Wacken
I can't really be arsed to write a full review of this year's Wacken - apart from not having the time, the 'A' and 'G' keys have come off my laptop, which makes it annoyingly time-consuming to type, ensuring that I correctly touch the right bit of the hole where the key used to be.
That said, an awesome time was had, which I feel needs recording for posterity. So, the following is a short review of shit I can remember:
Motley Crue - watched from outside the arena, and way more enjoyable than I was expecting.
Iron Maiden - watched from the beer garden, which had a wonderfully convivial atmosphere, and the post-2000 heavy set was surprisingly brilliant. Still got it.
Amorphis - ridiculously good. A career-spanning set, strangely suited to the midday slot.
Orphaned Land - very entertaining, and uplifting.
Unleashed - proper solid death metal, Swedish-style.
Holy Grail - very retro 80s thrash, and no less enjoyable for it.
Evile - killer.
Slayer - only saw half the set, but Seasons-oriented and on fire.
Raven - clearly having a great time, and so was I.
Ihsahn - very proggy. Frozen Lakes on Mars possibly the song of the festival.
Lock Up - a cleansing blast of crusty d-beat laden grind.
Cannibal Corpse - Corpsegrinder just gets funnier. Have rarely seen a pit to match the one that greeted Hammer Smashed Face.
Endstille - the little I saw was pretty damn vicious.
Candlemass - oh dear. Ropey, lazy, with all subtlety lost.
Immortal - went from good to great by the end of the set.
Tiamat - played Wildhoney in its entirety. Perfect comedown at 1am, in the drizzle, after 4 days of wrecking my liver and lungs. Band of the festival, and one of the all-time greatest sets I've ever seen.
Suggestion for next year: make the band playing classic album in the Saturday 1am Party Stage slot a regular fixture. Anathema - The Silent Enigma?
Additional suggestions for 2011: where to go after my fantasy double-bill of Avantasia and Blind Guardian is already confirmed? How about Demilich, King Diamond / Mercyful Fate, Manilla Road, Manowar, Watain, Burzum, Deicide, Deathspell Omega, St Vitus, Burning Witch, AC/DC, Judas Priest and Paradise Lost?
In other news, Album of the Year is already awarded to Watain. Lawless Darkness is a quantum leap from the last album, and the first in a while that gives me that indescribable rush that only the greatest metal does.
That said, an awesome time was had, which I feel needs recording for posterity. So, the following is a short review of shit I can remember:
Motley Crue - watched from outside the arena, and way more enjoyable than I was expecting.
Iron Maiden - watched from the beer garden, which had a wonderfully convivial atmosphere, and the post-2000 heavy set was surprisingly brilliant. Still got it.
Amorphis - ridiculously good. A career-spanning set, strangely suited to the midday slot.
Orphaned Land - very entertaining, and uplifting.
Unleashed - proper solid death metal, Swedish-style.
Holy Grail - very retro 80s thrash, and no less enjoyable for it.
Evile - killer.
Slayer - only saw half the set, but Seasons-oriented and on fire.
Raven - clearly having a great time, and so was I.
Ihsahn - very proggy. Frozen Lakes on Mars possibly the song of the festival.
Lock Up - a cleansing blast of crusty d-beat laden grind.
Cannibal Corpse - Corpsegrinder just gets funnier. Have rarely seen a pit to match the one that greeted Hammer Smashed Face.
Endstille - the little I saw was pretty damn vicious.
Candlemass - oh dear. Ropey, lazy, with all subtlety lost.
Immortal - went from good to great by the end of the set.
Tiamat - played Wildhoney in its entirety. Perfect comedown at 1am, in the drizzle, after 4 days of wrecking my liver and lungs. Band of the festival, and one of the all-time greatest sets I've ever seen.
Suggestion for next year: make the band playing classic album in the Saturday 1am Party Stage slot a regular fixture. Anathema - The Silent Enigma?
Additional suggestions for 2011: where to go after my fantasy double-bill of Avantasia and Blind Guardian is already confirmed? How about Demilich, King Diamond / Mercyful Fate, Manilla Road, Manowar, Watain, Burzum, Deicide, Deathspell Omega, St Vitus, Burning Witch, AC/DC, Judas Priest and Paradise Lost?
In other news, Album of the Year is already awarded to Watain. Lawless Darkness is a quantum leap from the last album, and the first in a while that gives me that indescribable rush that only the greatest metal does.