August 29, 2026 finally arrived, the day I had waited months for. The day I would head down to Agrinio for the Metal Union Festival and – above all – to finally see Grand Magus, a small unfulfilled wish I had been carrying for years.
We set off from Kozani at noon. The drive, about three hours, went without any problem apart from the one-way sections almost from Grevena to Ioannina.
The temperature at first was reasonable for the season, 31–32 degrees. But as I got closer to Agrinio, the thermometer climbed as if someone had put summer on “boost”: 39… 40… 42… and entering the city it pinned itself at 43. There I started to get worried, because I wanted to be at the festival from the first band.
I park outside the Premier Agrinio Heart Hotel and opening the car door the heat hit me like opening an oven baking moussaka inside. My wife and I went up to the room to rest and freshen up. The hotel cost 67 euros a night.
At 16:40 my wife says to me “Aren’t we going to get something to eat?”. That gave me a small shock because usually I’m the one in a hurry, but with the hot wind burning everything outside, I wasn’t in the mood for much. We got dressed, put on our black T-shirts – our “uniforms” – and took the road to the centre. The city was empty, as if there were a curfew.
After a little searching we ate at Katsarolakia: beef burgers with fries for me, chicken skewers with fries for my wife, a village salad and two large beers. 28 euros for everything. Fair.
Coming out, I set the GPS to get to the festival. It showed me a different route from the one a delivery rider told me (“straight all the way”). With the heat pounding, I had to be sure, so I checked with a map on Gemini too. Yes, it really was straight all the way.
We walked about 1.7 km through the city’s paved streets. Despite the heat, I liked the route. We reached the festival site around 18:15. Few people. I made the necessary visit to the merch stand and got a T-shirt and a hat. We grabbed waters and looked for some cool under a tree – in vain.
At 18:35 Dreamlord came out. I’ll call them brave, because the conditions were suffocating. Few people, but the guys played with soul. The sound was fantastic – hats off to the sound engineer and the organisers. All instruments clear, right volume, professional work.
Next were Sirius. About 40 minutes of a strong set, with the crowd enjoying it despite the heat. The band changes were quick, the schedule kept perfectly. There you can see that the organisers know what they’re doing, especially considering it’s a club and not a big promoter.
At 20:20 Tidal Dreams came out. From the first song they kept contact with the crowd. The singer did a live stream on social media, in general they had energy. They play a progressive pop‑metal that isn’t in my everyday listening, but the 45 minutes passed pleasantly.
Time for beers. In such heat the beer went down like water. You had to drink it fast because after that it turned to piss. It was also Amstel, not one of my favourites. The prices though were fair: 3 euros a beer, 0.50 for water. T-shirts 15 euros, hat + T-shirt 20 euros. Hats off to the organisers.
Next were On Thorns I Lay. Here we’re closer to my own listening. Devastating. Their death/doom hit straight at the neurons. The youth up front started a mosh pit, everyone’s heads going up and down. And mine too, even though with three hernias I shouldn’t do it. But I don’t regret anything.
At some point I notice the cymbals – full of holes. There I realise that on drums it’s my fellow townsman, Agis Tzoukopoulos. A machine. He plays in 6‑7 bands, Infernal Storm, Triumpher, Kawir and others. I was waiting for him to come down so we could have a word.
But the heat… unbearable. I’ve never experienced such a thing. The concrete was boiling. The crowd turnout was logically affected by it.
At 22:40 Grand Magus came out. And they truly enchanted us. From start to finish the crowd was singing. The sound was crystal clear. Janne “JB” Christoffersson gave his very best. For me it was an unfulfilled wish that finally came true.
A little after 12 the first day ended. Tired, worn out by the heat, but smiling. In the morning we took the road back, tired but happy.
The festival will be on my radar for the coming years. Yes, definitely.
