|
THURSDAY JULY 31-
Another year has passed already and it was time for me to head over to the tiny town of Wacken in the very northern part of Germany. This was the14th year of WOA and my 4th time in attendance since the year 2000. We made it to Frankfurt in one piece. But the very next day was the festival, so we had a lot of planning to do. We left Frankfurt at 7:30 am and I was not feeling well. I puked twice on the way to Wacken. I ate something that didn’t quite agree with me. I didn’t start feeling better until later that evening. We arrived to the festival site rather late due to traffic and me getting sick. It was after 3:00 pm I think. But we got our passes and then head to the press camping area. We drove around searching for our crazy Scandinavian friends we always camp with. (Cheers to all of you). We found them and set up camp. I was able to contribute to setting up the camp this year due to my choice to remain somewhat sober for WOA 2003. I had a photo pit pass and didn’t want to fuck up a good thing when I had it. So camp was set and off to the opening ceremonies!
CIRCLE II CIRCLE:
Well, I didn’t know much about these guys. Except that Zak from Savatage and guitarist Al Pitrelli was in the band. I didn’t watch Circle II Circle. My friend Mikael and I walked around the food booths and went to check the merchandise booths. Circle II Circle were not bad really. Sort of melodic and a lot mellower than Savatage. They did do a Savatage cover or two. “Edge of Thorns” was one of them. I really wished I had watched them. Because the sound was not bad from the fields.
ANNIHILATOR:
After securing my merchandise in the car in the VIP camp area, I made my way back in the festival site and got in line for the photo pit for my first live band shoot of the festival. The photo pit lines would get long sometimes during the fest and it was possible that one might miss watching the first one or two songs. I encountered mostly polite fellow journalists while I was working the photo pit. I was lucky to be in the first group (16 photographers per group) to be let loose in the photo pit for Annihilator, who played a most killer 50 minute set. New singer Dave Padden has a great voice. He was dressed in solid black and really had a good stage presence. Guitarist Jeff Waters was in excellent form this day. His solos were blistering and it is always a pleasure watching Jeff onstage. I have said it before, but Jeff actually makes it look like playing the guitar is fun. I saw Annihilator at Wacken 2000 as well and they played the smaller “Party Stage” so it was fucking killer to see them play one of the main stages this year. The rest of the band did a good job as well. The drummer was most impressive. And the set list ruled as well. This is not in any sort of order. I just know they did these songs.
Ultra Motion
Refresh the Demon
King of the Kill
Set the World on Fire
Alison Hell
Welcome to your Death
Shallow Grave
Bliss
Phantasmagoria
I was banging my head pretty hard by the time Alison Hell kicked in. Annihilator is a great fucking band. They always have been killer when I have seen them play. Weird that for someone who lives in Seattle, Annihilator NEVER play here. They may have only played here once!! So PLAY here guys!! Seattle Metal Fest is in two weeks!
RUNNING WILD:
I missed the band Victory and voted to get some water as I was starting to feel better. I did not want to miss Running Wild as I had at a previous Wacken. Even though I didn’t get into Running Wild until 1992, I guess better late than never. Well this bunch of crazy German rockers from Dortmund did not disappoint. They sounded great, the crowd was thick (38,000) and Running Wild stormed through a most worthy 90-minute set. Rock ‘N Rolf at one point donned a pirate hat as he led the band into Treasure Island. I am very glad I saw Running Wild at WOA this year. They were very entertaining and had no problems onstage. It is nice to know a band that has been around for so long can keep on rockin’ as good if not better than their glory days. Running Wild are huge in their homeland. So I think this was a nice show to place for the band. They seemed like they were all having a great time up there. Their set list included:
1. Intro
2. Genghis Khan
3. Little Big Hom
4. Prowling Werewolf (prev. unreleased)
5. Riding the Storm
6. Branded & Exiled
7. Welcome to Hell
8. Apocalyptic Horseman (prev. unreleased)
9. The Brotherhood
10. Drum Solo
11. Bad to the Bone
12. Treasure Island
13. Conquistadors
FRIDAY AUGUST 01-
THE CROWN:
After tragically missing German thrash merchants Dew Scented due to the line backstage for a shower, I was ready to rock! I saw The Crown last year with Lindberg singing. It was a great show. Marko and Marcus are the best guitar players on the scene and always have been. The Crown are simply amazing live. And they are back with original vocalist Johan Lindstrad, The Crown burst onto the Black Metal stage right on time, with what I swore was “Death Race King”. I was standing in the photo pit line for the first song and or so. But I got some killer pictures of the band, as did my other photographer for the e-zine. (Cheers Mikael!). One thing I have to say is that my idea of getting some fancy earplugs for my trip was a GREAT investment!! The Crown were fucking loud! As were all the bands at Wacken. I remember The Crown were fucking on eleven!! Rows and rows of headbangers banged to too short 45 minute set. Janne the drummer is fucking amazing. Watching him drum is always a pleasure. A major highlight for me was when they played a new song!! “Face of Destruction/Deep Hit of Death” from the forthcoming “Possessed 13” album. It was fucking LORD!! October 20th, 2003 on Metal Blade records. Contender for Album of the year!! I don’t know if they are touring anymore. They are playing Summer Breeze in Germany. But that is it for right now. Watching The Crown slay the Wacken crowd was one of my best memories of this years Wacken!! Everyone was going fucking crazy by the time they tore into Total Satan. It was so fucking hot outside. Every now and then they pit security would douse the crowd with a firehose. I ran with my camera under my shirt.
Here is what I remember of the set list:
Deathexplosion
Under the Whip
Blitzkrieg Witchcraft
Satanist
World Below
Face of Destruction/Deep Hit of Death
1999-Revolution 666
Total Satan
Executioner- Slayer of the Light
DISMEMBER:
I really love Dismember from Sweden. I have never seen live before, so I was quite excited for there Wacken performance. I don’t know much about what is up with the band; I have heard that a new album is almost near completion. There has been a change in the line up as well. They had a new bass player. Well, Dismember were fucking great. They had the Pieces EP as a backdrop, and the members were dressed in concert shirts, spikes and bullet belts. They had great sound. The guitars were fucking loud and vocalist Matti was sounding really great. They played “Soon to be Dead”
”Casket Garden”, “Pieces”, and “Skin Her Alive” (Which they dedicated to the ladies in the audience). Dismember even pleased the crowd by playing something new. I think it was called “Tragedy of a Dead Angel”. Even though the temperatures were soaring at Wacken, it was worth every drop of sweat I poured just watching Dismember dig Wacken a new grave. HAIL TRUE DEATH METAL!
SENTENCED:
I was thrilled to “death” that Sentenced were booked for WOA 2003. I saw them play Dynamo 1997 and Wacken 2000. And know the band know how to rock a festival crowd. After their Wacken 2000 performance lead singer Ville Laihiala said “Thank you, we are going to go backstage and kill ourselves now”. Obviously they didn’t do that, because there is a new Sentenced album called “The Cold White Light” that is fucking phenomenal. The band was very loose at Wacken this time. I think maybe they might have had a “few beers” before the gig. Not that it affected their ability to perform. Sentenced sounded great. And the fans loved them. About 40,000 metalheads, danced and sung their lungs out to Sentenced short 45 minute set. I love this band. The set list was great. I lost what they opened with because I was in line for the photo pit. Sentenced have so many good songs, I really wish I could see them play for like 2 hours sometime. The set list:
THE SUICIDER
FAREWELL
NEPENTHE
CROSS MY HEART AND HOPE TO DIE
BRIEF IS THE LIGHT
SUN WON\'T SHINE
BLEED
THE LUXURY OF GRAVE
NO ONE THERE
EXCUSE ME WHILE I KILL MYSELF
THE TROOPER
PRIMAL FEAR:
Ok, I don’t have one album from this band. They have played Wacken before, in 2001, I was way in the back by the vendors and I thought the singer had a great voice. So I have heard from people that these guys put on one hell of a show. Primal Fear were fucking good! Shame on me for not checking them out sooner! I watched their entire set. Which really was tight I might add. I recognized Mat Sinner on Guitars and he did a great job as did the other singer. Primal Fear’s drummer is a fucking maniac. And lead singer Ralf Scheep (formerly of Gamma Ray) has the most amazing voice. He is one hell of a frontman to boot. Enthusiastically interacting with the Wacken crowd, Ralf belted out tune after tune totally flawless, without running out of breath and just full of muscle and energy. I am so happy I saw Primal Fear at Wacken 2003; I am now a fan of the band and will be getting the “Black Sun” release from last year to start off with! Primal Fear’s set list included-
Countdown to Insanity
Black Sun
Chainbreaker
Nuclear Fire
Under your Spell
Armageddon
Eye of an Eagle
Sea of Flames
Fear
Metal Gods
Final Embrace
Angel in Black
Encore: Silver & Gold
TESTAMENT:
Ahhh Bay Area Thrash invades Wacken again. I was unfortunate to miss Exodus at Wacken 2002. I had other bands on my agenda. But nothing interfered with me watching Testament destroy the Wacken legions in a just under 50 minute set. This was my 10th time seeing Testament live. Lucky to live in the Pacific Northwest I guess. I did get to see Testament destroy Dynamo in 1997. That was the last year the festival was held at the infamous airport field in Eindhoven. It seems Testament have quite a following in Germany. Many it seems had never seen them play before. The crowd went crazy for Testament and really banged their heads hard. It looked like the band was having a good time. Steve DiGiorgio is a bass god. Eric Peterson was caught perma grinning from his bangs as well. It was killer to fucking see Chuck looking so healthy after his small bout with Cancer. His performance was top notch and his voice was golden. He had little colored braids in his hair and banged his head while playing air guitar on the microphone stand. Another good highlight of Wacken this year…Fuckin’ Testament. To be honest, we were all praying for a new song, but hell thanks for the great show guys!!
Testament set list:
Eerie Inhabitants
Practice what you Preach
Sins of Omission
True Believer
Burnt Offerings
Into the Pit
D.N.R.
The Haunting
Over the Wall
Alone in the Dark
Electric Crown
Low
Disciples of the Watch
ROTTING CHRIST:
Finally! I get to fucking see a band I have loved since 1993. When I first heard “Thy Might Contract” I became a fan of Rotting Christ from Greece. I have closely followed their career, watching them grow and progress with each album. Personally, I like all albums from Rotting Christ. It is amazing that with all my traveling around the world for metal that I never managed to catch these guys live. When I found out they were confirmed for Wacken I was ecstatic! I was however rather bummed out that they stuck Rotting Christ on the Wet stage. They should have played the bigger black metal stage that is open air. This fucking sauna of a stage fucking sucks. It is a small stage and a big tent that always gets over crowded and the heat just swelters in there. But such is the price we have to pay. Rotting Christ was awesome! The sound was loud and clear as Sakis and crew let the Wacken crowd into battle with “In Domine Sathanas”. The only thing that was bad about Rotting Christ was short time they got to play. Only like 45 minutes. They played a good amount of killer tunes off their latest release Genesis. And even went back to the vaults and pulled out “King of a Stellar Wall” and one of my all time favorite RC songs ever “The Sign of Evil Existence”. It was worth standing in the Wet Sauna stage for Rotting Christ. They fucking killed!!
GAMMA RAY:
The German power metal warriors stormed the True Metal stage at Wacken. I saw them at Wacken 2001 and they were very good. This band is filled with professional and talented musicians. I was mesmerized watching Kai Hansen solo. And Gamma Ray was actually better at Wacken 2003 than in 2001. They were tighter and had better energy I think and also better sound. The crowd really loved Gamma Ray. There were 30,000 fans watching their nice lengthy set, which saw many of those fans singing out loud. The set list was comprised of the just released “Skeletons in the Closet” 2 CD which consists of their greatest hits. I am glad I got to watch Gamma Ray again. They are one of the few power metal bands I actually like. Hope I can see them again someday.
Gamma Ray’s set list (not in order):
Welcome
Gardens of the Sinner
Heavy Metal Universe
One With The World
Armageddon
Last Before the Storm
Heart of the Unicorn
The Silence (with Ralf Scheepers of Primal Fear)
Rising Star/Shine On
Heaven or Hell
Victim of Fate
ASSASSIN:
Long awaited reunion of Dusseldorf, Germany’s reigning thrash kings!! I was so excited for the Assassin reunion. I love thrash metal and German thrash is my favorite. Assassin released only two LPs in their career. 1987’s “Upcoming Terror” and “Interstellar Experience” from 1988. Then they sort of disappeared without a trace. Well, I am happy to report that they are back with a vengeance. Assassin had the most crystal clear sound. All the losers over at “In Lames” on the “True Metal Stage” don’t know what they are missing here. I stayed and banged my head through such classic songs as “Junk Food”, “Abstract War” and “Pipeline”, and Assassin even debuted a few new songs that went over real well. In fact, they totally killed!! It was nice to see these guys thrash. Robert Gonnella, the singer introduced the rest of the band towards the end and explained that getting the reunion to happen was nearly impossible, but because of their love for metal and their fans they got together again and found out that the “spark” was still there. Assassin fucking thrashed Wacken a new asshole in 2003!! Thanks for the loud decibels and may thrash RAGE ON!!!!!!!!!
TWISTED SISTER:
Another reunion. To be honest, I am a pretty big fan of TS and somehow, I never managed to see them live in the 80’s. Was I in for a shock and a travel through the rock and rock time machine! Twisted Sister slammed the Wacken True Metal stage in all their glory. I mean the exact replica costumes, hair and make up from 1984. They played like this for the first 4 songs and then changed into regular rock and roll clothes (leather pants, concert shirts, mesh shirts, etc). I don’t know where their fucking energy was coming from. I am 41 and I know that they members of TS are older than me. TS amazed the crowd and myself by plowing through a 2-hour smoking set. They played a great set list, going through all the great TS tunes. Dee asked if “We have any riders in the house” and then sent out “Ride to Live, Live to Ride” to the bikers in the crowd. Dee is an amazing frontman. He explained when they got the call that Iced Earth had cancelled Wacken 2003 and was asked if they would mind playing the festival. Dee yelled, “Would we mind?” and said that he would be honored to play for the Wacken crowd. He also mentioned this reunion is the exact same line-up that saw the early TS incarnation in the mid 70’s. He said it wasn’t easy getting all five together, and that bad blood had been spilled. But that they realized how stupid they were, and how they have been friends for 30 years almost and when they get together “Something Happens”, indeed Dee. The KIDS are BACK!! Major fucking highlight for me at Wacken 2003!!!
Twisted sister Setlist:
intro: AC/DC's "It's A Long Way To The Top (If You Wanna Rock 'n' Roll"
What You Don't Know (Sure Can't Hurt You)
The Kids Are Back
Stay Hungry
Destroyer
Like A Knife In The Back
Under The Blade
You Can't Stop Rock 'n' Roll
I Am I'm Me
The Fire Still Burns
Ride To Live, Live To Ride
Shoot'Em Down
We're Not Gonna Take It
The Price
I Believe In Rock 'n' Roll
Burn In Hell
drumsolo
I Wanna Rock
Come Out And Play
SMF
SATURDAY AUGUST 01st:
HOLY MOSES:
I was in a drunken state of mind Friday night, when I was informed that Sinister lost their guitar player (it was not clear as to why or how) and that their replacement was none other than local German thrash legends Holy Moses!! Man was I pleased!! Not only can Sabina sing better than most men on the scene she is also quite an eyeful. By looking at her you wouldn’t begin to believe that she can growl, grunt and scream like she does. Holy Moses began back in like 1981 and in the late 80’s released 2 LP’s and an EP. In the 90’s they also released a few LPs. But in 2002 , the band signed to Century Media and released an EP and then a new LP “Disorder of the Order” which is like the heaviest Holy Moses album to date!! I cannot praise this album enough. So anyway Holy Moses took Sinister slot, which meant 11:00am on the Black Metal stage. Well, I woke up at 10 minutes to 11 with a horrible headache from too much drinking the night before. I heard Holy Moses doing their sound check, I looked at my watch and was like FUCK! I ran down to the stages, and luckily they had just begun playing as I got there. There were not too many people watching Holy Moses at first. I guess everyone was sleeping or something. But about half through their set, the crowd grew and more headbangers showed up. Watching Sabina headbang is fucking cool. She really is a true metal princess if there ever was one. The band were tight which shows how good they really are, considering the short time they had to prepare for this gig. They ended their set with the traditional Dead Kennedy cover “Too Drunk to Fuck” which I think Rachel from Sinister was supposed to come out and sing with Sabina, but she was not feeling very well. All in All Holy Moses fucking smoked for sure. Sorry if you missed them. Here is the set list (I think)
Intro
Disorder of the Order
Deeper
Queen of Siam
Finished with the Dogs
Current of Death
I Bleed
Life\'s Destroyer
Near Dark
Lost in the Maze
Master of Disaster
Too Drunk to Fuck
THYRFING:
I was fairly new to this band, catching some of their set at Dynamo ’99. I remember they were pretty good. I never did get any back catalog of Thyrfing. But I did get their latest release “Vansinnesvisor”. And I really like it. When they went on it was early enough for the stage to be shadowing the crowd from the early afternoon sun. The band came out and opened with a song called “Mjolner” which kicks off the “Urkraft” album from 2000. The band sounded killer. Nice and loud and very heavy. They were all looking primitive with the streaks of mud over them as they pummeled through a great set of songs, mostly drawing from “Vansinnesvisor”. The singer was fun to watch. During the last couple of songs he was drinking something from a cup, what looked like blood. And he was spitting it into the crowd. He would then throw the cup up high into the crowd, where it would douse the fans with blood. The singer had blood all down his face and neck. They ended the show with “Storms of Asgard”. The crowd really dug “Thyrfing” and was chanting “We Want More” after they left the stage. I am really glad that I caught their Wacken set. I am going to get their previous album(s), because I hear they are pretty killer.
TWISTED TOWER DIRE:
Twisted Tower Dire hail from Northern Virginia and have been around since 1986. Since then the band has had several incarnations. Including a female vocalist. But in 1999 they brought aboard vocalist Tony Taylor. This man has a voice that will shatter steel. He is a truly gifted singer and uses what he can do with his voice to the fullest. He hits notes that only can be compared to the greats: Halford, Arch, and early Tate are a few examples. But Tony’s voice is beyond that; it sucks you into another world and your trapped there until his last note is hit. I was lucky enough to see them twice before. At Wacken 2000 and November to Dismember 2000 and they were phenomenal both times. New bassist Jim Hunter (October 31, While Heaven Wept) was added to the line up in 2002. TTD got bumped from the True Metal Stage to the smaller Party Stage and also were up against Malevolent Creation at the Black Metal Stage time-wise. But there were a good 1 or 2 thousand true metal warriors like myself that were their showing our dedication to a HELL OF A BAND. What a show it was. Easily the best show I have ever seen them play. Tony’s voice was in perfect form. And the guitarists Dave and Scott were fucking amazing. They were frantically trading off solos and never missed a note. (Not in my drunken ears and eyes at least…. Ed). . The drummer Marc pounded the shit out the drums. He is one kick ass drummer! And Jim is a fucking killer bassist. He has awesome stage presence and knows how to attack the four string like no other. The fucking heat was cooking down on Wacken during the TTD set. Tony was wearing a beige sweater and leather pants (what are you NUTS Tony…Scott) and talked between songs, he said how honored TTD were to be able to come back to Wacken and play again. He also mentioned his children whom were watching from the side of the stage. During songs the crowd would pump their fists and headbang and sometimes chant “hey, hey, hey” over and over. Tony enticing them to go crazy and then he threw a couple of tall beers into the crowd (I wish I had been standing on that side of the stage…Ed.) . They packed in quite a lot of metal into one set. I have listed below what I think they played. When they played “The Trooper” the crowd went wild!! Tony took a big swill off a bottle of Jagermeister and then tossed it into the first row of headbangers.
TTD have a new album out on Remedy Records called “Crest of the Martyrs” which everyone needs to check out!! It rules and needs to be cranked while listening to it. HAIL TRUE N. VIRGINIAN METAL!!
TTD set list (not in any order and I am missing songs)
Axes & Honor
The Daggers Blade
The Isle of Hydra
Crest of the Martyrs
By my Hand
The Trooper
CALLENISH CIRCLE:
So, Back to hell and the fucking Wet Stage for the Dutch death thrashers known as Callenish Circle. I have the first album from them and it kills. But I hear the new one "My Passion, Your Pain" is even more kick ass. And it must be true, because Callenish Circle totally slayed the Wet Stage at Wacken. The tent was packed with headbangers. Despite the stuffy humid and sticky aspects this tent stage, it was WELL worth it just to see Callenish Circle perform. They are fucking so heavy live. And play loud as well. Not since At The Gates and early In Flames have I heard a band play so well. They are a very talented metal band. They got to play 45 minutes, and pumped out songs from the new album mostly and only did a couple from the first. A big Wacken memory to treasure here. Great band and great set!! HAIL THE DUTCH!!
Gedankt je bitter meer mee ik hoopte je kwamen the verenigden staat gespeeld wijst soon!! Sorry, that was translated with my "translator" software. LOL!
CARPATHIAN FOREST:
The last time I saw Carpathian Forest was in March of 2002 at the Inferno festival in Oslo. They ruled. They went on the Black Metal stage at 3:15pm. It was hotter than fucking hell. Lead singer Nattefrost with huge spiked gauntlets on his forearms yelled "How are you doin' Wacken, We are Carpathian Forest, Fat Fuckers from Norway" and then led the band into a 45 minute battle of songs mostly drawing from their newest album "Defending the Throne of Evil". The bassist Vrangsinn (who IS very very fat) at one point during the set turned around and dropped his shorts, exposing a massive ass. I could have done without it, but it was funny for the most part. The heat was horrid during Carpathian Forest. So it was hard to get into the Grim & Frostbitten vibe. The sound was sort of muffled as well. The guitars in my opinion were turned to low. But at least they played shit from "Black Shining Leather" Bottom line- Carpathian Forest were hilarious and quite entertaining. During the last song of the set Nattefrost vomited all over the microphone. Lovely....
RAGE:
Here is a band that I was sure not to miss at Wacken. I had heard their last couple of albums they have put out and they are fucking heavy. Rage has been around for a long time. Bassist/Vocalist Peavy formed the band in 1983 calling it Avenger. In 1986 the "Reign of Fear" album was released and the band had changed their name to Rage. Rage have a killer new album out called "Unity" that is fucking amazing. The crowd grew very thick for Rage. It is nice to see that they would be so supportive to their fellow countrymen. Rage had perfect sound at Wacken. Peavy attacked his bass and his vocals were powerful yet serene. The crowd really knew their Rage, singing, chanting, clapping, headbanging, dancing to song after song. Even though Rage only played for one hour. It is an hour I will never forget. I cannot praise this band enough. A fucking three piece and the sound they produce just moves the earth! I have seen tons of guitar players in my life but Victor Smolksi of Rage is one of the best. He is flawless and has a great stage presence and this huge assed wall of sound coming from his guitar. His guitar solo that was showcased was literally mind blowing. Drummer Mike Terrana has just got to be seen to be believed. This motherfucker with a Mohawk can really pound the kit like no other. His drum solo was easily one of the best I had ever seen and I was captured and mesmerized the whole solo. One of the best if not THE best bands at Wacken 2003, and if you were at Wacken and missed Rage, then you missed one hell of a show!
Setlist:
Don't Fear The Winter
Paint The Devil On The Wall
Sent By The Devil
Down
Set The World On Fire
Black In Mind/Solitary Man (Medley)
Guitar/Drum Solo
Straight To Hell
War Of Worlds (New Song)
From The Cradle To The Grave
Higher Than The Sky
DARK FUNERAL:
5:30pm. Black Metal stage. Wacken Germany. The gates of hell were opened and the fire and brimstone known as Dark Funeral from Sweden had made their mighty presence known. Emperor Magus Caligula- who looked like Satan's left-hand man, screamed and sweated and commanded the crowd to "raise the horns". His voice sounded excellent and his screams raised the hairs on my neck, he truly is a gifted vocalist, because I can imagine that black metal is hard to sing in a live setting. Caligula didn’t miss a note. Lord Ahriman looked like he had lost a little weight since the last time I had seen Dark Funeral play. He made grimacing and evil faces as he played his guitar. They brought a "touring bassist" Lord K to Wacken (The Project Hate) K has a very scary stage presence. He is 6 feet 7 inches tall and has long black hair and a very very long black beard. He is a strong motherfucker because his bass sound was fucking powerful. He really fit well into the Dark Funeral fold. Newer guitarist Chaq Mol (ex Face Down, Hexenhaus) also did great. The Drummer Matte Modin kept perfect timing too. Dark Funeral shortened their set by almost 15 full minutes for some reason. But the quality of their performance out weights the quantity. Songs performed at Wacken include: "Thy Legions Come", "Goddess of Sodomy", "The Secret of the Black Arts", and the best song of their set "Open the Gates" which is going all the way back to the "Shadows over Transylvania" EP. The crowd chanted the chorus with Caligula s"Open the Gates....Satan!" And I swear for the whole set of Dark Funeral, the gate to Hell was indeed opened. They were awesome. Hands down the best show I have seen them do. They ended their too short of a set with "My Dark Desires" and then left the stage after waving to the crowd amongst billows of smoke. HAIL SATAN!
http://www.darkfuneral.se
NILE:
Major highlight of Wacken Open Air 2003. I have seen this band countless times and each time I see them it seems they have only gotten better (if that is possible). Lights went out and the eerie Egyptian samples filled the speakers loudly. Then WHAM Nile appeared on stage in all their glory. Karl Sanders was wearing solid black and a big Ahnk around his neck. Karl along with Jon Vesano (bass/vocals) and Dallas Tomer (guitar/vocals) growled grunted, sweated and tore through a 45 minute set of very worthy extreme death metal. Behind Nile\'s drum kit sits drummer god Tony Laureno. There is no doubt that Tony is the best drummer in the USA. If not the entire planet. Anything he has ever played on has shined because of his sheer amazing drumming talent. The only word I can come up with to summarize Tony's drumming is "Breathtaking". Nile are so powerful with Laureno on the skins. The Wacken crowd really loved Nile. There were hundreds of crowdsurfers flying through the crowd and into the photo pit. I left my notepad at the campsite after Dark Funeral and didn’t catch Nile's set list. I know that they played "Black Seeds of Vengeance", "Churning the Maelstrom", "Serpent Headed Mask" and "The Blessed Dead". Nile played an ear splitting tight show at Wacken and I am so glad I remembered earplugs. I started drinking during Dark Funeral so I was not feeling any pain during Nile. It is always a pleasure to see these guys. I am a huge fan of the band. Personally, I cannnot fucking wait for the upcoming US tour with Kreator, Vader, Amon Amarth and Goatwhore!
Khetti Satha Shemsu!!
SLAYER:
Slayer really fucked up before they played Wacken this year. First, they were over 90 minutes late for a scheduled "Meet & Greet" with fans. The line for it was fucking really long. When Slayer finally did show up, they were greeting with loud boo\'s and only signed autographs and shit for about 15 minutes. Then they were 15 minutes late going on. But once they did go on they played an awesome set that touched on every part of their career. The set was 70 minutes long. They played "God Hates us All", "Mandatory Suicide", "Captor of Sin", "Die By the Sword", "War Ensemble" as well as the "Reign in Blood" album in its entirety. Which was quite a sight to see and hear! Tom was quiet between songs, sometimes whispering "Thank you" (totally out of breath). King and Hanneman were both literally on fire performance wise at Wacken. Same holds true for Lombardo who gives Laureno (of Nile) a run for the money! It was fucking killer seeing two of the best drummers stateside play a festival such as Wacken. The Wacken crowd of course went nuts for Slayer. Chanting "Slayer, Slayer, Slayer" over and over between songs. So even though there were problems beforehand, Slayer owned the Wacken Open Air festival 2003. I was happy they didn’t play much new stuff and stuck with the older material. I also am going to check out that new Slayer DVD- "War at the Warfield"
With Slayer being over, I decided to call my Wacken live experience to a close and went backstage and got completely rotted until I passed out at the crack of dawn (5:00am). We packed up and moved out of Wacken at around 11:00am.
Another successful Wacken festival for Blizzard Beast.com!! Meaning that we will return in 2004. Confirmed headliners so far include: "Saxon", "Grave Digger", "Nevermore", "Destruction" and "Amon Amarth". If you can at all ever afford to go to this festival, by all means DO IT. It is like none other festival in the world. And dont forget to check out our Wacken 2003 photo gallery here at the gallery section! UNTIL NEXT YEAR...
Cheers and Strong German beers!,
Scott "Blizzard Beast" Cameron 2003
|
Live Reviews 
