Horst Franz (Horst Odermatt), the organizer of the legendary Bang Your Head!!! festival, which took place every year in the German town of Balingen, has died at the age of 60. For many years (since 2006, to be exact), Horst also organized the Rock Of Ages festival, which will take place again this year in the German village of Seebronn, right near Horst’s hometown of Rottenburg Am Neckar. Since the early nineties, Horst was also active as, among other things, an editor of the heavy music magazine “Heavy, Oder Was!?”.
A guy with an incredibly likable character, he radiated his endless good cheer every time he stood on the festival grounds in front of Balingen’s huge stage, and he came across as down-to-earth and approachable in the best way. He literally lived and breathed BYH!!!.
When the pandemic hit, the foundations of his festival began to wobble and crumble relentlessly. Especially after Horst suffered a serious heart complication (cardiac arrest, after which only the left side of his heart kept working, pumping just 10% of his blood). Soon after, it was discovered that he also had leukemia. On top of all that, Horst also suffered from type 2 diabetes.
Horst’s slowly fading health led to the yearly cancellations of Bang Your Head!!!, a festival he had watched over for a full 24 years. The last BYH!!! was held in 2019!
Even though the bone marrow transplant initially seemed like a successful surgical procedure, Horst’s health later started to fade again. One of the central figures of the German concert and festival scene has now left us for good.
Horst was an important building block of the German hard ‘n’ heavy scene and the heavy metal pulse of the country. Throughout the festival’s run, he gave plenty of new acts who needed a solid promotional push at the start of their careers the chance to prove themselves on the Bang Your Head!!! stage, meaning a huge stage in front of a huge crowd. For many of those bands, that show was a springboard and the beginning of a successful breakthrough, building their artistic profile on a global level!
On behalf of the RockLine team, we offer our sincere condolences to Horst’s closest family and friends!
In the photo: Horst Franz (on the left) giving his closing address to the crowd on July 13, 2013, after Bang Your Head!!! wrapped up (RockLine photo archive 2006-2024, all rights reserved). You can read the full RockLine review of the second day of the festival, which was closed by Accept, HERE!
