The Friday started off with… well… rain. And I guess Dynasty were also there! That’s right, Nils Molin squeezed in his second set of the weekend, playing to a sadly fairly small, drenched crowd to open up the North stage. The band took it in their stride, however, playing their hearts out as if they were in front of a stadium crowd. And, being a big fan of their music, I loved it. Every song was awesome, and the crowd that were there hung on every single note. Hopefully they come over to the UK for a tour soon, because I’d LOVE a full set from them!
After that, we, like many other Graspoppers, seeked shelter in the tent, meaning that it was packed for Brand of Sacrifice. They deserved it too, as they were awesome! Their crushing brand of tech deathcore went down a treat in the darker, heavier environment, and the band face the crowd everything they had. I wasn’t too familiar with their individual songs, just knew roughly what they sounded like but came out definitely as a new fan of the band!
The rain subsided just long enough for us to catch most of Brian Downey’s Alive and Dangerous. Being a big Thin Lizzy fan, I couldn’t not love hearing those songs live again, and every member of the band played their parts in them perfectly. It was maybe an odd choice for a metal festival, but hearing the likes of ‘Jailbreak’ and ‘Boys are Back in Town’ live is never something I can hate. It was a nice, chilled out set to ease us into more heaviness later.
Speaking of heaviness, as the rain started back up we headed back into the tent to check out a band I wasn’t familiar with, Borknagar. However, to say I left a fan is an understatement. The proggy folk/black metal sound was amazing, especially in an environment like the marquee, and is the exact sort of sound that I am learning to love from New Music Mondays. The 45-minute set went by in a flash of great riffs, impressive cleans and harsh growls, and I loved every second. The band managed to put on a show without having much to work with, and were simply entertaining to watch and listen to. I’ve had them on a fair bit since getting home, and they’re another band that have won me over with ease!
Hammerfall were an interesting one for me. I enjoy their music and thought they were pretty good live. However, they also felt just a tad off, for some reason. Maybe it’s a case of how dated their stageshow and crowd work is, or the fact that Joacim Cans struggled to shut the hell up between songs, but something just felt a touch off. It kinda just came across like they figured everyone was there just for them which, while the crowd was big, is a crazy attitude to have at 4pm on a festival bill. They were enjoyable and I’d see them again at a festival, but at the same time would happily cross them off my list and wouldn’t be upset if I couldn’t wiggle them into my schedule again.
Shockingly, Fear Factory were one of my surprise highlights of the Friday. I’ve never quite ‘got’ them on track, but it translated pretty damn well into a live setting. It was heavy in all the best ways, and new frontman Milo Silvestro did an awesome job both on vocals and performing. They still don’t really do much for me on track, but I’d love to see them live again now that I am at least a little more familiar with their songs. They were a band we saw just because no one else was on, and I’m so glad we did!
Another interesting set followed them, coming from Iron Maiden legend Bruce Dickinson. Honestly, I came away pretty disappointed, though I feel like it was my fault. As someone who got into heavy music in the mid 2000s, I knew Bruce almost exclusively for his Maiden work, aside for maybe a song or two of solo stuff. And more, for him to come back to his solo stuff after so many years and put out such a kickass album, I was excited to hear it. Then he came out, played a bunch of his old stuff and tucked just one new album track in the middle. So, I was stood around plenty of people who were enjoying it but damn, it wasn’t my sort of thing at all. Still, the band were entertaining to watch, and Bruce held the crowd in the palm of his hand just as well as ever!
Next, we had my (and I think a lot of other people’s too) band of the weekend. Electric Callboy blew the roof off the place, and easily should have headlined. They had the busiest, loudest crowd of the weekend, without exception. We were out by the sound stage and still ended up in a pit, and it was a damn right squeeze. Almost as a result, the band gave it their all to put on one hell of a show. From the opening ‘Tekkno Train’, through crowd favourites old and new, their incredible cover of ‘Every time we Touch’ to the insane closer ‘We Got the Moves’, it was a masterclass in live music. Both Nico and Kevin had fun with the crowd and performed their asses off throughout, as did the rest of the band. We got awesome video parts, and PLENTY of confetti. The only issue, ‘Ratatata’ solo again. But still, it’s a great song and I wasn’t exactly opposed to hearing it twice! This band should be one of the biggest in the world right now, and they are certainly headed that way, in large part to shows like this.
We checked out Turnstile from afar, and I really don’t get the hype. To put them on after Callboy was insane, and felt like suicide for them in front of the crowd. The thing was too is that when they were actually playing, they were quite entertaining. I enjoyed the aggressive punk sound and the energy they had while playing it was great. My issue is that there was so much dead air between that. Whether it was between songs or even in the middle of them, there’d just be silence. Maybe they’re used to crowds chanting their name constantly? But again it comes back to the same point as Hammerfall; not everyone is there to see you. Save that shit for your own gig. It wasn’t bad, but certainly wasn’t my sort of thing and I got bored quick.
Next up were the mighty Priest. Somehow, it has taken me all my life to see the metal gods, even though they really don’t live that far from me (Sneap’s studio is down the road). Part of me feels like it was worth the wait. Are they are good as they were in the prime? Obviously not. But Rob still sounds pretty decent live and is a fantastic frontman, while all the rest of the band kill it on their respective instruments. Don’t get me wrong, I feel like at this point Priest have such a sprawling discography that every time I saw them, I’d miss songs I’d want to see. However, finally seeing ‘Electric Eye’, ‘Hellbent for Leather’ and ‘Painkiller’ live was awesome. We even got Rob coming out on his bike for ‘…Leather’, which was awesome. I would have liked to have had even one more song off the latter album, though. Hopefully next time! But yeah, a great set, and a worthy headline one.
I’ve seen Five Finger Death Punch a few times now, my last being not long before Ivan’s breakdown and rehab stint. Somehow, they were better back then. This felt like your average, run-of-the-mill afternoon set; very little style or substance or show, just the band coming out, playing the songs, and fucking off again. That could pass if a) they weren’t headlining over Priest/Callboy and b) their songs weren’t so goddamn basic and repetitive too. Heck, the fact that they have a song with Rob Halford, he’d just done a set and they DIDN’T BRING HIM OUT FOR THE SONG, is honestly insane. The band played in practically darkness, which was weird, and while hearing some of the old Way of the Fist stuff was nice, I’ve heard them do it better in years past. Ivan was his usual obnoxious self, but less appealing, and the rest of the band were just sort of there. This set proved that the band are not headline material, and it left a real bitter taste in my mouth, to be honest.