Location: Unterpremstätten (Graz) / Schwarzlsee / Austria
Date: 02.08.2014
After a scorching rock Friday that left plenty of people with rosy memories (and sunburns) on their skin, Saturday promised an even hotter metal day. Already on the drive from the Styrian capital toward Austria it looked like Mother Nature was going to join in on the heavier daytime program, as steeply rising cumulus clouds were quickly merging into menacing storm masses.
With a whopping nine bands on the bill, Saturday kicked off very early, at least concert-wise, at a quarter past twelve. We caught the hometown Graz crew Norikum just as they were wrapping up. In their short set the youngsters mostly pushed songs from their debut Regress In Progress, released this year. With their mix of melodic death and thrash metal they somehow managed to entertain the rather small crowd gathered in front of the stage.
Belphegor were the next to storm the stage. In their twenty-plus years of existence, the band from the Salzburg region has seriously carved out its place on the black metal scene. Black metal acts in broad daylight always lose a bit of the genre’s atmosphere, and the blazing sun doesn’t spare the obligatory face paint either. When it comes to corpse paint, special mention goes to guitarist Sigurd, whose three-dimensional hand paint was so good it looked like a half-decayed skeleton was rubbing the strings, and we can’t skip the fact that all the blood you see on stage (and in the music videos) is real! Fake blood is for pussies, says frontman Helmuth. Belphegor release a new album, Conjuring The Death, on August 8, and the set list was tailored to promote it. Helmuth growled his parts into a mic while wearing a gas mask (Gasmask Terror).
Apparently all that summoning of Satan, zombies and similar creatures and deities seriously pissed off Nature, because a dark gray mass began to rise west of the venue, soon blocking out the sun, and it looked like last year’s scenario was about to repeat itself, when the sun blazed on the first day and a heavy storm with hail cut through the afternoon sets on the second. The dark clouds soon covered the sun, and the sudden cooldown finally got a few more people in front of the stage, just as Americans Hellyeah were starting. The band is actually one of those so-called supergroups, made up of musicians from several big names in rock: in this case bands like Mudvayne, Bloodsimple, Knives Out! and, probably the best known around here, Pantera. Vinnie Paul, the drummer of the latter and brother of the late Dimebag Darrell, started playing again with Hellyeah after a long absence following his brother’s death. Charismatic frontman Chad had no trouble getting the crowd going with a mix of older hits and new material from the recently released Blood for Blood. A sound that slightly recalls the aforementioned Pantera, plus an energetic performance, make Hellyeah an excellent live band. After the show the members could be spotted among the audience, and Vinnie was wearing a T-shirt that read We Remember Dimebag!
Next up were the German folk merrymakers In Extremo. A big crowd of musicians dressed in leather get-ups, with a whole host of instruments, from the better-known ones to those that only the biggest connoisseurs could name. They’re obviously hugely popular in German-speaking countries, because the grounds were fullest for them all day, and their pipes and drums had most of the crowd dancing and celebrating. A pair of bagpipes, assorted percussion, plucked strings, hurdy-gurdy and the like, in harmony with a classic rock lineup and lyrics in German: that’s the recipe for success north of our border.
The big storm was moving north, just a stone’s throw from Graz, when another set of black metal legends, Dimmu Borgir, took up their battle positions with the help of pyrotechnics. The core of the band, vocalist Shagrath and guitarist Silenoz, has been plowing its way through the black metal underground for 21 years. Despite accusations that their symphonic leanings and musical experimentation made them lose touch with real black metal, they still hold onto a status symbol worshipped by hordes of fans. Four years have passed since their last record, Abrahadabra, and a new album isn’t expected until next year. With a handful of shows, Saturday’s among them, Dimmu Borgir are returning to the stage after a good year of silence. With their more progressive, at times even thrash-sounding guitars, rich synthesized orchestral backing and impressive pyro effects, the Norwegians put on a real show, and just like Belphegor before them, their time slot unfortunately didn’t do them any favors. They did manage to lure even more people into the pit area, who, unlike on Friday, trickled in very slowly.
Saxon, who replaced the Norwegian darklings on stage, need no special introduction. They’re one of the few bands that hasn’t wavered much in quality over their long history, on stage or in the studio, and as their latest album Sacrifice proves, they’re far from ready for the scrap heap. Scarratt and Quinn confidently lay down a distorted sonic foundation for Biff’s excellent vocals, which, despite him being 63, show no signs of age. With twenty albums under their belt, there’s no shortage of hits to build a set list from. Classics like Heavy Metal Thunder, 747 (Stranger in the Night) and Wheels of Steel were joined by a few from the current Sacrifice album. Sadly, it’s looking more and more like Saxon can no longer entertain the younger generations: after the disastrous turnout at Kino Šiška last year, there was a noticeable drop in the crowd at this festival too. A real shame, because Saxon are one of those NWOBHM bands that helped pave the way for the entire heavy metal scene.
Saxon kicked off the big finale of Saturday night, as they were followed by the hugely popular Blind Guardian. The Seerock show was only their third after a nearly two-year break, which the members used for rest, side projects, and work on the upcoming album as well as the long-in-the-making orchestral album The Dwarves. Saturday’s show proved that Hansi and the gang and their loyal metal family were hungry for each other. Even though Hansi’s frontman game was perhaps a touch dull, the band created a fantastic atmosphere worthy of the Blind Guardian name. The expected stroll through the band’s biggest hits tied the crowd together with a magic thread that pulled everyone into a massive singalong, especially on ballads like Bard’s Song, and they closed the show with the classics Mirror, Mirror and Valhalla. Mark May 21, 2015 in your calendars as a must-see show in Ljubljana!
Saxon and Blind Guardian successfully warmed up the crowd for probably the biggest stars, or at least the treat of the night: Twisted Sister! These guys, who you wouldn’t bring home for dinner, got the whole place on its feet, and Dee Snider even gave a proper scolding to the people sitting in the VIP stand. TS are celebrating the 30th anniversary of their breakthrough album Stay Hungry this year, which also coincided with 30 years since their last show in Austria. The band sincerely apologized for such a long absence, with words, but above all with an excellent, energy-packed performance. The fact that they’re true rockers at heart is also shown by playing their biggest hit, We’re Not Gonna Take It, pretty soon after the start. Dee Snider accompanied that decision with the words that anyone who came to see them just for that one song can leave, and those who came to see Twisted Sister should stay. The guys are, true to their image, total posers and even let the photographers shoot the whole show from the photo pit. There was truly a whole stageful of them, especially Snider, who gradually stripped down over the course of the show, while the pyro did its thing during The Fire Still Burns and especially in Burn in Hell, with Snider lit by a red spotlight. Guitarist Jay Jay French also took a swipe at the kids on shows like Idol and The X Factor: the brats tremble and thank the crowds because they had to slog for a whole 15 weeks to become famous, while famous rock and metal bands had to slog for decades to get there. TS played a truly excellent show, and left the stage to loud ovations.
The closing act of the night, ten minutes past midnight, fell to American thrash giants Slayer. They were back at Seerock and brutalized the last atoms of strength of a mostly younger crowd than the day before. A well-oiled machine, which is exactly what Slayer are, cut precisely through the soft tissue in front of them and proved once again that they’re one of the most beloved bands in the world for a reason. Seerock caught them somewhere in the middle of their European summer festival tour. Kerry King on the right side showed he’s still the king of shredding, and the only minus goes to Araya’s vocals, which at times lose their depth and as a result just rasp into the mic.
Seerock seems to be becoming a very popular festival right in our backyard. A lovely setting for relaxing and camping by the lake, the stage’s proximity to all the side activities (zipline, wakeboarding, paintball, …) and the event’s improving organization all promise growth for this festival. Sure, a two-day ticket for the so-called wavebreaker fan pit costs as much as a weekly one for Metaldays, but for that you get a whole heap of big names in rock and metal over two days, or you can choose to chill to your favorite music while lounging on the shore or soaking your ass in the warm lake.
author: Sebastijan Videc
photos: Jerneja Jerak
video: Sebastijan Videc
Blind Guardian
1. Sacred Worlds
2. Welcome to Dying
3. Nightfall
4. The Script for my Requiem
5. Mordred’s Song
6. Bright Eyes
7. Tanelorn (Into the Void)
8. Imaginations From the Other Side
9. The Bard’s Song – Into the Forest
10. Mirror Mirror
11. Valhalla
Twisted Sister
1. Stay Hungry
2. The Kids Are Back
3. You Can’t Stop Rock’n’Roll
4. Captain Howdy
5. Street Justice
6. We’re Not Gonna Take It
7. I Believe In Rock’n’roll
8. Shoot ‘Em Down
9. Under the Blade
10. The Fire Still Burns
11. The Price
12. Burn In Hell
13. I Wanna Rock
—
14. Come Out And Play (intro)
15. S.M.F.
Slayer
1. Hell Awaits
2. The Antichrist
3. Necrophiliac
4. Hate Worldwide
5. Postmortem
6. Mandatory Suicide
7. Captor of Sin
8. War Ensemble
9. Born of Fire
10. Disciple
11. Seasons in the Abyss
12. Dead Skin Mask
13. Raining Blood
14. Black Magic
15. South of Heaven
16. Angel of Death
