Necrosonic Festival returns to Mansfield Tavern on Saturday, August 22 2026, and the full lineup has been revealed to the masses! With dual headliners Rivers of Nihil (USA) and our very own Psycroptic, alongside exclusive reunions, one-off performances and long-awaited resurrections ~ this year’s ritual is the most formidable yet.
With a massive deference to Australian talent, this year’s line-up is: Rivers of Nihil, Psycroptic, Gravemind, Lynchmada (Exclusive ‘One Last Time’), Segression (30 Year Reunion), Minus Life (Resurrected – Exclusive), Pestilential Shadows, Five Star Prison Cell (Resurrected), Wxrldfxcker, Witchskull, Dreamkillers (Special EP Set), Helm (Resurrected – One-Off Show), M.S.B.I. (Resurrected – One-Off Show), Barriers, Meth Leppard, Permafog, Destruktor, Gutless, F.U.C, RUN, John Lee Spider, The Matador, Body Prison, Growth, Grotesque Bliss, Vyrion, Neomantra, Nembutolik, Slaughtercult and Helm.
HEAVY has thrown down the challenge and sent a Q & A sheet out to all bands, with any that don’t return one completed having to buy us a beer at Necrosonic. So while we are quietly hoping we get minimal replies, a couple have gotten back to us already, and today we feature HELM.
Tickets and more information: https://necrosonicfestival.com/
Formed on the Gold Coast in 2008, HELM is a formidable force in the Australian progressive rock and post-metal landscape. Fronted by singer and guitarist Lucas Stone, the five-piece outfit built a reputation for crafting deeply immersive, emotionally turbulent sonic textures that resisted quick accessibility.
The band carved out a distinctive niche across three acclaimed full-length records: Vol 1…Keelhaul (2008), Vol 2…The Winter March (2010), and the highly experimental Vol 3…Panthalassa (2013). Known for complex structures and crushing riffs, they became a staple of the live circuit, sharing stages with heavyweights like Karnivool, Dead Letter Circus, and Cog. Following a performance at Soundwave 2014 and a 2015 farewell tour, the original lineup triumphantly reunited for a massive, highly anticipated one-off show at Brisbane’s The Triffid in 2022 before now coming back once more for Necrosonic.
Q & A
HEAVY: NECROSONIC 2026 is almost upon us. How far out from August 22 will you allow yourself to get excited?
HELM: Hahaha… always excited to be a part of anything that backs the Aussie heavies. As a long-deceased band, HELM feel honoured to be asked to participate and have been excited (but still doom af of course) since we were asked. So yeah, we’re excited to crush.
H: What does it mean to your band to be playing NECROSONIC?
HELM: Ah, it’s sick. Rad crew of organisers doing it for the right reasons for a plethora of rad bands, old and new. It takes a whole lot to dig HELM out of the grave for a hustle, so I guess pulling that off reps the obvious level of respect.
H: How important are festivals like NECROSONIC for the Australian music scene?
HELM: Fuckin’ heaps.
H: It’s a long day of music. What will you be doing to make sure you will still be standing come your set time?
HELM: Hahaha – old age gon’ dictate that. Probably running laps of the Mansfield and clocking in a couple thousand pushups just to stay warm for the back from the grave performance… ;D
H: Give me your Top 3 Festival survival tips.
HELM: Plan who ya not missing 2. Buy Merch 3. Bring earplugs
H: Which band – other than yourself – do you think will get up to the most mischief on the day?
HELM: Well, I know most of the bands on the lineup but one that I don’t… If you name your band Meth Leppard, you better not fuck around. Bring the mischief or change ya name.
H: What one song of yours would you tell festival-goers to listen to if they haven’t heard you play before?
HELM: Given that we’ve pulled together the founding lineup featured on Vol. 1… Keelhaul & Vol. 2… The Winter March, we’ll be running a quick set of Keelhaul tracks only for old times sake. I feel like ‘SALT’ might be a nice little journey to catch what we were about back in the day.
H: Will you be taking requests on the day?
HELM: Nup. Get what ya given.
H: Run us through your typical live show and what punters can expect.
HELM: 5 Superdads snapping their backs to Doompop Sludge.
H: What’s your latest release?
HELM: 2013’s Vol. 3… Panthalassa.
H: Finally, what plans does your band have for the rest of 2026 and into 2027?
HELM: Sleep.
