Nova Rock Festival 2009 – Day Two – Mud Baths and Chicken Drumsticks for Dinner! (2009)

Location: Nickelsdorf, Austria
Concert date: 19.06.2009
Attendance: 80000
Ticket price: €110 for all three days

Waking up to a cold, rainy morning never promises anything good. And sadly, that’s exactly how it played out. It drizzled on and off until late afternoon, and slogging through ankle-deep (or deeper) mud was no fun at all. No wonder the St. Pauli stand sold out of every last pair of rubber boots. At least the day’s line-up was a thrilling one: supergroup Chickenfoot, Kaiser Chiefs, Placebo, Chris Cornell, Staind and others.

RED STAGE

CENTAO: 12.15 – 12.40
Day two of Nova Rock was opened by local rock four-piece Centao, who kicked off a few minutes late. But the band wasn’t the only one running behind. Thanks to the rain and the crush at the entrance to the Red Stage, plenty of their fans were late too. As the band grumbled afterwards, many only caught the last song. Still, the crowd in front of the stage grew by the minute, singing along with Matt (vocals), Steve (guitar), Irwin (bass) and Josh (drums). The band, formed in 2001, has sworn by the label MoRock Records since its very first release. Under its wing Centao put out their debut album “Mindstrip” in 2006, joined last year by the second-born “Your Poison Is My Paradise”, a record with a slightly provocative cover. Freedom of expression has a free hand, after all. Also worth a mention are the two EPs “Rising” (2002) and “Straight Within” (2003) and the single “No One Knows” (2006). The dynamic, energetic foursome served the gathered crowd a handful of their songs so far, such as “I Need To Know”, “Addicted To You”, “I`m Your Devil”, “No One Knows”, “Short Romance” and “The Start”. Maybe a fresh start is exactly what I’d recommend to the lads. With a more polished stage presence and voice, of course.

EISBRECHER: 13.00 – 13.30
German six-piece Eisbrecher have been winning people over with their fusion of metal and electronics pretty much since they formed in 2003. Heirs to the Neue Deutsche Härte wave (“New German Hardness”), which OOMPH! started in 1989 and Rammstein carried on, they conquer concert stages with a line-up of the founding duo, vocalist Alexx Wesselsky and lead guitarist/programmer Noel Pix, plus keyboardist Max “Maximator” Schauer, drummer Rene Greil, rhythm guitarist Jürgen Plangger and bassist Oli Pohl. During their Nova Rock set the Icebreakers touched on all three of their albums, starting with the latest. The record “Sünde”, which holds the opening track “Kann denn Liebe Sünde sein?”, came out last August, but hasn’t had any major breakthrough since. True, the sextet wows them on home turf, in the German-speaking world, while the rest of the globe remains pretty much untouched. Apart from a few bright exceptions elsewhere in Europe and the US that follow the band’s work. Their self-titled debut, which came out on ZYX Music in January 2004, got its attention on the back of just one song, “Angst?”. A little over two years later the band launched its second studio album “Antikörper” (ZYX Music, October 2006), which gave us the title track and “Phosphor”. One of the biggest rounds of applause from the crowd of several hundred heads went to “This Is Deutsch” from the third album. Eisbrecher wrapped up their set with “Miststück” by the German band Megaherz, which is no surprise, since Wesselsky was a founding member. A closer full of memories of the good old days.

ATROCITY: 13.55 – 14.35
The relentless rain shaped the set of German metallers Atrocity too, and nothing suggested the weather would improve any time soon. Still, an enviable crowd of fans gathered in front of the stage and greeted the band with enthusiasm. But more than the band itself, the attention went to two scantily clad dancers writhing behind bars on either side of the drums. Over a twenty-four-year career the band has released nine EPs, two compilations and seven studio albums. The one that got the most attention was surely the latest, “Werk 80 II”, an album of nothing but covers released last February, since its cover features pin-up icon Dita Von Teese. But not even that is enough to rescue their performance. True, a few madmen did turn up in the crowd, but the general mood was lukewarm. From a band with such a long history and such a rich discography you’d expect more than what was on show. The setlist wasn’t exactly full of surprises either. The most noteworthy bits were maybe “Blut”, “Gods Of Nation”, “Clash Of The Titans”, “Enigma” and the one everybody knows, “The Sun Always Shines On TV”, originally by the Norwegian trio A-Ha. Atrocity didn’t convince this time. Too bad.

DIR EN GREY: 15.05 – 15.55
Dir En Grey, a five-piece from the Land of the Rising Sun formed in 1997, feel quite at home in the Old Continent, with a good few European tours (on top of Asian and American ones) behind them. The latest, under the slogan “Feast of V Senses”, hit every major festival on “our” turf. But … did it deliver? After the heavier beats from Eisbrecher and Atrocity, Kyo (lead vocals), Kaoru (guitar, backing vocals), Die (guitar, backing vocals), Toshiya (bass, backing vocals) and Shinya (drums) were pure balm for the ears with their metalcore. Even though the first three albums, “Gauze” (Free-Will, 1999), “Macabre” (Firewall, 2000) and “Kisou” (Firewall, 2002), went untouched this time, the guys impressed. Maybe not so much with the music itself, but the show of these anorexic youngsters is so packed with energy and effort that even the stoniest critic’s heart gives in. A dozen songs covered all the more notable tracks from the last four albums. Starting with the latest, last year’s “Uroboros” (The End), which deals with reincarnation, the party flowed into “Obscure” from the fourth album “Vulgar” (Firewall) from 2003. Despite the great response, that was the only song played from that record. Attention then shifted with “Merciless Cult” to the album “Withering To Death” (Free-Will, 2005), their first record to break through in Europe and North America and get noticed on Billboard’s “Hot Heatseekers” chart. A similar, or even slightly better, fate followed with “The Marrow Of A Bone” (Firewall, 2007), from which Dir En Grey opened with the somewhat louder and faster “Grief”. The tour the guys are on isn’t just a festival run but a promotional one too, since their latest record “Uroboros” hasn’t even been properly introduced to the public yet. But judging by the reaction, the crowd already knows “Dozing Green”, “Vinushka”, “Gaika, Chinmoku Ga Nemuru Koro” and “Reiketsu Nariseba” well, because a proper little party broke out in front of the stage during them. The string of four was interrupted and closed by “The Final” and “Saku” from the breakthrough album “Withering To Death”. Time flies, and before long Dir En Grey had to say goodbye to the Nova Rock crowd, who got one last good shake to “Agitated Screams Of Maggots” from “The Marrow Of A Bone”. Until next time …

ALL THAT REMAINS: 16.25 – 17.20
The rain stopped, and the stage passed from the anorexic youngsters of Dir En Grey to the somewhat more sober five-piece metalcore outfit All That Remains, whose roots go back to 1998. Alongside four lads, vocalist Philip Labonte, rhythm guitarist Mike Martin, lead guitarist Oli Herbert and drummer Jason Costa, the bass is wrangled by petite Jeanne Sagan. Although the band has released four studio albums, all on Prosthetic, at Nova Rock they focused on just the last two. The debut “Behind Silence And Solitude”, out in 2002, and the second-born “The Darkened Heart” from 2004 stayed untouched despite plenty of great songs. The gathered crowd didn’t mind. They were singing along with Labonte and company in no time, when the band fired up “Not Alone” from the third album “The Fall Of The Ideals” (2006) to start. The record, produced by Adam Dutkiewicz, guitarist of Killswitch Engage (who played the Red Stage a little later), was their first album on Billboard’s top 200. Which is hardly surprising, as that full-length holds quite a few great songs, like “We Stand”, “Become The Catalyst”, “The Weak Willed” and “Six”. The latter was released in a special version for the increasingly popular game “Guitar Hero II”. You shouldn’t overlook the latest record either, “Overcome”, out last September, which Labonte described as their heaviest album. “Two Weeks”, “Before The Damned”, “Forever In Your Hands”, “Chiron” and “Undone” prove it, as ATR broke the magic barrier with that record for the first time and landed in the top ten of Billboard’s “Mainstream Rock Tracks” chart. The final part of their set went to “The Air That I Breath” and “This Calling” from “The Fall Of Ideals”. Of all their tracks, the last one has seen the most success, having been used on two soundtracks, for the film Saw III and the American TV series Master Of Horror. The crowd confirmed its familiarity one last time by jumping around with the five of them. On what I saw and heard: this band definitely promises a lot more!

MONSTER MAGNET: 17.50 – 18.55
American hard rockers Monster Magnet brought a totally fresh breeze that did the gathered crowd’s ears a world of good. The roots of the four-piece, made up of Dave Wyndorf (vocals, rhythm guitar), Ed Mundell (lead guitar), Jim Baglino (bass) and Bob Pantella (drums), go back to 1989. In two decades of existence they’ve put out seven studio albums, and they strolled through them in their one-hour Nova Rock set. The gentlemen paid tribute to the debut “Spine Of God” (Caroline Records, 1992) with “Zodiac Lung”, the only song played from that record. A bit more attention went to the second full-length “Superjudge” (A&M Records, 1993), since it’s the first album Mundell played on. The tracks? “Twin Earth” and “Superjudge”. No more than two songs, the title track and “Third Alternative”, could be heard from the third record “Dopes To Infinity”, which came out in 1995, like its predecessor on A&M Records. The band had its first big breakthrough to the wider music scene with the fourth studio album “Powertrip” (A&M Records) from 1998, which debuted on Billboard’s top 200. From that record the crowd got their biggest hit “Space Lord”, which climbed to an enviable third place on the American “Mainstream Rock Tracks” chart. And “Crop Circle”, “Powertrip” and “Tractor” aren’t far behind, as those are three more great tunes. Because of time pressure, Monster Magnet had to skip the songs from the fifth album “God Says No” (A&M Records, 2001). The last two albums then got a little attention. From the sixth studio record “Monolithic Baby!” (SPV), which saw the light of day in 2004, the crowd, by now several hundred strong, got to hear “Radiation Day” and “The Right Stuff”. The latter was borrowed by the gentlemen from singer, writer and musician Robert Newton Calvert, better known as the vocalist of Hawkwind. Calvert released it on his concept album “Captain Lockheed And The Starfighters” in 1974. Monster Magnet put out their latest studio record “4-Way Diablo” (SPV) toward the end of 2007, and with “Slap In The Face” they drove the crowd wild one last time. Although the band never flirted with any big commercial success, many of their songs have been used on soundtrack albums and in video games, which is where the younger generation mostly knows them from. Many people didn’t expect much from their Nova Rock Red Stage set, so the surprise was all the bigger. Wyndorf and company proved to be incredibly charming and energetic fellas, even if they “run out of steam” at moments. But you can’t hold it against them. The gentlemen simply stick religiously to the motto “Sex, Drugs & rock`n`roll”.

KILLSWITCH ENGAGE: 19.25 – 20.35
The return to heavier beats fell to American metalcore outfit Killswitch Engage, who are marking their tenth anniversary this year. Though their roots go back to 1999, they’ve been playing in the line-up we know today since 2003. The union of Howard Jones (lead vocals), Adam Dutkiewicz (guitar, backing vocals), Joel Stroetzel (guitar), Mike D`Antonio (bass) and Justin Foley (drums, percussion) recently enriched its discography with a fifth studio record, which, as a nod to the anniversary, they self-titled for the second time. Perfectionists that KsE are, they stick to three simple rules in their work: no shortcuts, no compromises and no steps back. If you look at their past, that certainly holds true. The firmest proof is the unexpected 2005 Grammy nomination in the “Best metal performance” category for the album “The End Of Heartache”, even though the prize in the end went to Mr. Lemmy Kilmister and his Motörhead. By far their most successful record is also the first album Jones played on, when he replaced former singer Jesse Leach.

The crowd of several thousand that had gathered by this point in front of the Red Stage greeted the band with enthusiasm. Their shouts and clapping turned into brutal shoving the moment the first riffs of “A Bid Farewell” rang out, from the third, already much-praised record “The End Of Heartache” (Roadrunner Records, 2004). The madness continued with “When Darkness Falls”, another great track from that successful album. If you’re a horror fan you might remember it from the soundtrack album for the film Freddy vs. Jason; if not, just quickly type that phrase into YouTube. Killswitch Engage stayed in darker waters with “Fixation On The Darkness” from the second and last studio album “Alive Or Just Breathing” (Roadrunner Records, 2002), the one with singer Jesse Leach. Among his final works are also “Life To Lifeless” and “My Last Serenade”, which are on that same record. The slightly older fans were surely glad about those, but there was something for the fresh “newcomers” too, e.g. “Still Beats Your Name” from the fourth full-length “As Daylight Dies” (Roadrunner Records, 2006). Unlike their earlier releases, which Dutkiewicz produced, this time guitarist Stroetzel came to his aid. The result is yet another great KsE record, though he wouldn’t agree. By his account it’s very similar to the third album “The End Of Heartache”. How much truth there is in that, judge for yourself. The Nova Rockers didn’t care, and between “Take This Oath” and “Rose Of Sharyn” they pulled off a fair few shenanigans that were anything but innocent. If the five skipped their first self-titled debut album this time, a bit more attention went to their latest, second self-titled record, supposedly a new beginning. KsE cling to that with “Starting Over”, the second single from their fifth album. Even though “As Daylight Dies” isn’t their most successful release going by the stats, it hides quite a few gems, like “This Is Absolution”, “The Arms Of Sorrow” and “My Curse”, yet another Grammy nominee. Jones’s screaming and shrieking in those three gives way to clean vocal and guitar lines. The exact opposite of what we’d just seen and heard. Killswitch Engage closed their slightly-over-an-hour set with “The End Of Heartache” from the album of the same name and a soundtrack song for the film Resident Evil: Apocalypse, plus a cover of the first single “Holy Diver” by heavy metal band Dio.

If the five wowed Zagreb a few days before Nova Rock, when they warmed up the stage for the savages of Slipknot, it was no different this time. From the very first song they carried the crowd off Monster Magnet’s melancholic waves to the heights of heavy music, seasoned with Jones’s slightly raspy voice and distorted guitars, and kept it up there until the very end. Three cheers for Killswitch Engage!

CHICKENFOOT: 21.05 – 22.20
Chickenfoot is a project of four bored old tomcats and music veterans: singer Sammy Hagar and bassist Michael Anthony, who make up half of Van Hallen, plus guitar virtuoso Joe Satriani and Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith. Although this so-called supergroup started out more as a joke than a real thing, in record time it conquered the local and global music scene alike. The foursome crowned their success with a self-titled record, which saw the light of day at the start of this June.

The constant stares at the darkened stage, where only a slightly curved bright red microphone stand glowed, hinted that Chickenfoot were the most anticipated act of the Red Stage that day. The seconds ticked by slowly, and when the trio of Smith, Satriani and Anthony kicked off with the excellent instrumental intro to “Avenida Revolution”, the crowd lost it. A roaring applause and several decibels louder cheers, mostly from grey-haired music fans raised on the sounds of the legendary Van Hallen, then welcomed Hagar too, in red sunglasses and matching sneakers, obviously his trademark. Even though the gentleman is of a very mature age, he doesn’t show it for a second. Hyperactive and full of energy as he is, you’d catch him now at one end of the stage, now at the other, bouncing nonstop. In fun, feel-good hard rock rhythms the evening continued with “Soap On A Rope”, and in the whole crowd there wasn’t a single soul who didn’t shake their hips and butt. Naturally, with their music, complete with the obligatory Satriani solo bits, even the most uptight soul would loosen up. Especially for “Sexy Little Thing”, which the gallant Hagar dedicated to all the members of the gentler sex. Even though he’s the oldest member of the band, his voice serves him brilliantly despite the mileage. Even when it’s time to pull out the deepest “Oh Yeah”. But he’s not the only sharp one. Anthony, who celebrated his fifty-fifth birthday that day, keeps up with him brilliantly. Both in voice and in presence. After four punchy songs that follow each other in the same order as on the album came the mostly instrumental “Down The Drain”, during which the birthday boy showed off some of his bass tricks. And wowed. One of the most beautiful moments of their set was surely the ballad “Learning To Fall”. During it Hagar sat on the edge of the stage, put a zither-like electric instrument on his knees and sent the crowd up into the clouds. But the floating didn’t last long. The crowd of many thousands was brought back down to earth by “Get It Up”, where Hagar, in the chorus “Now get it up / Arriba, ‘riba / Oh, oh, oh / Get it up”, once again and more than successfully tested the range of his voice. Even though Satriani, with his guitar solos, has a huge lead over the other two members, Smith and Anthony, they get their “five minutes of fame” as well. If not at the start, then toward the end of the set, but better late than never. So during “Turnin` Left” Anthony’s black-and-white bass shone again, and Smith, as so many times before, took over during “Future In The Past”. Chickenfoot closed their excellent and extremely energetic set with “Bad Motor Scooter”, found on the self-titled debut album of Montrose, where Hagar started his music career.

In a good seventy minutes the merrymakers of Chickenfoot presented the vast majority of the songs from their debut and proved, years notwithstanding, that the gentlemen are still in great shape. Physical, instrumental and vocal. The chicken drumsticks served for dinner hit the spot more than ever.

IN EXTREMO: 22.50 – 00.20
The last act on the Red Stage that day was German band In Extremo, who took the crowd of many thousands, mostly German speakers, swimming into completely different waters. This seven-piece, whose members (all multi-instrumentalists) perform under stage names, could simply be called a tribe, combining in its music different musical styles (medieval traditional songs, rock and metal), instruments (classic rock and metal gear, bagpipes, harp, hurdy-gurdy, medieval and Renaissance wooden flutes …) and languages (Norwegian, Spanish, English, Old Swedish, Old French, Icelandic, Estonian, Hebrew, Gothic, Latin, Old High German and Middle High German). Besides a very strong musical influence, they clearly have an educational value too, since through their songs they keep so-called dead languages alive. The band, which at the very beginning performed separately as a medieval band and a rock band, came together in its current formation, a hybrid of both previous line-ups, in 1995, and their popularity has been growing steadily ever since. Especially on the soil of the Old Continent. Credit goes to the rich discography, which includes thirteen studio and “live” albums, one “The Best Of” release and three DVDs. And since such a rich crop of albums offers a wide choice of songs, it’s hard to decide which to play and which not. This time the attention went to the albums “Weckt die Toten!” (1998), “Verehrt Und Augespien” (1999), “Sünder Ohne Zügel” (2001), “7” (2003), “Mein Rasend Herz” (2005) and “Sängerkrieg” (2008). The other releases, especially the earlier ones, stayed untouched this time.

Despite a rich and productive fifteen-year history, In Extremo had their biggest commercial success with their latest studio album “Sängerkrieg”, released on MCA Record (under the Universal umbrella) last May. In a relatively short time, just three weeks after release, it landed at the very top of the German album chart, earning the flattering title of one of the most successful InEx records. So it was no surprise that Das letzte Einhorn (Michael Robert Rhein), Van Lange (Sebastian Oliver Lange), Die Lutter (Kay Lutter), Der Morgenstern (Reiner Morgenstern), Dr. Pymonte (André Strugala), Flex der Biegsame (Marco Ernst-Felix Zorzytzky) and Yellow Pfeiffer (Boris Pfeiffer) gave it the most attention. The songs? “Sieben Köche”, “Frei zu Sein”, “Sängerkrieg”, “Auf`s Leben”, “Flaschenpost”, “En Esta Noche” and “In Diesem Licht”. The madness? Guaranteed! And from all the other songs played too. The so-called folk metallers successfully wove in among those songs “Vollmond” (“Sünder Ohne Zügel”, 2001), which contains excerpts from songs by the 15th-century French poet Francois Villon; the one everybody knows, “Ave Mario” (“7”, 2003); and the songs “Poc Vecem”, “Spielmann” and “Rasend Herz” from the successful album “Mein Rasend Herz” (Island Records, 2005). The string of biggest hits was interrupted only by “Ai Vis Lo Lop” from the debut “Weckt die Toten!” (Vielklang Musikproduktion, 1998), during which the old, traditional and the new intertwine once again.

If in the first part of their set InEx focused mainly on the latest studio album, the second part went to somewhat older but just as well-known songs. So from “7”, which many consider their first more successful album, the gentlemen played “Erbeermund” and “Küss Mich”, bringing the party to a peak, backed up by pyrotechnics. They didn’t forget their second record “Verehrt und Angespien” from 1999 (Mercury Records) either, from which the crowd got to hear “Spielmannsfluch (The Gleeman`s Bane)” with verses by the 18th-century German poet Ludwig Uhland. “Omnia Sol Temperat”, with excerpts from Carmina Burana (“Sünder Ohne Zügel”, 2001), takes us even further back in history, to the turn of the 11th and 12th centuries. They also remembered “Villeman Og Magnhild” from the debut album, where the traditional and the modern interweave once again, and with that song they closed the night.

Nearly a full day of rain and mud, combined with the music of In Extremo and their pyrotechnics, spun the wheel of time back a few centuries, creating a real (barbaric) medieval atmosphere where the rules don’t apply and the booze flows in streams. Then there’s also the association with the nicer parts of the film Braveheart starring Mel Gibson, but let’s leave that for another time or place…

BLUE STAGE

NO HEAD ON MY SHOULDERS: 13.00 – 13.25
First that day to take the Blue Stage’s virginity were No Head On My Shoulders, a ten-piece local band doing everything it can to entertain with a mix of punk, rock, ska, disco, reggae, jazz, funk, Latin, Balkan and inferno. A bit of everything for yet another unoriginal musical cocktail. Even though the band hails from the home turf, only a handful of fans gathered in front of the stage, and those were probably friends and acquaintances who came to cheer on their budding compatriots. NHOMS released their debut “Caution Overload” at the end of 2006, from which the crowd got to hear “Pülp Fictiön”, “Evil Knevil”, “Coffee” and “Firebringer”. Since quite some time has passed since the debut came out, the lads and lady have been intensely preparing for the release and promotion of their second studio album in recent months, which they say should be technically and musically more accomplished. True, the band didn’t wow with what we saw and heard, but as they say: hope dies last. Let’s be surprised!

THE DURANGO RIOT: 13.45 – 14.15
The Durango Riot, a Swedish band of four fine young men who took the stage over from the local ska-punk merrymakers NHOMS, released their debut “Telemission” on Fuzzorama in the last quarter of 2007 and have successfully broken through to the wider music market since. Besides an excellent performance and an infectious sound, the modern grungers are conquering Europe thanks to playing with bigger names of the alternative scene, such as Germany’s Die Toten Hosen, Americans Social Distortion from California’s Orange County, and compatriots The Soundtrack Of Our Lives and Truckfighters, with whom we got the chance to see them in October 2007 at Ljubljana’s Menza pri koritu. Last month their debut record came out in Japan too, bringing them a slot at Tokyo’s Summer Sonic festival. From what I saw and heard, I’d say they wowed the Land of the Rising Sun just as they did at Nova Rock a good month earlier. Even though they had barely thirty minutes, the guys squeezed everything out of it. Despite the brand-new material (the song “Burn The House”), the foursome devoted themselves to their only record, from which the crowd got to hear their punchier and more successful songs. To name just a few: “No Need For Satisfaction”, “Man In The Machine”, “Future 2036”, “Dirty Needs” and “Drivers”. Fred (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Jake (lead guitar, backing vocals), Hakan (bass) and Eric (drums, percussion) know how to creep under your skin, like it or not, without being pushy, and anchor themselves deep in your heart with their music. Which is nothing to complain about … Just get a new record out already!

EXPATRIATE: 14.40 – 15.15
New-wave indie rockers from Down Under, Expatriate, are a fairly fresh invention of all-powerful music, hitting the scene in 2005 and soon after releasing two EPs, “Lovers le Strange” and “Play A Part EP”. Wider recognition came with the debut album “In The Midst Of This”, which came out in 2007 on “Dew Process” and landed on the official Australian ARIA Charts in its very first week. Among their achievements, Ben King (vocals, guitar), Chris “Christo” Kollias (drums), Damian Press (keyboards, guitar) and David Molland (bass) can count shows with big names of the music scene like Silverchair, Powderfinger, Editors, The Cops and Interpol. Of all these, their reputation will surely get a boost from the upcoming gigs with Placebo, when Expatriate will warm up the stage for the diva Brian Molko on the autumn, European leg of the “Battle For The Sun” world tour, dedicated to Placebo’s latest self-titled record, released at the start of summer. So this set was just a warm-up before the big finale. In a good half hour the foursome spent most of the time on their debut, from which the crowd, made up mostly of pretty teenage girls, got to hear “Crazy”, “Shooting Star”, “Are You Awake?”, “Blackbird” and “Gotta Get Home”. Their EPs weren’t overlooked either. “Aviation At Night” shone from the first EP, and “Heart Attack” from the second. The guys proved they’re not resting on their laurels with the song “Miracle Mile”, which will come out on their new, eagerly awaited studio record. Same as for The Durango Riot: the sooner, the better!

LACUNA COIL: 15.45 – 16.35
The roots of Italian sextet Lacuna Coil, who flirt with a sort of mix of gothic pop rock, go back to 1994, but they only really made themselves noticed with their second-to-last studio album “Karmacode” from 2006, when they broke onto Billboard’s top 200 at number twenty-eight. Their latest record “Shallow Life” did even better, and the band, made up of the two lead vocalists Cristina Scabbia and Andrea Ferro, guitarist Cristiano “Pizza” Migliore and Marco “Maus” Biazzi, bassist Marco Coti Zelati, and drummer and percussionist Cristiano “Criz” Mozzati, is proudest of it. Partly because it’s their most polished record: more refined, more intense and more focused on the essence. That’s proven by “I Won`t Tell You”, “Not Enough”, “I`m Not Afraid” and “Spellbound”, which you’ll find in a similar order on the album. Among the older songs, the ones that stood out most were those from the aforementioned “Karmacode”, which fell on fertile ground with the audience, as the crowd partied from the first song to the last. To name a few: “To The Edge”, “Fragments Of Faith”, “Fragile” and “Our Truth”. One of the band’s first notable successes came with “Heaven`s A Lie” from “Comalies”, released in October 2002 on Century Media. Their set was spiced up further by a cover of Depeche Mode’s “Enjoy The Silence” (album “Violator”, Mute, 1990), to which LC gave a somewhat harder sound. The song just about suits that makeover, but still … it doesn’t top the original. Despite the Italian band’s average performance, the Nova Rock crowd couldn’t resist (at times obnoxiously) infectious sounds of Lacuna Coil. So what’s the secret of their success?

DREDG: 17.05 – 18.00
One of the most anticipated bands of the day were definitely American alternative act Dredg, who rarely stray south of the German border. So the excitement when the foursome took the stage was all the bigger. The band, formed in 1993, has played in an unchanged line-up from the very start: Gavin Hayes (lead vocals, slide guitar, guitar), Drew Roulette (bass, synthesizer), Mark Engles (guitar) and Dino Campanella (drums, piano, organ). Besides music, the guys are passionate about art and psychology, which shows on all their albums. For instance, their debut “Leitmotif”, released in 1998, deals with a man struggling with his moral sickness, which sends him around the world looking for a cure in different cultures. Their second studio album “El Cielo” (Universal, 2002) is also a concept album, only more artistically inspired, as they drew influence while making it from the painting “Dream Caused by the Flight of a Bee around a Pomegranate a Second Before Awakening” by Spanish surrealist painter Salvador Dalí, as the song titles testify. Singer Hayes and bassist Roulette showed off their painterly streak on the third record “Catch Without Arms” (Interscope, 2005), creating fourteen illustrations collected in a collection of the same name. Like their debut, the latest studio album “The Pariah, The Parrot, The Delusion”, released at the start of this June on the independent label Ohlone Recordings, has no drawing flair, but instead leans on the essay “A Letter to the Six Billionth Citizen” by Salman Rushdie. As is more or less the custom, that record got the most attention at the festival, with most of their hits played from it, e.g. “Pariah”, “R U O K?”, “Ireland”, “Savior” and “Information”. But the party wasn’t dedicated only to Dredg’s latest product. “Same Ol` Road”, “Triangle” and “The Canyon Behind Her” from “El Cielo”, and “Ode To The Sun”, “Jamais Vu” and “Bug Eyes” from the album “Catch Without Arms”, rang in and out in the best tone as well. According to those in the know, the latter is Dredg’s best album, the one that brought the band recognition on a wider scale. The Nova Rock crowd would agree, partying in the deep mud just as the foursome told them to. Commendable!

STAIND: 18.30 – 19.35
Even though Staind, an American band from Springfield, Massachusetts, USA, released their latest studio album “The Illusion Of Progress” (Flip/Roadrunner) exactly a year ago, there hasn’t been much talk about them. At least not until the Nova Rock set, where they wowed young and old alike. And how could they not, since Aaron Lewis (lead vocals, rhythm and acoustic guitar), Mike Mushok (lead guitar), Johnny April (bass, backing vocals) and Jon Wysocki (drums), who’ve been on the scene in this same line-up since 1993, have released six full-length records, one compilation and no fewer than twenty-one singles. The band, with over fifteen million records sold, had its bigger success with the second studio album “Dysfunction” (Flip/Elektra, 1999), which soon after release became the hottest record in North America. Even though music critics’ reviews aren’t the most glowing, that full-length hides quite a few gems, which the Nova Rock crowd had the chance to hear live. Those are “Raw”, “Spleen” and “Mudshovel”. The latter came out under a slightly different name, “Mudshuvel”, already on their debut “Tormented” (self-released, 1996; this time Staind played no songs from that record), but it came to life better in a slightly different, re-recorded version. The biggest enthusiasm from the crowd of many thousands went to the songs from their third and first more successful studio record, “Break The Cycle” from 2001, released on the same label as its predecessor. The album, with which Staind enjoyed megalomaniacal success on a worldwide scale, debuted in the top ten of Billboard’s top 200, having sold almost three million copies in barely fifteen weeks from release. Lewis & Co. satisfied the crowd thirsty for good rock with three of the five singles released from that record, starting with “For You”, which with its harder sound is the most similar to the previous album “Dysfunction”. But that’s not the only “advantage” of this song. The band puts great emphasis on the lyrics too, which deal with (psychological) child abuse, which has lately proved to be a very pressing problem. The next most successful single from the record is “It`s Been A While”. This tense, self-confessional ballad (it’s about Lewis’s drug addiction, failed relationships, his father…) stayed at number one on the hottest-songs chart for a record sixteen weeks, but was beaten in 2007 by “The Pretender” by Foo Fighters. Interestingly, the video for that song was directed by Fred Durst, frontman of Limp Bizkit (who played day three of Nova Rock), who, when he saw the “controversial” cover of Staind’s demo album ahead of some joint show, was dead set against paying the band. But he soon changed his mind, as the charismatic Lewis completely won him over with his performance, so, Durst, never judge a book by its cover. The only song played from that album that wasn’t released as a single is “Pressure”, which doesn’t mean the crowd wasn’t happy about it. During their set the partying surely peaked with the ballad “Outside”, and if you looked toward the stage, behind which the setting sun glittered in gold-yellow-orange, you could see quite a few couples hugging. The rest, who weren’t cuddling and preferred to hug their own mugs of beer, sang along in unison with Lewis on acoustic guitar, so loud it could be heard far toward the other stage. That’s another song on which Durst contributed backing vocals, during the “family values” tour (“The Family Values Tour 1999”). Staind also devoted a good four minutes of attention with “Falling Down” to their fourth record “14 Shades Of Grey” (Flip/Elektra, 2003), with which they took less of a nu-metal and more of a mainstream path, which earned them the best position on Billboard’s top 200 for the second time. The muddy partying was also spiced up by songs from the fifth record with the simple title “Chapter 5” (Flip/Atlantic, 2005), yet another first-class Billboard entry. Even though the record in Europe didn’t come close to reaching as high a chart position as their previous albums, it went platinum in the US. A special place surely belongs to “Paper Jesus” (a direct attack on labels that idealize profit instead of quality music) and “King Of All Excuses”, which once more brought the already heated crowd to life. With their sixth studio record “The Illusion Of Progress” (2008), Staind also stayed loyal to their label Flip, under whose wing they’ve been since their debut. Although the summer festival tour was supposed to be dedicated to promoting that record, the gentlemen put a modest two tracks on the playlist, “This Is It” and “The Way I Am”. Even though they still smell very fresh, they had already anchored themselves well with the audience and were accompanied by loud singing of the chorus, during which a barely visible (satisfied) smile showed on Lewis’s face.

The charismatic frontman and his fellow “sufferers” strolled through all their more notable songs in a good sixty minutes and proved that, despite the lull that reigned on the scene for a while, they’re still living with full lungs. Keep it up!

CHRIS CORNELL: 20.05 – 21.15
Forty-five-year-old American singer, guitarist, lyricist and Grammy nominee Chris Cornell is an icon who’s been on the music scene since his tender years. It started with Soundgarden (1984 – 1997), flowed into a two-year solo career (1998 – 2001) and continued with Audioslave (2001 – 2007), after the legendary Zach de la Rocha left Rage Against The Machine. If the joy at their resurrection at the end of 2007 was indescribable, so was the sadness at the end of Audioslave’s six years. Cornell, hooked on music, then took up a solo career again, within which we witnessed his set on Nova Rock’s Blue Stage. Even though his discography from his solo period covers three studio albums, “Euphoria Morning” (Interscope, 1999), “Carry On” (Suretone/Interscope, 2007) and “Scream” (Mosley/Interscope/Universal, 2009), songs from both bands still turn up on his playlist. How could they not, since nearly all the albums Cornell released with his two former groups went multi-platinum. His solo albums fare quite differently, with critics’ reviews getting lower with each release. The song “Can`t Change Me” from his debut was nominated for the prestigious Grammy award in the “Best Male Rock Vocal Performance” category in 2000. From the second record the standout was “You Know My Name”, used as the theme song in the 2006 film James Bond: Casino Royale. If the first two albums had Cornell praised to the heavens, “Scream” was a landing on hard ground. The collaboration with Timbaland obviously didn’t bear the expected fruit, as the record lasted a measly ten weeks on Billboard’s top 200, and the cherry on top was the many negative reviews that literally tore the album apart. Sadly, his followers agree, claiming in unison that Cornell’s career was in full bloom with Soundgarden and Audioslave and that what he’s doing now is just milking it, for some hard-earned cash. So the crowd of many thousands that gathered under the Blue Stage on this lovely Saturday evening had all the more pleasure listening to Cornell when he played a few songs from the era of both bands. He revived memories of Soundgarden with “Outshited” from the album “Badmotorfinger” (1991) and “Black Hole Sun” and “Spoonman” from “Superunknown” (1994). Audioslave lived on with “Show Me How To Live” and “Cochise” from their self-titled debut album, released in 2002, and “Be Yourself” from the second record “Out Of Exile” (2005). With “Hunger Strike” he also gave attention to his “tribute to” band Temple Of The Dog, which was active between 1990 and 1992 and is dedicated to his friend Andrew Wood of Mother Love Bone. The heated atmosphere was spiced up further by a cover of “Good Times, Bad Times” by the legendary Led Zeppelin, found on their self-titled debut from 1969.

The gentleman, who boasts a voice with a four-octave range and mastery of “vocal belting” (pulling strong high notes out of the vocal cords), didn’t impress all that much with his festival set. The songs played, “Part Of Me”, “Enemy”, “Time”, “Scream” and “Watch Out” from his third record “Scream”, released in March, are just a pale mist somewhere far on the horizon next to the much bigger Soundgarden and Audioslave hits listed a moment ago. Maybe it’s time for Cornell to lay himself down to rest for a while and so hope for new, fresh ideas for his next project. Whatever it may be.

KAISER CHIEFS: 21.45 – 23.00
If 1997 marks the end of Soundgarden, then on the other side of the world, in Leeds, the English indie rock band Kaiser Chiefs came into being. The five-piece, whose founding and current members are Ricky Wilson (lead vocals, percussion), Andrew “Whitey” White (guitar, backing vocals), Simon Rix (bass, backing vocals), Nick “Peanut” Baines (keyboards, percussion) and Nick Hodgson (drums, backing vocals), took its name from a North African football club that Lucas Radebe, now the defender of the English side Leeds, once kicked a ball for. Even though the band formed that year, it only released its debut record “Employment” in March 2005 on B-Unique Records. The wait obviously paid off, as the debut, inspired by Britpop, new-wave movements and seventies punk rock, was still sitting just below the top of the UK albums chart a year later, partly thanks to the Brit Awards at the time. Their second full-length “Yours Truly, Angry Mob”, which, like its predecessor, was produced by Stephen Street, did even better. The album, home to the monster hit “Ruby”, is still their only top-ranked record on the UK albums chart. Although the band expected a lot from their third record “Off With Their Heads” (B-Unique, 2008), it’s nowhere near as successful as the previous ones. Maybe it lacks Street’s precision, since this time the producer’s baton was waved by all-round artist Mark Ronson and Eliot James (Bloc Party, The White Rose Movement, The Rakes…). Or maybe … Eh, let’s skip the guesswork. The fact is that Kaiser Chiefs enchant above all with their LIVE shows, where their energy and excellent communication with the audience come through, for which the charismatic, red-haired Wilson is largely to thank.

In a little over an hour, the time they had before leaving the stage to Placebo, Kaiser Chiefs chirped through all their more notable songs from all three albums and won over the crowd of many thousands. Despite the not-so-pleasant weather (cold and wind), the atmosphere was heated and the crowd, after a whole day, ready to party. The multi-platinum, Mercury-nominated debut “Employment” brings together “Every Day I Love You Less And Less”, “I Predict A Riot” and “Oh My God”, with which Wilson and company joined the performers at the G8’s Live 8 charity concerts. Besides those, “Modern Way” and “You Can`t Have It All”, one of the slower KC songs, are worth a mention. Be that as it may, the loudest applause and wave of approval went to the songs from the second record “Yours Truly, Angry Mob”, where “Ruby” stood out most, becoming one of the highlights of the night. “The Angry Mob”, “Love`s Not A Competition (But I`m Winning)” and “Everything Is Average Nowdays” added their share. The band, which in July opened the stage at Croke Park in Dublin for the legendary Irishmen U2, wove the whole playlist together with “Never Miss A Beat”, “Good Days Bad Days” and “Spanish Metal” from the third record “Off With Their Heads”. The five simply know exactly which strings to pull to work an audience. And the result? Every show of theirs is better than the last.

PLACEBO: 23.30 – 01.30
The big finale of the day went to London alternative rockers Placebo, founded in 1994 by the diva, vocalist and guitarist Brian Molko and bassist Stefan Olsdal. Over the years the band has gone through three drummers, the longest-serving being Steve Hewitt, a member from mid-1996 until October 2007, when he was succeeded by Steve Forrest. Forrest already played on their latest record, “Battle For The Sun” (Pias), released at the start of June, to which the trio, with a touring line-up made up of Bill Lloyd (bass, keyboards), Fiona Brice (electric violin, keyboards, theremin, percussion, backing vocals) and Nick Gavrilovic (keyboards, guitar, backing vocals), devoted half of their set.

The Battle for the Sun was kicked off by the first four songs, played in the same order as on the record, whose sound was crafted by producer David Bottrill, known for working with Muse, Tool, Silverchair, dEUS and Remy Zero. Starting with the horribly catchy “Kitty Litter”, the party flowed into “Ashtray Heart”, a song named after the band’s original name, before they renamed themselves Placebo. That the songs from the latest record fell on fertile ground is proven by the most acclaimed track, “Battle For The Sun”, which once again serves up a singalong in the chorus. Although Molko’s babbling seems slightly nonsensical here, it’s yet another earworm. The first official single from the album is “For What It`s Worth”, which was the first of the four songs played to get the countless crowd jumping. They were brought back down once again by “Black-Eyed” from the third studio record “Black Market Music” (Virgin, 2000), which is about a person with a difficult childhood and a lag in normal human development. The verse “I`m forever black-eyed / A product of a broken home” is especially telling, and it put a slightly dark mood on the crowd. Similar continuation came with “Speak In Tongues”, Molko’s favorite song from the latest album, and “Follow The Cops Back Home” from the fifth record “Meds”. The gloomy mood was then lifted by their evergreen hit “Every You Every Me” from the second record “Without You I`m Nothing”, which brought the band its breakthrough on the American music market. Although there are quite a few notable songs gathered on that album, such as “Pure Morning”, “You Don`t Care About Us” or maybe the title track, that one was the only song the trio put on the “play” list from it. For the first time that night, attention went to their fourth, conceptual (the record’s theme is relationships) full-length album “Sleeping With Ghosts”, with the title track and the song “Special Needs”, with which the band stirs up the crowd again. That’s followed by the (newest) punchier “The Never Ending Why”, which practically invites you to dance and sing along. Of course the audience couldn’t resist its magic powers and followed it as if spellbound. Placebo didn’t forget their self-titled debut from 1996, on which their first drummer Robert Schultzberg played, and revived it for a good six minutes with “Bionic”, a staple of their shows until 2005. Molko and company then touch on “Meds” again, with the title track, which lifts the crowd up into the clouds once more. “Battle For The Sun” sounds one last time that night with the ballad “Come Undone”, during which Olsdal demonstrates his bass tricks. The return to “Black Market Music” was marked by “Special K”, another song with ambiguous lyrics. Which one suits you more, judge for yourself, or head to one of their shows, as this song is almost obligatory to hear live. Placebo then said goodbye with “Song To Say Goodbye” for a few minutes, and you can only guess what followed. Loud whistles and shouts of the unmistakable “We want more”.

After a break of a few minutes Molko, Olsdal and Forrest came back on stage and marked the return with the monster hits “Infra-Red” from “Meds” and “The Bitter End” from the album “Sleeping With Ghosts”. I don’t know whether what followed was necessary or not, but the gentlemen disappeared backstage again, reappeared after barely a minute, and brought their set to an end with “Taste In Men” (“Black Market Music”), during which the crowd happily partied one last time that night. Thanks, Placebo, for a perfect end to a not-so-perfect day.

The madness, as is customary at Nova Rock, moved to the “party” tent after the concerts ended and lasted there until the early hours of the morning. For some, rest followed, since the third festival day also served up an exciting line-up of performers.

Photos: official Nova Rock festival photos and Lea Lesar

Setlist

RED STAGE: CENTAO EISBRECHER ATROCITY DIR EN GREY ALL THAT REMAINS MONSTER MAGNET KILLSWITCH ENGAGE CHICKENFOOT IN EXTREMO BLUE STAGE: NO HEAD ON MY SHOULDERS THE DURANGO RIOT EXPATRIATE LACUNA COIL DREDG STAIND CHRIS CORNELL KAISER CHIEFS PLACEBO Setlists: EISBRECHER: 1. Kann denn Liebe Sünde sein? 2. Angst? 3. Antikörper 4. Phosphor 5. This Is Deutsch 6. Miststück (Megaherz cover) DIR EN GREY: 1. Sa Bir 2. Obscure 3. Merciless Cult 4. Grief 5. Dozing Green 6. Vinushka 7. Vocal Solo 8. The Final 9. Gaika, Chinmoku Ga Nemuru Koro 10. Reiketsu Nariseba 11. Saku 12. Agitated Screams Of Maggots ALL THAT REMAINS: 1. Not Alone 2. We Stand 3. Become The Catalyst 4. Six 5. The Weak Willed 6. Two Weeks 7. Before The Damned 8. Forever In Your Hands 9. Chiron 10. Undone 11. The Air That I Breath 12. This Calling KILLSWITCH ENGAGE: 1. A Bid Farewell 2. When Darkness Falls 3. Fixation On The Darkness 4. Still Beats Your Name 5. Take This Oath 6. Life To Lifeless 7. Starting Over 8. Rose Of Sharyn 9. This Is Absolution 10. The Arms Of Sorrow 11. My Last Serenade 12. My Curse 13. The End Of Heartache 14. Holy Diver (Dio Cover) CHICKENFOOT: 1. Avenida Revolution 2. Soap On A Rope 3. Sexy Little Thing 4. Oh Yeah 5. Down The Drain 6. Learning To Fall 7. Get It Up 8. Turnin’ Left 9. Future In The Past 10. Bad Motor Scooter IN EXTREMO: 1. Sieben Köche 2. Frei zu Sein 3. Vollmond 4. Sängerkrieg 5. Ave Maria 6. Auf’s Leben 7. Poc Vecem 8. Spielmann 9. Flaschenpost 10. En Esta Noche 11. Ai Vis Lo Lop 12. In Diesem Licht 13. Erbeermund 14. Rasend Herz 15. Küss Mich 16. Spielmannsfluch (The Gleeman`s Bane) 17. Omnia Sol Temperat 18. Villeman Og Magnhild LACUNA COIL: 1. To The Edge 2. Fragments Of Faith 3. I Won’t Tell You 4. Not Enough 5. Fragile 6. Heaven’s A Lie 7. Enjoy The Silence 8. I’m Not Afraid 9. Spellbound 10. Our Truth DREDG: 1. Pariah 2. Same Ol’ Road 3. Ode To The Sun 4. R U O K? 5. Ireland 6. Jamais Vu 7. Triangle 8. Savior 9. Information 10. Bug Eyes 11. The Canyon Behind Her STAIND: 1. This Is It 2. Raw 3. Falling Down 4. Paper Jesus 5. For You 6. The Way I Am 7. It`s Been A While 8. King Of All Excuses 9. Pressure 10. Spleen 11. Outside 12. Mudshovel PLACEBO: 1. Kitty Litter 2. Ashtray Heart 3. Battle For The Sun 4. For What It’s Worth 5. Black-Eyed 6. Speak In Tongues 7. Follow The Cops Back Home 8. Every You And Every Me 9. Sleeping With Ghosts 10. Special Needs 11. The Never Ending Why 12. Bionic 13. Meds 14. Come Undone 15. Special K 16. Song To Say Goodbye —– encore —– 17. Infra-Red 18. The Bitter End —– encore —– 19. Taste In Men

Photo Gallery