments from Berlin,” said frontman Dennis, switching between German and English during his set – he noted that nearly half the crowd seemed to speak German anyway. With beautiful synth and drum sounds plus a dazzling light show, the performance was a treat. The band offered a cross-section of their career, from early tracks like “Land Of Tomorrow” to newer ones like “Every Now and Then”, which had the whole room stomping along. Dennis closed with, “We’re grateful to be here – thanks for the invitation. Maybe we’ll be back!”
Setlist Solitary Experiments Dark Malta Festival 2025: 01 Brace Yourself 02 Wonderland 03 Crash & Burn 04 Head Over Heels 05 Immortal 06 Pale CandleLight 07 Land Of Tomorrow 08 Every Now And Then 09 Delight 10 Stars 11 Epiphany 12 Watching Over You 13 Rise And Fall
https://www.facebook.com/solitaryexperiments
NACHTMAHR
The tempo turned up again with Nachtmahr from Austria, returning to Malta after 2022. Mastermind Thomas Rainer is practically a festival regular, having also played as DJ and with his band L’Âme Immortelle. Their latest and most diverse album, “Verboten”, dropped in late 2024. With high-speed tracks, Nachtmahr had the crowd in their grip from the start. Songs like “Beweg dich!” set the tone early. Fans soaked up every moment of this hard electronic spectacle. Visually, the show was also impressive, with marching-drum girls performing in true Nachtmahr style. New tracks like “Keine Lieder” and “Sirenen” also went over well, making for a loud, sweaty dance party.
Setlist Nachtmahr Dark Malta Festival 2025: 01 Ich bin 02 Beweg Dich! 03 Liebe Lust und Leid 04 Sirenen 05 Weil Ich’s Kann 06 El Chupakabra 07 Mädchen In Uniform 08 Stimme in mir 09 Luzifer 10 Keine Lieder 11 Liebst Du Mich? 12 Gehorsam 13 Tanzdiktator 14 Katharsis
https://www.facebook.com/nachtmahr.band
DARK MALTA FESTIVAL 27th April 2025 – Day 3
PRIEST
On the third and final day, Priest took the stage and thanked the crowd for the warm welcome at their Malta debut. In 2024, they released “Dark Pulse”, featuring singles like “Demon’s Call”. Priest even managed to rock a pure metal festival in 2023, winning over skeptical headbangers at Winter Masters Of Rock in the Czech Republic. At Gianpula, the crowd danced non-stop to their beautiful synth-pop sound. Behind the stunning costumes and masks are two former members of Ghost – by now, a well-known fact. They played both old and new tracks, including “Black Venom”. Crowd favorites like “A Signal In The Noise” and “The Cross” got the loudest reactions. During “Obey”, the bass thundered through the venue, with fans dancing even beside the stage. For “History In Black”, the crowd sang along loudly. Priest then announced their final song and prepped the audience for the next act.
Setlist Priest Dark Malta Festival 2025: 01 The Pit 02 Neuromancer 03 Black Venom 04 Blacklisted 05 Just A Game 06 Demon’s Call 07 Burning Love 08 A Signal In The Noise 09 The Cross 10 Obey 11 History in Black 12 Vaudeville
https://www.facebook.com/priestofficial
DAWN OF ASHES
Perhaps the wildest show of the entire festival came next. Dawn Of Ashes, who just released “Hypertensive Crisis” in April 2025, are returning to their aggrotech roots with the upcoming album “Infecting The Stars”. With charismatic frontman Kristof Bathory, the band is still full of energy after 25 years.
They kicked off with the new single, and both fans and band were immediately fired up. Brutal industrial beats and dark outfits made for a visual and sonic spectacle. Kristof even filled his mouth with fake blood and let it slowly trickle out while singing – creepy yet strangely charming. He asked the crowd where they were from and walked along the stage wall like several singers before him. Then came the announcement: “We’re playing songs from 2005-2007 now.” This old-school section, complete with more blood, closed out a breathtaking show. Kristof even wiped his bloody face with the setlist and gifted it to a fan in the front row.
Setlist Dawn Of Ashes Dark Malta Festival 2025: 01 Made In Hell 02 Hypertensive Crisis 03 The Spirit Of Anger 04 How Dead Is Your Hope 05 Sleep Paralysis 06 A Blade In The Dark 07 Blood Shattered Cross 08 Still Born Defect 09 Abyss 10 Torture Device 11 Existential Despair
https://www.facebook.com/Dawnofashes
COMBICHRIST
Finally, the last band took the stage – and they went all in. Legendary Combichrist stopped by Malta just before their “Still Making Monsters 2025” tour (April 30 – June 7). Returning after 2022, they once again nailed the mix of aggressive guitar tracks and pounding electro. Fans gave it their all – some had stood front row all day. Singer Andy was constantly moving, stirring up the crowd, and fans even packed the side areas of the stage, thanks to Gianpula’s unique and intimate layout. Combichrist delivered hits like “Get Your Body Beat” and “Electrohead”, as well as new songs “Compliance” and “Modern Demon”. They wrapped up the event perfectly – another outstanding edition of the Dark Malta Festival, wonderfully organized by Renè and his team.
Setlist Comcichrist Dark Malta Festival 2025: 01 Declamation 02 Children Of Violence 03 Rain Of Blood 04 Throat Full Of Glass 05 Get Your Body Beat 06 Just Like Me 07 Compliance 08 Follow Trail Of Blood 09 Can’t Control 10 Electrohead 11 Sonic Witch 12 Modern Demon 13 Violence 1 14 Violence 2 15 Denial 16 Never Surrender
https://www.facebook.com/combichrist
