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Abyss' Review (4/30 & 5/1/04, The Palladium, Worcester, MA):
Lights Out, Uh Huh, Blast, Blast, Blast!
Photos by Hel
God ForbidWell, I guess it had to happen eventually, but it appears the most consistent and best-run metal festival in the U.S. finally had an off year. The bitching began early with the release of the line-up, which was much less exciting than in years past. There weren't any really compelling reunions like Suffocation or Overcast, and just about all of the headliners had already done some significant touring in the US. I personally had seen most of them countless times, so this weekend quickly evolved into less about the music and more about reacquainting with friends and partying.
With Hel and Death making their annual pilgrimage back East and meeting up with Famine, Musashi, and Pestilence (as well as a rare appearance by Divine Intervention), it was a great weekend of old friends and making new friends, drinking to excess and then realizing (far too late) that I'm getting too old to do this more than a few days in a row. I also feel I learned a little more about the hardcore kids, who apparently, by looking at their choice in headgear, have some sort of reverence for Andy Capp.
Arch EnemyThe festival had many a problem, starting with Evergrey not able to perform, Children of Bodom's bus breaking down in New Haven, and a power outage at the venue that lasted a few hours on Saturday. With all of the chaos going on, one has to give credit to the organizers that things went as smoothly as they did. I've been to many festivals that got much more fucked up as a result of far less.
As a matter of principle, I boycotted the small stage this year. It just isn't worth it, no matter who's playing. For the last few years I've fought my way into the room just to be surrounded by sweaty, shirtless men and getting a view of nothing more than the tops of a few bobbing heads on the stage. Sure I missed some cool bands (Pig Destroyer . . . sob), but they really need a different set up or venue if they want to have more than one stage. In all honesty, it's never really made much sense to me who's on which stage. Take Pig Destroyer . . . they're always relegated to the side stage and always pack the place. Shouldn't they have graduated up yet?
Machine HeadWith Evergrey missing in action and Watch Them Die apparently not on the bill (although I saw their name in some print advertising) I was a little disappointed. I had never seen either of them, loving the latter and being very curious about the former, but I guess it wasn't meant to be. Due to liquor, screwed up schedules, and my own idiocy, I'm having a hard time piecing together any sort of chronology of the weekend, but I do remember some key acts quite well.
God Forbid were very popular and put on a great show. While I'm not completely sold on them, I think they're cool but predictable, and they are a great live act. They have an obvious love for the music and play to the crowd well. They even avoided some of the pitfalls with regard to the sound, which was very muddy for many of the bands.
Arch Enemy were another crowd favorite, but I must admit I've become a little jaded. They still have a great show and nothing's really changed except for the fact that I've seen them soooo many times by now. Of course, that's not their fault at all, in fact it shows they've really been putting their work in. But at the same time, I can't really get all that excited about seeing them anymore. However, if you are one of the few that haven't seen them, you'd be hard pressed to find a more professional band.
Killswitch EngageMachine Head were a definite curiosity for me. The last time I had seen them was at this very festival (I think the second one, if I'm not mistaken), and that was right after the release of The Burning Red. I have been hearing great things about the new album, however, and I was interested in seeing how it comes across live. Flynn has grown his hair out, so he at least looks a little more metal (anything was better than that Pinhead braid thing he had going on the last time I saw him), but he still doesn't seem to realize how crappy a lot of his material is. The stuff from the album Burn My Eyes has held up quite well, however, and in the band's defense, they sounded better than I thought they would.
Killswitch Engage continue to bore me and I'm not sure I really know why. I think it's tragic that they were the headliner on Friday, but hey, if they're moving albums, more power to them. The new material bores me just as much as their older stuff, but they remain a good band to hang out and drink to.
DiecastDiecast were like an old friend, ripping through their set of crossover riffs and video game anthems. Even though I wasn't really looking forward to this band, I enjoyed their set and considered them a guilty pleasure. And even though they've done it a million times, their cover of "Raining Blood" got the attention of everyone in the house. Even the bar patrons in the back of the room stopped their conversations to nod their heads.
I was really interested to see Iced Earth with Owens in a live setting. Mostly to see how he performed the older material, but also because everyone I know keeps telling me that he's finally left Halford's shadow and is singing in his own voice. Well, if that's true, his own voice is still really damn similar to Halford's. I simply don't like this singer with this band. Period.
Children of Bodom ruled the evening. Hands down. Their set got an amazing response considering how late in the weekend it was, and they sounded great. This band is at a really exciting stage in their careers: at a point where they are flirting with hitting something bigger, but they haven't alienated their core fanbase yet. The only reason I wasn't more excited about them is that I just saw them a few months ago. Hell, even the keyboardist looked like he was having a good time!
One word review: Troubled.
Death's Review (4/30 & 5/1/04, The Palladium, Worcester, MA):
Children of BodomI’ve been going to this annual festival at the Palladium in Worcester since it started. Having only been to U.S. metalfests like this one, March Metal Meltdown and Milwaukee Metalfest, the New England Metal & Hardcore Festival is my yearly Wacken. I’ve no doubt that an outdoor European-style multi-day fest would be awesome. Someday perhaps I’ll get there. Until then, my annual pilgrimage to lovely Worcester will have to do. And if you think about it, this fest – while dwarfed by its annual summertime Euopean counterparts – has quite the illustrious history. Titans of modern metal such as Dimmu Borgir, Lamb of God, Shadows Fall, In Flames, Meshuggah, Cannibal Corpse, The Haunted, Opeth, Amorphis, Nile, Overcast, Dark Funeral, Soilwork, Strapping Young Lad, Lacuna Coil, Nevermore and Unearth all have played the fest in past years. And based on the track record of the past few years, a strong headlining-level performance here can catapult a band to second-stage-at-Ozzfest status a mere fifteen months later. It really has become a “feeder” fest here in the U.S., providing months’ worth of programming for video shows on Fuse and MTV2, and serving as content fodder for websites such as this one. Playing a key slot at this fest means coverage in Metal Maniacs and Unrestrained, and interviews on Uranium and Headbanger’s Ball.
And so it is that by this year, I’d essentially decided to attend no matter what bands ended up playing. I was as in it as much for the chance to party. Many of my east coast friends would be there. Much of the west coast contingent would be flying in. Everybody would be staying and partying in a couple of hotels within a two block radius of the venue. All in the name of metal. What more could you really ask for?
The Black Dahlia MurderToo bad the festival organizers decided to subtlely follow the “trend” and book far more hardcore and metalcore bands than pure metal ones. Sure, these bands are popular now but they all sound the same and in two years some of these metalcore bands are going to be ashamed of themselves, the same way as nu-metal poseurs are tripping all over themselves to run from their old bands and images to keep up with today’s “heavier” aesthetic. In defense of the New England fest, hardcore was always part of the equation from the getgo – it even has “hardcore” in the name. But now, the hardcore/metalcore predominates. It’s a shame. At least “true” metal bands served as the headliners, for the most part, especially the closers on night two. But I digress. Regardless of the lineup, despite the abundance of metalcore, I had an awesome time once again. Great people, great music, all in the name of metal. Like I said before, what more could you really ask for?
We got to the Hampton Inn about 2 p.m. on Friday (the more expensive Crowne Plaza – party central this year and last – was sold out by the time we booked our rooms). Ex-MJ writer Pestilence was standing in the parking lot when we pulled in. Soon Abyss, Famine and Musashi were there too. We headed over to Irish Times first for beers and food before heading into the fest at about 5 or 6 p.m. Just in time for the Black Dahlia Murder. They were cool. The singer had his shirt off with “Unscarred” written in pen, Phil Anselmo style across his belly. Funny shit. They were over way too quick though and soon I was back at the bar pounding beers. Everybody was starting to show up and cool people were everywhere. Soilent Green played, but I didn’t see much of them, unfortunately. I was distracted. Hanging out, saying hello to long lost brothers of metal I had not seen in a year. Partying. Life was good. I should paid more attention to the bands, as The Red Chord and As I Lay Dying swept by and provided the soundtrack. I remember jamming out to the last riff of metalcore popsters Every Time I Die’s song that they have the video for where they are on roller-skates. Stupid drunken fun.
Soilent GreenBut by the time that God Forbid was set to go on, I decided enough was enough. The Metalfest was passing me by, and I wasn’t seeing any music. I rounded up a couple of friends and headed down onto the floor and got set for God Forbid. I love their new album – I think it is a big improvement over where they were, and I was anxious to see it live. The band was awesome. The sound was a bit weak, but the performance was killer, and the guitar solos were flowing throughout the set. These guys are going places, and I stayed put up front for their entire set. I went back to the bar between bands, drank some more (it seemed like a really long wait) and then grabbed some more friends to go watch the return of Rob Flynn and Machine Head. I have barely heard the new album, but I love the old stuff. I thought the set was pretty good. I stayed down there and watched the whole thing. “Davidian” and “Blood for Blood” were the obvious highlights. “Ten Ton Hammer” was cool. It was nice to see the old Vio-lence guitar team of Demmel and Flynn jamming out together again. (Famine kept saying to me “They should have played ‘Bodies on Bodies’" and making me crack up throughout the weekend). But the new stuff was pretty cool too. Better, it seems. Not their best stuff but headed in the right direction. I think I will get the album and listen to it some more. They played a long song with acoustic guitar at the beginning and some dual-guitar melodic soloing in the middle. It was all very cool.
So now I’m tanked and loving the music. Arch Enemy did their thing. My buddy Divine Intervention even jumped in the mosh pit, took an elbow in the head, and later told me that it was “fuckin’ awesome” ‘cause he got a killer rush from having jumped in the pit. I was hammered though so all I know is it seemed like a typical Arch Enemy gig. Apparently it was a special appearance though as the next day it was reported that they might be dropping off the Machine Head/God Forbid tour. I think Killswitch was great but by this time I was totally just partying and not really paying enough attention. But you have to understand that this was awesome. Everyone was hanging out, talking about albums, arguing over the best albums of the years, people complaining about people’s reviews, talking to bands, fans, labels, other ‘zines and writers, and mostly just hanging out being metalheads together and headbanging along to the music while drinking beer and wearing Testament, Anthrax and Overkill t-shirts. Like I said before, what more could you ask for? Well one thing – there were a bunch of hardcore kids there trying to start fights with metalheads. Not cool. That stuff has gotta go. Thankfully nothing happened.
Every Time I DieDay one ended at the venue, and people descended on the Hampton Inn and the Crowne Plaza. I decided to go with friends to get food, but we couldn’t find anything open. We had to beg a guy at a convenience store to open the door to let us come in and buy junk food. Then we got back to the hotel and chaos ensued. People were everywhere. Metal was cranking in every room (that night the first two parties I went to were coincidentally both jamming Testament) and cool people were everywhere. It got really late really fast. At 5:00 a.m. we went back to the hotel and went to bed.
Saturday came far too soon. I was moving slow. We stumbled over to Irish Times and found out that the power in the venue was out, that they had made everyone go outside and stay there while they fixed it. I didn’t care. We sat in the bar for hours and drank and chatted and ate and hung out. Eventually they opened the doors again. People would come by every once in a while and tell stories of kickball games and other strange diversions while thousands of metalheads stood around outside at once in the streets of Worcester and waited for music. I just sat in the bar and partied and had a cheese steak and fries while I waited.
KataklysmFirst band I saw was Kataklysm. I got down to the front for the last song, “Shadows and Dust.” It was cool. Too short, of course. Evergrey did not play, unfortunately. I was looking forward to them breaking up the deluge of death style vocals. This was not to be. I skipped a lot of more bands. I remember jamming out to Diecast’s version of “Raining Blood” and shouting at the top of my lungs along with the rest of the crew at the back bar. “Singled Out” also cut through the din and brought back memories of metalfests past.
I went upstairs to the second stage for one band the entire fest. It was just way too crowded in that room. But I had to see Pig Destroyer. So I snuck up the back stairs and stood on the side of the stage for the entire set. It was awesome!!!!! Sick, riffy, brutal. I cannot wait for the new album.
Iced EarthI actually went down on the floor to catch the end of Bleeding Through. Makeup metal at its best. No seriously, whatever, I watched them play the song they have the video for and it is kinda catchy I guess. But dude, this fest was all about the last two bands. Children of Bodom ruled. They put on one of the best sets of music I have seen all year. This band is unbelievable. And they were one fire. The whole crowd was singing along and pumping their fists in the air. Jaws were dropped all over the venue at the quality of the musicianship and the rnergy of the performance. No one in the venue was left unaffected. Absolutely amazing.
Then we got Iced Earth. Although Evergrey had been cancelled, and other bands seem to have played shortened sets, Jon Schaeffer and Co. got a full two hour headlining set. It was killer though. My buddy called it Iced Ripper. It worked for me. The entire “Gettysburg” was killer. I headanged and drank four literally hours straight, jamming out and partying through the entire set.
We stayed out until all hours again terrorizing the Crowne Plaza. All too soon it was time to get up, back to the airport, and back to California. And off to the Morbid Angel/Suffocation/Satyricon show at the House of Blues on Sunset Strip later that night. But that, my friends, is the subject of next week’s installment.
Hel's Review (4/30 & 5/1/04, The Palladium, Worcester, MA):
Though there are now a few festivals to choose from here in the United States, the New England Metal & Hardcore Festival has distinguished itself over the years by being the most efficiently run, with the fewest last minute line-up changes and being held in a relatively comfortable environment. Though the second stage is perennially hot and overcrowded, as is the vendor area, these are evils that the attendees have learned to take in stride.
All That RemainsI was pleased to note that most of the bands I wanted to see were scheduled on the main stage this year, and I would therefore be able to avoid the second stage entirely. The bill this year was decidedly more hardcore than metal, something that certainly displeased me, but again, almost all the metal would be on the main stage, and this made me happy.
Friday went by in a flash. When I arrived, Nora was onstage, and since I couldn't have cared less about them, I was able to spend some time enjoying reunions with many of my metal friends, most of whom I had not seen since last year. This was definitely a pleasant way to kick off my weekend.
When The Black Dahlia Murder took the stage, I picked up my camera and began my long night of shooting band after band. This was only the second time I have caught these Michigan youngsters, and I enjoyed watching them romp about the stage. When the vocalist took his shirt off to reveal his magic marker "unscarred" tat - I really wanted to tell him to cover that shit up. The fake tattoo was a funny joke - but his beer gut is most unfunny.
The Red ChordNext up was one of my personal highlights of the weekend, and one of the big reasons I made the trip to Worcester: Soilent Green. It has been ages since I last saw them live, and now that I live on the west coast, I know that it will probably be quite some time before I see them play L.A., so I was not going to miss this set. And I am very glad I did not, as the set was absolutely ferocious, and they were in perfect form.
I trudged back up to the stage for All that Remains, despite my personal ambivalence toward their music. I've said it before and I'll say it again - I don't like hardcore. While All that Remains did play a strong set, I was not blown over, though the fans in the crowd were thrilled.
The Red Chord was the next band on the bill, and I was psyched for them even though it had been only a few weeks since their L.A. appearance. Last time, I got to see a nice long set, and in contrast, it was disappointing to only get twenty minutes of punishment from them this time around. They still killed, and I was very happy that they had gotten a slot on the main stage, as they deserve.
As I Lay DyingUp next was As I Lay Dying, a band that I have spent no time at all with, and had never seen live. I, of course, have seen their video, and while it is cinematically striking, I walked away from it thinking that their music really wasn't my thing. After seeing their set, I pretty much feel the say way, though their energetic performance was nearly as impressive as the cinematography on their video.
I was all prepared to skip Every Time I Die, but Death insisted that I should shoot them anyway, since they would be sure to blow up after the Ozzfest audiences see them this summer. Now there's a depressing thought. I really dislike this band. Emocore is far worse than hardcore in my book, and this band epitomizes everything that is bad about it. I took the pictures, but I didn't like it.
Fortunately, God Forbid was on hand to take the sting away, and show these emo kids what metal is all about. They are one of the fixtures of this festival and I was glad to see their familiar faces. The band absolutely destroyed with their brief set, and proved that the material on the new album is just as good live as their older material. The 'fest wouldn't have been complete without them.
Misery IndexIt was at about this point that I began to realize how much of the day had already fled. Machine Head would be the next band onstage, and while they took their dear sweet time setting up (and why it took so long I'll never know - I had to stare at those damn "M"s on the stage all day long), I tried to find some sort of food to sustain me for the rest of the night. The venue stopped allowing us to leave and come back at 7, and the pizza door from last year wasn't there this time. Instead, signs proclaiming "snacks" were available by the downstairs bathrooms, and I ended up having a Twix bar for dinner. Now that was a bummer. I like Twix, but not as my entire dinner...
At long last, Machine Head finally deemed they were ready to grace us with their presence, after about a 45 minute set change - four times as long as it took for any other band to set up all day long. I was a little skeptical going into this, I haven't heard the new album yet, and haven't been in any hurry to, since I hated the last one so much. Then there's this step up bullshit, and so my patience was exhausted before they even took the stage. The crowd certainly gave them an enthusiastic response, and the band seemed to be very pumped to be there. I couldn't get into it though, as I knew it was only a matter of time before they played "The Blood, The Sweat, The Tears" and sure enough... That was my cue to exit. I will admit the new material was much stronger, but at that point in the night, I was just too annoyed to give them much objectivity.
Bury Your DeadArch Enemy was next on the bill, and I began to formulate a theory - I'm betting Machine Head was pissed that a band that was opening for them on tour was playing after them, and was being given 45 minutes for their set, instead of the 30 they received... That was the only plausible explanation I could come up with for the insane amount of time that had been wasted earlier in the evening. Regardless, every person in the house was eagerly awaiting Arch Enemy's appearance.
The crowd exploded when Arch Enemy took the stage and the band was absolutely on fire. This was their first show, having had to cancel out of the first few dates of their tour because Angela was having visa troubles and could not get into the country. It may have been one of the strongest sets I have ever seen them play. Angela's voice was incredibly strong, and the band fed off the energy from the crowd and returned it in kind. Despite the fact that I have now seen Arch Enemy many times, their set still proved to be a highlight of the festival.
Killswitch Engage was given the headline spot this evening, and the honor of closing out their hometown festival. As expected, they put on their usual high-energy show for their fans. Unbelievably, even though it was about 1am, the house was still completely packed from the moment they took the stage, until the moment they were forced to end their set, after a measly five songs or so. Despite the chant for "one more song" the venue would not allow the show continue and proceeded to rudely eject everyone from the premises. This was by far one of the worst spectacles I have witnessed - people calmly exiting the venue in an orderly fashion were nonetheless harassed by the venue staff, one of them even going so far as to pull out a bullhorn in a confined space, nearly shattering the eardrums of people doing as they were instructed, without the need for amplification...
Walls of JerichoOn day two, I was on my way to the pub across the street with the rest of the crew for a nice meal before hitting the festival once again. The news arrived that the power had gone out at the venue, which explained the number of people inside the Irish Times. We ultimately got a table, but no service, and an investigation revealed that there was only one waitress and one bartender on duty, which would have been too few even before the power outage across the street. We were obviously in no rush, however, so despite the fact that it took forever, we spent our time waiting for the festival to resume in relative comfort. Finally, the news arrived that things were starting back up, and I headed over to the venue for the first time that day.
Once inside, I found a large crowd coming up the stairs, and a helpful woman informed me that Evergreen Terrace had just finished downstairs. I breathed a sigh of relief that I had not missed Misery Index, and decided to go down to the photo pit and wait, since I wasn't sure how they were going to work around the fact that the power had been out for several hours. Apparently the plan was to turn the bands around as fast as possible and to cut a song from each band's set.
It was mere moments before Misery Index started their short set, and the exchange between the band members was somewhat humorous - they were clearly being urged to start quickly, so they asked one another if they were ready, and though they all said yes, it appeared some were not so ready, and abruptly the set began. The rushed nature of their arrival onstage did not affect the quality of their set one whit, however, unless it was to add some additional adrenaline to their furious delivery. This was another band I was at the festival to see, and even though the set was short, I was not at all disappointed. Misery Index absolutely destroyed every second of their fifteen minutes, and everyone in attendance received a much needed jolt of metal mayhem. This was absolutely one of the highlights of the festival.
Pig DestroyerBury Your Dead came onstage moments later. I seem to spend a lot of time trying to miss this band, but since I was still down in the pit after Misery Index's set, I decided I might as well take a few photos anyway. I was able to confirm that my previous decisions to blow this band off were sound - they were indeed boring, generic hardcore. The singer even had a plain white t-shirt on - the hardcore equivalent of vanilla ice cream, as far as I'm concerned.
Thankfully Kataklysm arrived soon thereafter to cleanse my palate. I was very happy that they were not unfairly relegated to the second stage like last year, and I enjoyed every moment of their abbreviated set. My favorite, "Manipulator of Souls" was right in the middle of the set, and they included as many of their live gems as they could in such a short period of time. They tore through their set and left the crowd stunned and shaking. My second highlight of the day.
Unfortunately, this is where things really fell about, in my opinion. While I don't have any strong attachment to SpeedKillHate, I had really been looking forward to seeing them, and you can imagine my dismay when I got up to the stage and saw Walls of Jericho come out. Not only because it was not the band I was expecting (they had apparently cancelled earlier), but moreover because Evergrey had been bumped. This was by far the biggest travesty of the entire festival, even more so than the power failure. Of all the bands on the bill, I had most been looking forward to Evergrey. I have never seen them, and they were pretty much the only band on the schedule that I had not, and I had the song "I'm Sorry" stuck in my head for days. Their videos on Headbangers Ball have been getting tons of play, they had even been interviewed on the show recently, and the "I'm Sorry" video may be one of the best videos made. So how on earth do they get bumped? Unforgivable.
So I'm stuck watching Walls of Jericho. Sure, they have a female vocalist, and I of all people support women in metal, but she, and the rest of the band, stank. She may be one of the most annoying vocalists ever, with here excessive flailing and stamping of feet, and the band, though energetic with lots of jumping, is still just yet another generic hardcore band. It was like rubbing salt into an open wound.
ZaoPig Destroyer was the only second stage band I was really hoping to see, and as I reached the back of the venue, Death snagged me and told me they were about to go on. I had attempted entering the second stage area earlier, when someone else had told me Pig Destroyer was going on, but could not even enter the room. This time, we went a back way, and emerged at the side of the stage, and the band was just getting ready to start. Our timing was perfect. Though they too were being forced to play a shorter set, as the headliners of the second stage Pig Destroyer still got a decent amount of time to play to the sweltering room. I was seriously concerned that my camera lens would fog over from the intense heat in the room, and the band was on fire too. The three-piece tore through their set, and the packed crowd was mesmerized. Well worth the trip upstairs.
And, bonus, upon arriving back downstairs I found that Between the Buried and Me had just finished their set. I was thankful to have missed it. Diecast was next, and their brand of metalcore is more tolerable, so I headed down to check them out with their new singer. Their new, longhaired vocalist was competent, and was so excited to be there that during the second song, he brought out a camcorder and used to tape the crowd while performing. I'll give him credit for originality, but I somehow doubt the tape will have much quality footage. Predictably, they closed their set yet again with the Slayer cover, "Raining Blood."
Zao was next on the bill, and was yet another hardcore act. They are either straightedge, or religious or both, but whatever the case, I found them annoying. Mostly because the vocalist spent the entire set on his knees onstage. Apparently, it hasn't occurred to him that when he does this only the first row of people can even see him. A good frontman makes himself the center of attention, not hides from the audience. Even if I did enjoy the music, which I didn't, I would have walked away from this set thinking they sucked from that alone.
Bleeding Through continued my torture. They put on an entertaining set of music I don't like, but they are clearly getting too big for their britches. They actually had the audacity to complain about their set being cut short so that Iced Earth could have their two full hours. It is not wise to take jabs at Iced Earth, young man. Jon Schaffer has been known to hold a grudge for a good long time. Do you really want to get on his bad side? Apparently so. I could have understood if they complained about a fellow band being bumped entirely so that the headliner could have their full set, but to begrudge the one lousy song you had taken away? A childish and selfish display.
Bleeding ThroughOn and off throughout the night the crowd had been chanting "Bodom! Bodom!" Clearly, I was not the only one there who was annoyed by the overabundance of hardcore bands on the bill. The chanting began again in earnest as we waited for Children of Bodom to take the stage. There could be no doubt as to who the crowd was there to see. And CoB did not disappoint. Though their set too was cut a bit short, they nonetheless made the most of every song they played, and whipped the audience into an absolute frenzy. No one who was there could deny the mastery with which they rampaged through their set, and when it was over, the audience could not stop chanting for more. They were doomed to be disappointed, however, but only in that they would get no more songs. There was no one in the place disappointed by Children of Bodom's set.
Iced Earth did indeed have their full two hours with which to close out the night. There was to be one last glitch of the day, however, and that was problems with the computer the band had brought along. This was of great distress to them, and they repeatedly apologized, but personally, I'm not sure it was much of a problem. As far as I could tell there were some missing samples, but that was about it. It was interesting to see Ripper fronting the band, and he did a fairly good job of it. His voice does continue to be reminiscent of Halford, despite the claims that he has his own style now. Still, he did a fine job filling the vocal slot, and they played the new album in its entirety followed by a selection of songs from their other albums. Less than half the house stuck around to see it though.
I suppose it is only natural for this festival to have finally run into some bad luck. I do give them a lot of credit for getting back on track after the power going down for so long, that was truly an organizational feat. I remain bitter about the overabundance of hardcore bands on this year's bill, they far outnumbered the metal bands, and this was disappointing for a lot of people I spoke with. Finally, the fact that they dropped Evergrey from the bill was the biggest black mark on their record. I know that bus troubles delayed their arrival, but considering how long the power was out, they surely arrived in time to still be included, and therefore I remain angry about it. I do intend to go again next year, and I expect things to be back up to the normal high standards, but I sincerely hope they will get more bands for the metal fans to be excited about. Despite all the problems, I still had a great time, mostly because of all the incredible people who attend this each year. It was great seeing you all, and I look forward to next year.
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