The wait is nearly over. Blacken Open Air – to be held from September 19 to 22 – Australia’s most unique heavy music festival, has dropped its full line-up for 2025, featuring an electrifying mix of international icons, exclusive reunions, and homegrown heavyweights.
This is not a rehashed, derivative or template event; it is a reinvention. We are building on what we’ve done in the past, while reinterpreting the reason for doing it. In 2025, we’ve searched the globe for artists that bring the extreme, the inspiring, the outrageous and the absurd, representing the real diversity of voices in the heavy music space. Not just across Australia and New Zealand, but from America, Europe and Asia as well.
And what better way for you to know what to expect than a personal, up close Q & A session? Today, we get to know Kilat.
BRIEF HISTORY: KILAT are a boundary-pushing force in Australia’s black metal underground, forging a distinct identity rooted in Indonesian mysticism and raw sonic fury. Formed in 2021 in Naarm/Melbourne, the band unites vocalist Karina Utomo (High Tension, Rinuwat), guitarist Benjamin Andrews (My Disco, Agents of Abhorrence), and drummer Rama Parwata (Whitehorse, Rinuwat), whose shared heritage and love of extreme music created the foundation for something truly unique.
KILAT—meaning “lightning” in Indonesian—channels the chaos and violence of nature with uncompromising blast beats, tremolo-picked aggression, and hypnotic, ritualistic vocal incantations. Lyrically and visually, the band draws deeply from ancient Javanese mythology, Nusantara folklore, and the esoteric traditions of the Indonesian archipelago. The result is a sound that is both terrifying and transcendental—a spiritual purge as much as a sonic assault.
LATEST RELEASE: RANTAI PENJINAK
GENRE: RAW BLACK METAL
WHY PEOPLE SHOULD CHECK YOU OUT AT BLACKEN OPEN AIR: Something to do
THREE THINGS PEOPLE MIGHT NOT KNOW ABOUT THE BAND: Lyrics/song titles are in Bahasa Indonesian language/we have toured overseas three times since beginning the band/the fourth member of the band is a leather jacket.
BLACKEN OPEN AIR 2025 is approaching fast. Are the nerves kicking in yet?
Belum.
What does it mean to you to be playing at BLACKEN?
Excited!
BLACKEN has been called Australia’s most unique music festival. Do you agree?
Definitely.
Who are you most looking forward to playing with and why?
Interested to check out Earthless and Uada.
It’s a long day of music. What will you be doing to make sure you will still be standing come your set time?
Drink Pocari sweat/gatorades/waters and party only after the set is finished. We are professional musicians.
Give me your Top 3 Festival survival tips.
Duty free/own supply of alcohol/hydration/pack clothes for 4 seasons.
Which band – other than yourself – do you think will get up to the most mischief on the day?
Blood Duster.
What song do you think the crowd would want you to play to finish your set?
Ngeluwang Di Tanah Penjajah.
What song are you going to play?
As above.
What one song would you tell festival goers to listen to of yours if they haven’t heard you play before?
Sembelih.
Finally, what plans does your band have for the rest of 2025?
Secret 🙂
