Hellfest 2026, the legendary French metal festival held at Clisson, has confirmed the addition of CARCASS, CATTLE DECAPITATION, and WATAIN to the already impressive lineup for the June 19–21 event. The three additions join a bill that already includes METALLICA, TOOL, GHOST, MASTODON, and BEHEMOTH in the confirmed headlining and near-headlining positions, with the full lineup for the six stages expected to be revealed over the next several weeks.
CARCASS are making their first Hellfest appearance since 2018, and will perform a set celebrating the 35th anniversary of their classic 1991 album "Necroticism — Descanting the Insalubrious," the album that pioneered the "melodic death metal" descriptor that would later come to define an entire Scandinavian scene. The anniversary show format, which will see the album performed in its entirety alongside a career-spanning second set, is being described by the band as the definitive anniversary celebration for a record they consider among their finest.
CATTLE DECAPITATION are confirmed for their first major European festival appearance since the extraordinary success of their 2024 album "Terrasite II — The Anthropocene Extinction," which debuted in the top 50 of the Billboard 200 — an unprecedented chart performance for a death metal band. WATAIN make their Hellfest return following their acclaimed 2023 album "The Agony and Ecstasy of Watain," bringing one of black metal's most visually confrontational live shows to the festival's largest outdoor stage. Standard weekend tickets for Hellfest 2026 are sold out; day tickets remain available.