Live Review: In Extremo - Esslingen 2026

Burg Esslingen, Esslingen, Germany
24th July 2026
In Extremo - “Carpe Noctem - Burgentour 2026” - Support: Rauhbein

Esslingen is a charming town whose life seems to revolve around its castle and compact historic centre, filled with inviting cafés and churches. Reaching Burg Esslingen required a rather demanding climb, as the fortress stands high above the town, but the sold-out concert made every step worthwhile. Like most other dates on the “Burgentour 2026”, the opening night had attracted a full house.

For me, the evening was also an excellent opportunity to practise with my new camera at an open-air show. That experience becomes twice as special when the subject is your favourite band.


Rauhbein

RAUHBEIN are a German Folk Rock band fronted by vocalist Henry M. Rauhbein. Their music combines robust German-language Rock with Irish Folk melodies, Punk energy and choruses designed for immediate audience participation. Fiddles, guitars and a rough pub atmosphere give the songs a direct and celebratory character, while lyrics about friendship, perseverance and shared nights out make the band especially effective in a live setting. The musicians are long-standing friends of IN EXTREMO and have often appeared as their support act. This familiar connection is clearly visible on stage: RAUHBEIN do not feel like an unrelated opening band, but like part of the wider touring family. https://www.rauhbein.de



Music & Performance
RAUHBEIN opened the evening exactly as an experienced support band should: without wasting time, they immediately turned the still-arriving audience into an active crowd. Their energetic Folk Rock worked perfectly in the open-air castle setting, with driving guitars, lively melodies and Henry’s rough voice creating the atmosphere of a large communal pub celebration. The setlist was varied, but it included the essential songs fans expected. ‘Rauhbein’ introduced the band’s identity with confidence, while ‘Auf die Freundschaft’ became an obvious toast to companionship.



‘Steh wieder auf’ added a more encouraging and resilient tone, ‘Typen wie wir’ celebrated solidarity and self-irony, and ‘Feier frei’ delivered the kind of carefree finale that leaves an audience fully prepared for the headliner. The interaction between band and audience was one of the most entertaining parts of the performance. Several times, fans began chanting “Noch ein Bier” at Henry.



He accepted the challenge more than once and had consumed a considerable amount of beer by the end of the set, each new drink greeted with loud approval and laughter. The running joke never disrupted the music; instead, it strengthened the easy, friendly connection between the musicians and the crowd. As usual, RAUHBEIN warmed up the audience extremely well. Their performance was tight, cheerful and unpretentious, combining solid musicianship with humour and genuine enthusiasm. By the time they left the stage, the castle grounds were already singing, drinking and ready for IN EXTREMO.

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In Extremo

For three decades, IN EXTREMO have been steering their ship steadily through the vast musical ocean. Formed from the Medieval market scene, the Berlin-based pioneers created their own unmistakable mixture of Medieval music, Rock and Metal by combining bagpipes, shawms and hurdy-gurdy with heavy guitars, powerful rhythms and theatrical staging. Their latest studio album, ‘Wolkenschieber’, was released in 2024, followed in 2025 by the expanded live edition ‘Unter dem Blutmond LIVE’.



The “Carpe Noctem - Burgentour 2026” revives one of the band’s most iconic live concepts. Across nine selected castles and historic venues, IN EXTREMO transform old stone walls into worlds of fire, sound and storytelling - an environment that suits their music perfectly. https://www.inextremo.de / https://www.facebook.com/InExtremo / https://www.instagram.com/inextremo_official



Music & Performance
The concert opened with ‘Ólafur’, a song from the recent ‘Wolkenschieber’ era based on an old Icelandic poem, before ‘Spielmannsfluch’ and ‘Troja’ immediately returned to the band’s classic Medieval Rock identity. From the first minutes, bagpipes, drums and guitars filled the castle grounds with the kind of energy for which IN EXTREMO have become famous. The setlist travelled through almost every period of the band’s career. Early landmarks such as ‘Weckt die Toten’, ‘Werd ich am Galgen hochgezogen’, ‘Vollmond’ and ‘Herr Mannelig’ stood beside later anthems including ‘Rasend Herz’, ‘Sängerkrieg’, ‘Störtebeker’ and ‘Sternhagelvoll’.



Newer songs such as ‘Blutmond’, ‘Feine Seele’ and ‘Wolkenschieber’ demonstrated that the current chapter fits naturally beside the classics rather than merely following them. My greatest personal surprise was ‘Erdbeermund’. I honestly cannot remember the last time I heard it live, so its appearance brought an immediate wave of nostalgia. The older material sounded neither dated nor ceremonial; it remained alive, physical and closely connected to the band’s present sound.



The audience itself was almost a second attraction. It seemed that every possible band shirt from every possible corner of the Rock and Metal world had gathered in Esslingen. The variety was so entertaining that I wanted to walk through the crowd simply photographing it all. Micha also showed how closely he observes the people in front of him. He recognised a father and daughter who regularly attend the concerts and even invited them to meet the band backstage after the show. It was a small but genuinely warm gesture that made the evening feel personal despite the size of the sold-out event.



Naturally, the visual centrepiece was the fire show. Flames, sparks and bursts of heat rose against the castle walls, continuing a tradition that reaches back to IN EXTREMO’s years on Medieval markets. At Burg Esslingen, the historic setting made the pyrotechnics feel less like decoration and more like an extension of the music itself. ‘Liam’, ‘Villeman og Magnhild’ and ‘Wind’ provided more atmospheric moments, while ‘Sternhagelvoll’ closed the main set with a loud communal celebration.



The encore began with the liberating ‘Frei zu sein’ and ended with the ritual intensity of ‘Pikse Palve’, followed by ‘Terra Mater’ as the outro. After three decades, IN EXTREMO still move confidently between history and modernity, spectacle and musicianship, nostalgia and renewal. Their ship remains firmly afloat, cutting calmly through the waves of the enormous musical ocean. May it continue on this course for many years to come.

Setlist
01. Ólafur
02. Spielmannsfluch
03. Troja
04. Weckt die Toten
05. Feuertaufe
06. Werd ich am Galgen hochgezogen
07. Vollmond
08. Herr Mannelig
09. Rasend Herz
10. Blutmond
11. Liam
12. Erdbeermund
13. Feine Seele
14. Villeman og Magnhild
15. Wind
16. Störtebeker
17. Sängerkrieg
18. Wolkenschieber
19. Sternhagelvoll
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20. Frei zu sein
21. Pikse Palve
22. Terra Mater (Outro)

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All Pictures by Iryna Kalenska