Live Review: Sunken & Panopticon Laurentian Echoes Tour (2026)

Bands: Sunken & Panopticon
Genre: Atmospheric Black Metal
Venue: Stereo, Glasgow, Scotland, UK
Date: 01/04/26

Introduction

The second this tour got announced I got it in my calendar and secured a ticket. Two phenomenal bands of atmospheric black metal coming to Glasgow together to put on what will be a stellar show. Count me in. 

Both are bands I've seen before thanks to Reaper Agency having them on the lineup for previous Fortress Festivals, with Panopticon headlining 2023 and 2024, and Sunken opening 2024. 

My admiration for these two bands has only grown since then, with these bands weaving wonderful tales of the elements and environment through the art that is their music.

As luck would have it, our editor, Boenna, also witnessed this billing in Paris two days later; his musings can be read at the end of the article.

Sunken

I first properly became aware of Sunken at Fortress Festival 2024 where they opened up the weekend from the Grand Hall, and within moments I think I fell in love with their sound. I've since become a huge fan of them, and Lykke ended up among my top albums of 2025 so I was very much looking forward to seeing them live once again in a more intimate venue. 

And from the opening notes of Din Røst Malede Farver I Luften I was entranced, being crushed by these deep depths of despair. The quality of their sound is indescribable, they sounded akin to the studio album itself with perfect precision and dominated the soundscape.

The entire stage was dense with thick plumes of smoke, I could not have told you where the drummer was (let alone the reveal after the end that they had a banner up!). Combined with heavy use of strobe lighting it was a visually obscured show yet established such a strong and oppressive atmosphere.

Joining them for this tour, Andreas Tagmose Grønkjær who was the original bassist back on their The Crackling of Embers demo in 2014 and played with them in the early years before their debut album Departure. Chatting with them afterwards I did mention that the demo deserves a vinyl repress much to the delight of Andreas, as it's the only one missing from my collection.

Sunken were absolutely magnificent, I was truly in awe the entire time I watched them and could have happily heard them play for an entire evening. Their set only consisted of four songs (two from Lykke and two from Livslede) but when each track averages just over ten minutes long it's understandable.

By the sounds of it they'll be back to the UK soon and I cannot wait for that to be revealed.

Panopticon

We were in for a treat tonight, with being told ahead of time that three new songs off the latest album Det Hjemsøkte Hjertet would be premiered to the Glasgow crowd and played live for the first time ever. 

A lengthy set up due to power issues which impacted their playback, but the crowd was not bored or without entertainment. A composition for us consisting of clean guitar, violin, and gentle vocals was jammed, and it was genuinely beautiful and a delight to us all I'm sure. 

With the problem fixed, the introduction over, and Winter's Ghost Part II: Hjemløs kicked off their set for the evening.

The vocals for this show can not be understated. From gorgeous harmonised vocal work throughout the clean sections, to Austin screaming away from his mic over the heads of the crowd demonstrating the raw power behind his voice. Every word was carrying tremendous weight, weaving poetry for our ears. 

The Great Silence, Extinct led into Blood and Fur Upon the Melting Snow for two back to back live debuts of the new songs, then Woodland Carrion was the final of the new tracks they played for us, and it was a highlight of the night for me.
A track of two halves, it was absolutely hypnotic and drenched with despair as this slow paced piece gently swayed. Juxtaposed by the second half however, as we were thrown into blast beat pace, with the stabbing notes of the violin giving ominous notes and a general unease to this piece. 

Closing with Into the North Woods, it was a perfect conclusion to such an amazing show.  As the last note of Austin's guitar rang out, he leaned forwards and passed me his pick! Genuinely giddy when that happened, and will join my concert treasures and memorabilia collection.

Conclusion

I don't think there could have been a person in the audience who wasn't blown away by these two performances from the incredible atmospheric duo. 

It was an early night too, finishing around 22:00 (I did see Autumn Eternal was on the bottom of Panopticons setlist as an optional encore song but we apparently did not have time for it).

Perhaps a slightly longer night with a support act could have been nice, many local acts I can think of that would have perfectly fit the bill, as long as it meant not taking away from either bands sets.

But I really cannot complain can I? Seeing these two giants of the atmospheric black metal world sharing the stage with such elegance, they were outstanding and no doubt will go down as one of my favourite shows of the year.

Boennas impressions: My vacation in Paris happened to coincide with Sunken and Panopticon's gig, which was merely a hundred meters up the street from my hotel—in the same building as the Moulin Rouge, nonetheless. It was an easy decision to attend.

The local opening act, Midsummer Blaze, caught me by surprise. The band consisted of a guitarist and a bassist, but the focal point was an enigmatic woman singing and screaming, demanding the audience's attention. I quickly let go of my disappointment of not being able to spot a drummer through the clouds of smoke and was captivated by their soundscape and performance, even though they relied heavily on a backing track.

This was my first time witnessing the Danish quartet, Sunken. It seemed they arrived the venue a bit late, as they had to soundcheck during the changeover the moment the opening act stepped off the stage. However, as soon as they got going, they delivered an engulfing experience; the smoke was so thick you had to stare intently just to catch a glimpse of the performers. Overall, they delivered a great set.

Then it was time for the headliners. Parisian traffic had caused delays for them as well. I originally thought it was strange that they were loading their gear into the back of the venue while Sunken was playing, but it made sense once they had to do their soundcheck on the fly and start their set immediately to stay somewhat on schedule.

Panopticon is atmospheric in a much different way than Sunken. While Sunken draws you in with almost droning, captivating riffs, Panopticon builds a soundscape with layers of melodic guitar lines, fiddles, and synth effects. Some of this comes from backing tracks, but the majority of the performance is produced by the musicians on stage. The most impressive member was the fiddle player, who also handled various other instruments, like the synth, while performing backing vocals. I thoroughly enjoyed their set; since it was my first time seeing them live—and knowing they didn't have time to set up their extra visuals—I really look forward to catching them again when the opportunity arises.

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