Chappell Roan, Charli xcx, Girl In Red

“God, what have you done?” Roan imagines her mother wailing on the irresistible, autobiographical “Pink Pony Club.” At Øyafestivalen on Wednesday night (Aug. 6), Roan’s mother – who was in the audience — got to hear her daughter and a crowd of some 15,000 fans sing those words back to her. Despite the song’s lyrics to the contrary, one can’t help but think mama was proud. After all, Chappell’s headlining set, which also saw her rip through Heart’s “Barracuda” and give “The Subway” its first post-release performance, was goddess level.

Norwegian singer-songwriter Anna Lille has some soul-baring moments on her 2025 EP how did I let this get so serious?, but she can also deliver the pop delights, as evidenced during a spirited run-through of unreleased pop tune “Maniac.” After her Wednesday set wrapped, Lille struck a couple of Hannah Montana poses as “The Best of Both Worlds” blared out from the speakers.

Ecuadorian-Swiss duo Hermanos Gutiérrez brought their expressive, reverb-soaked Latin guitars to the fest’s first day, providing the perfect chill soundtrack for a laid-back afternoon set — and proving that you don’t need theatrics (or even lyrics) to hold a crowd’s attention.

In addition to playing the proper festival, HILLARI – an up-and-coming Filipino-Norwegian singer – performed an acoustic rooftop set Wednesday morning atop Oslo’s historic Folketeater building. The 20-year-old boasts a rich vocal control and an easygoing, commanding stage presence, particularly on her soulful Gen Z anthem “Two Cents.” (If you live near NYC, you can catch HILLARI IRL on Sept. 10 at Manhattan’s Racket.)

After teasing “Joachim Trier summer” during her Coachella set earlier this year, Charli xcx made a surprise appearance at an Oslo movie theater to introduce Sentimental Value, a new film from the Norwegian director, just hours before her headlining set on Thursday (Aug. 7). Between performances of brat tracks at Øya, she hailed Norway’s “vibe,” “interior design” and “filmmakers, if you know what I mean.” Perhaps the British pop star – who has separate film projects coming up with Aidan Zamiri and Takashi Miike – has something in the works with Joachim Trier, too?

During her Thursday set, Lola Young had the crowd eating out of her hand, at least when that hand wasn’t busy pinching herself. “I’m happy this song was the one to take me places,” Young said, marveling at the massive crowd in front of her before belting out “Messy,” an unapologetic anthem that’s struck a chord with audiences around the globe, taking her to No. 1 on Billboard’s Pop Airplay and Alternative Airplay charts.

Up-and-coming singer Tolou recently made waves with “Coco,” a slinky, vibey R&B bop that occupies the unlikely space between Scandinavian and African pop. Though she grew up in Tromsø, one of the northernmost cities in Norway, her father hails from Nigeria, and her rhythmic pop carries both flavors. Wearing a sunshine-yellow shredded skirt, Tolou served vocals and choreo during her performance, especially on the bouncy, early ‘00s pop throwback “Dem Boyz.”

Yes, Norwegian people have a reputation for being fairly reserved, but thanks to Edvard Munch, Oslo is a great city for a Scream – and Wet Leg went the extra mile during their jugular-grabbing Thursday show. Amidst a setlist that covered new album faves (“Mangetout”) and viral hits (“Chaise Longue”), frontwoman Rhian Teasdale led the all-too-ready crowd in a “scream therapy” session. After a sustained 40 seconds of fan-made noise, she flashed a wicked grin: “That was pretty beautiful.”

RABO, a fresh face on the Norwegian pop scene, impressed not once but twice during the week. On Thursday morning, she captivated a boatload of industry professionals with an acoustic four-song performance. And yes, it was a literal boatload – RABO sang her effervescent single “Talk to Me,” the unreleased, Marilyn Monroe-inspired “Norma Jean” and two more tunes on a watercraft as it traversed the gorgeous Norwegian fjords. Two days later, she played the proper festival, and despite holding the less-than-enviable 2 p.m. slot, managed to pull in a massive crowd.

Though Queens of the Stone Age are best known for riff-heavy, sludgy rock, they can bring the beauty when they want. During QOTSA’s Friday (Aug. 10) night headlining set, frontman Josh Homme led the crowd, from the front row to the very back, in a sing-along to “Emotion Sickness.” “It sounds so good,” Homme said as the harmonies hit him on the hillside stage. “It’s a beautiful night here.”

Pom Poko’s name – inspired by a 1994 anime by Studio Ghibli – is more than just a random pop culture reference. The Norwegian four-piece brings the oddball detours and off-kilter sweetness of a Ghibli film to their tuneful, careening garage rock, which injected a sugary, cacophonous energy into the festival’s rock-centric Friday lineup.

At Øyafestivalen, most of the homegrown talent sang in English but spoke to the crowd in Norwegian; brenn., however, kept it fully local, using Norwegian while bantering with the crowd and belting out their hard-charging rock. And why not? Guitars don’t need a translator.

“On the way here I we lost all our instruments in Copenhagen, so it sounds a little different,” Nilüfer Yanya revealed on Thursday with an understandable touch of sadness. “The festival kindly sorted us out with new ones.” Despite that not-insignificant setback, the British singer-songwriter and her band sounded perfectly at home on their borrowed instruments – and thankfully, her nuanced vocals aren’t the kind of thing that can get left behind in Denmark.  

Touring behind last year’s Romance, Fontaines D.C. have grown into one of the best rock bands on the touring circuit, delivering a deft mix of emotional pathos, rich theatricality and idiosyncratic post-punk on bold, eclectic tracks like “Starburster,” “Favorite” and “Bug.” While comparing notes with a variety of attendees, their set was uniformly cited as a favorite.

Marie Ulven Ringheim, aka girl in red, has serious range. From queer indie-pop confessionals like “I Wanna Be Your Girlfriend” to immaculately constructed pop bangers such as “Too Much” to the garage-punk of “Bad Idea!”, there seems to be very little the Norwegian singer-songwriter doesn’t excel at — all of which was on glorious display during her Saturday (Aug. 9) night headlining set.

Toward the end of her set, she tagged in Honningbarna, who had brought their blistering Norwegian punk fury to Øya two nights prior. Together, they turned her “Bad Idea!” into a gleefully uninhibited duet: flames licked the stage; electric guitars ripped through the air like buzzsaws; Ringheim raced around the stage like a wildcat. When she and Honningbarna singer Edvard Valberg launched themselves into the front row, crowdsurfing atop a sea of undulating fans without missing a lyric, it may have been the best moment of the entire festival.

Oslo’s own Anna of the North shines while making dreamy, cinematic synth-pop – the kind of laid-back yet earnest music that absolutely makes sense coming from Norway. From the synthy splendor of “Lovers” to buoyant new single “Give Me Your Love,” the Norwegian pop star brought exactly the right amount of energy and chill you want from an afternoon set on the final day of a four-day festival.

Someone up there must be looking out for Mk.gee. On the festival’s final day, the otherwise accommodating Oslo sky opened up, unleashing an absolute deluge – and he was the only artist performing under a fully-tented stage. “The rain is doing funky stuff to our gear, but we’re gonna get through it,” the New Jersey artist promised. Mk.gee was greeted with one of the festival’s most hyped crowds, who eagerly sopped up his atmospheric soundscapes and expressive wails. Toward the end of his set, there was a magical moment when the rain relented and an orange-gold blast of sunshine filled the tent. As far as I could tell, mk.gee was the only artist who played an encore during the four-day festival, with the rabid crowd forcing him back onstage for a repeat performance of “Rockman.”

Sløtface, an excellent, lyrically clever Norwegian pop-punk outfit led by Haley Shea, didn’t play the festival this year (they rocked the Øya stage back in 2023), but they did steal the post-festival spotlight. During Saturday night’s wee hours, Sløtface led Oslo night owls (including members of Honningbarna and Brenn.) through a deliriously fun live-band karaoke party that encompassed Kelly Clarkson, Nirvana, Beastie Boys and beyond. Rest assured: the right to party was indeed fought for and won.