TAZZY T'S MONTH IN METAL- JUNE 2004

Summer kicked off in fine style with the Rory Gallagher fest in Ballyshannon. I attended but quickly came to the conclusion that you really have to be a hardcore Gallagher fan to enjoy such an event - there's only so many times you can listen to 'Shadowplay' before you go round the twist. Nevertheless Derry band, Cradle Rock, put on a couple of good shows at venues around the town. If you're going next year, prepare for little sleep - the campsite of less than 100 individuals was one of the noisiest I've ever been on.

At the other end of the musical spectrum, Deicide did themselves no favours the following week. The satanic foursome pulled out of the European tour moments after arriving in London. Apparently the air-conditionning on the bus wasn't up to scratch. You'd think that the self-proclaimed reincarnates of the Roman soldiers that nailed Christ to the cross wouldn't mind about that too much - being from hell and all! There was outcry in the general metal community as they were booked to play Dublin the next night. As Jed from the Derry Journal once said about Angel of Death's infamous gig at the Brooke Park CND rally: 'Their chances of a return invite next year isn't likely.'

I hear there's a crowd going over to quite literally 'egg' them on at Wacken later this year - that's if they turn up!

Nikki Sixx's Brides of Destruction cancelled the same night but all was not lost when local Dublin rockers Gambit and Co. Derry noisemerchants, Madra, took the place of Deicide at the Temple Bar Music Centre at short notice. Fair play to them! Although the majority of the crowd destined for Deicide opted to stay in Bruxelles for the setlist from guest DJ, Alan, of Primordial fame.

The undoubted event of the month had to be the Graspop festival in Dessel, Belgium. Extended to three days from the usual two, the line up was certainly the strongest of the year, if not the decade. Rock heavyweights, Saxon, Judas Priest and Motorhead lined up head-to-head with thrash legends Death Angel back on tour for the first tme in 14 years and a revitalised Exodus with a stonking new album. Also on the bill were felllow bay area thrashers, Testament and New York former rapmetallers, now hard rockers, Anthrax - not to mention a strong death/black metal line up featuring Morbid Angel, Cradle of Filth and Dimmu Borgir among others. The stage was set for a truly epic festival.

It would be physically impossible for your humble reporter to review all 50 or so bands that played over the three days, so I'll just lay out the high and lowlights of the weekend.

Fri 25th Jun
Although overall I'd say the whole event was well organised, it was badly signposted for those who came by car. As a result, I arrived late on the campsite and had to walk what seemed like an eternity to find a place for tent. It was then another couple of km to the festival site, so I got in just in time to catch the dying strains of Hypocrisy before Iced Earth.

Iced Earth have a huge following in Europe and it's easy to see why with their own brand of thrashy Maiden mayhem, but it all becomes a little samey after a while, especially in Marquee One, which had the poorest sound of all three stages. Singer, Ripper Owens, fresh from his stint for filling in for Halford in the Priest camp is an astonishing singer, although his constant high-end vibrato screams became tiring after a while. It didn't help that they seemed to play for an eternity. And what was that cannon on stage for - one of AC/DC's old stage props, perhaps?
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The band that everyone was waiting for on this particular evening was Exodus. Back on form with a shit-hot new album, an expectant crowd had already built up at Marquee Two by midnight for their headlining appearance at 1.30am. However, those who had got in early to claim their space at the front were thwarted when a errant flying beer (one of the first lessons any young aspiring thrasher should learn is that beer's for drinking, not throwing - OK!) hit the mixing desk while the band were soundchecking, frazzling it and, very nearly frying the band in the process.
As a result, the Exodus setlist had to be delayed while their equipment was wheeled round to the other end of the festival ground to Marquee One.

The wait was worthwhile though. We were treated to easily one of the best shows of the entire festival. It was a truly wonderful sight to see the old hands of Holt and Hunolt still showing as much enthusiasm as they ever had for the genre of music they helped create.

Steve Souza in particular was on top form having inherited the mantel from his late great predecessor, Paul Baloff, who, no doubt, was smiling down on such an energetic, full-on metal performance.

It was also excellent to witness that this was the first of several old bands that weren't relying on past glories to deliver the goods. Opening with 'Star Spangled Banner' from new album 'Tempo of the Damned', Exodus cleverly intermingled old with new, as they steamrollered through 'Blacklist', 'Pleasures of the Flesh', 'Toxic Waltz', 'Forward March', 'Shroud of Urine' and 'War is my Shepherd' - undoubtedly the stand-out track of the evening. Steve Souza sounded ferocious as he howled 'War!' again and again into the cold Belgian night like a satanic Bon Scott.

It was a pity that, due to the earlier mishap, there was no time for 'Bonded By Blood', but 'Strike of the Beast' rounded things off in thrashtastic style sometime before 3.30am. We walked home cold, tired, yet happy through an eerie metal mist that had come down during their set.
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Sat 26th Jun
We woke to a gorgeous summer morning on the Saturday. But there was no time for sunbathing and barely time for a beer. The first band, Evergrey, kicked off at 11am. They were alright, as it goes - very American, combining elements of grunge and nu-metal with touches of stadium rock á la Staind. Don't be surprised to see them on MTV sometime in the future.
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The first band really worth seeing was Brides of Destruction. Nikki Sixx's new band were a very pleasant surprise. Heavier than anticipated, they came across like bass-heavy Motley Crue with a hint of Machine Head creeping in now and again. Closing Motley Crue number 'Looks that Kill' brought the memories flooding back.
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It was time for a beerbreak as a number of strange European bands with even stranger names like OOMPH, Scarve and Playmo came and went unmemorably. All seemed intent on plagiarising more well known bands such as Slipknot (who, incidentally, were due to play themselves later that evening) or outdoing each other in the 'we're the weirdest band here' competition.

Our next 'big' band took to the stage at 3pm. The intro tape was loud, clear and unmistakeable as Geoff Tate led the lads from Queensryche through the greater part of the sublime 'Operation Mindcrime' album. There had been some trepidation that they would start playing stuff off the newer 'Tribe' opus - but, no, thankfully the band concentrated on the oldies - 'Revolution Calling' particularly standing out.
They were joined by Pamela Moore (replete in ghostly white robes) on 'Operation Mindcrime', 'Speak', 'The Mission' and 'Suite Sister Mary'. Incidentally, Ms Moore is currently working with Brian Johnson of AC/DC fame on a surreptitious side-project. It will be interesting to see what comes of that.

During their set the sound simply got better and better - I got the impression that the sound professionals were putting the PA through its paces for the bands that were to follow. All in all, this was a classy show by seasoned professionals and, for me, the stand-out performance of Saturday's entertainment. Expect forthcoming DVD 'The Art of Live' to confirm their standing as one of today's great live acts.
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By now I was feeling a little the worse for wear and opted to take my afternoon siesta (hey, I'm not as young as I used to be!) This meant missing Morbid Angel, Soulfly and Anthrax, who I hear all put on good shows. But, if I was going to be in any shape to report back on what was set to be a full day of great bands on the following day, I needed to pace myself.

I arrived back in time for Motorhead. What can you say about Motorhead that hasn't been said before? Lemmy and the boys cranked out all the old classics and were solid as a rock, if a little quiet. Once you've seen one Motorhead show, you've seen them all. Good dependable rock'n'roll from the grand old grandpappy of metal himself.
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Cradle of Filth put on a good show in Marquee One. Their atmospheric hammer horror metal was ideally suited to the dark, cavernous acoustics in the tent and the sound seemed much better than the bands that had preceded them. Cradle of Filth really are the pop band of Black Metal and a lot of the stuff they played was very familiar - even to those not au fait with their material. Dani Filth's voice, coupled with that of Sarah Jezebel Deva was certainly unnerving on tracks such as 'Dusk and her Embrace' and 'From the Cradle to Enslave'. And the keyboards seemed to ooze evil cutting though the red and green tinged darkness in swathes of malevolence.
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Alice Cooper finished off Saturday night with all the theatre you'd expect of the great man. I'd seen him once before on the 'Raise Your Fist and Yell' tour and thoroughly enjoyed it, but tonight like so many other bands, it was to be a 'Best of…' set, that started way back in the 60s and seemed to work its way up through the decades. Fair enough, if you're a massive Alice Cooper fan but the old stuff doesn't stand the test of time in a field full of metalheads. Even classic tracks such as 'School's Out', 'No More Mr Nice Guy' and 'Welcome to my Nightmare' seemed hackneyed and wearing the worst for age.
'Only Women Bleed' came across marginally better but it wasn't until later tracks such as his big number one 'Poison' that the crowd really warmed to the show. 'Hey Stoopid' and 'Feed My Frankenstein' took the energy up another level. It really has to be said that if it hadn't been for Cooper's 'metal' albums of later years, then it's doubtful whether he would have survived the 90s living on past glories, nevermind the noughties. Still, there's enough going onstage with his blow up doll to keep us interested until crashing out time back at the campsite.
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Sun 27th Jun
We wake to another glorious day after a little early morning rain. Sunday was recognised as 'the big day'. Bascially, from 11am until midnight, the line up was chock full of quality bands.

First up was Destruction who cranked the PA up and tested to its full extremes. The old boys of teutonic thrash showed that they'd lost none of their zeal for metal over the years as they bombed through a set sprinkled with classics such as 'Thrash 'til Death' and 'Bestial Invasion' and, like so many of the old bands at the festival, showed their new material was just as powerful. 'Metal Discharge' and 'The Butcher Strikes Back' showing the way for the new wave of thrash. It's extremely rare at a festival to get a show of metal so powerful so early on in the day.
Even when there's a problem with a guitar, Schmier proclaims his love for metal to the 30,000 strong crowd before urging the drummer to fill the gap with a drum solo, then just as quickly tells him to 'shut the fuck up so we can get on with the metal'. Ripping stuff.
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There was little respite before Testament took to the very same stage to batter us into submission with yet another set of classic thrash ditties. The PA warmed up by Destruction was now at full tilt as Chuck Billy looking and sounding stronger than ever, even after his battle with cancer, led his troops through a catalogue of classics. 'Over The Wall', 'Low', 'True Believers', 'Electric Crown', 'Into the Pit': the hits kept coming strong and fast and the sound simply got better and better. It was clear that the entire band were loving it too. It's such a pity their planned gigs for Ireland this summer were cancelled. Let's hope they can make it up to us sometime soon. On this showing, Testament clearly proved themselves to be one of the great live acts of our time.
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There wasn't even time for a beer as the audience stampeded like a herd of wildebeest over to Marquee One for the return of Death Angel, back after 14 years in the wilderness. Again, the first song came from the latest opus Art of Dying. 'Thown to the Wolves' - a thrash classic in every repect.
The energy coming off the stage was tangible as an effervesent, revitalised Death Angel hopped, bounced and cavorted through a mixed set of new and old like rabid kangaroos. Mark Oseguada's dreadlocks lashed the stage and the security beneath the stage, as the spirit and vibe intensified though 'Endless Time', 'Bored', 'Mistress of Pain' and 'Thicker Than Blood'.
Something had to give. And it did during the finale of the cataclysmic 'Kill As One'. Bass plsyer, Denis Pepa, stops playing, looks dementedly at the assembed masses, removes his mic from his stand, swings it round like a Scottish hammerthrower and lets fly into the crowd. A roadie comes on to attempt to rescue the situation but it's too late, as he retreats the microphone stand follows suit, then much to the surprise of the rest of the band, his bass guitar goes flying too, scything a good 30 feet into the audience. Quite literally stunning! The band will be arriving in Dublin mid-month. Don't miss it.
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After such a performance, we need a rest and Saxon is happy to oblige. Theirs is a very lacklustre show indeed. Biff seems intent on complaining about the fact Saxon didn't get a later start. They wheel out (excuse the pun) all the old faves like 'Motorcycle Man', 'Wheels of Steel' and 'Ride Like the Wind', but it was all very ploddy and tired compared to the savage assault of what came earlier.
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Unfortunately the weekend was taking its toll so I opted to take my siesta during Fear Factory. Apparently I missed a great show. I also slept in for Anthrax, only making it back in time for Life of Agony's reunion with Keith Caputo.

I'd simply forgotten how good this band is. Life Of Agony is one of those bands that on paper shouldn't really work together: a combination of hardcore, metal, teenage angst and crooning. And they certainly didn't work with Whitfield Crane (ex-Ugly Kid Joe) when Caputo went off on a sabbatical to record an acoustic album. Back together as a band today they're untouchable. From the hardcore epics of 'River Runs Red' through the thoughtful metallic dirges of 'Ugly' to the songwriting excellence of 'Weeds' from 'Soul Searching Sun', every song has genius stamped all over it, as much due to the quirkiness of Caputo as to the hardcore combo behind him.

When they play a track from the new album, you just know that their next step will be the one that help them achieve the success they just missed out on when the band collapsed with the loss of Caputo after 'Soul Searching Sun'.

In an act of huge self-parody, Caputo weaves and pirouttes round the stage looking like a tramp and acting like a ballerina, while the sound underpinning his antics is absolutely massive. The rest of the band look like its all second nature; like it's all so easy, but staring at the faces around me, I can see that a lot of people are lost in thought, mesmerised by Caputo and stunned into silence by the enormity of the sound, perhaps wondering where on earth they put their last LOA CD.

The pivotal point comes when Caputo dedicates 'Let's Pretend' to his mother and father who he tells us 'are up there somewhere behind that moon', pointing to a huge, round moon sitting in a still blue sky seemingly staring on at the proceedings below.

If the new material is anything to go by, 2005 will be the year that LOA went mainstream. The only reason I'm not giving them the full 5Ts is because of Caputo's insistence of changing the melodies and lyrics as he felt fit - detracting, as it did, from the overall performance. The man is definitely 23 cans short of a crate of Steiger, but when you've got this much talent, who cares!
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Dimmu Borgir (TTT) tore up Marquee One with their Norwegian Black metal while I watched recharging my phone free of charge at one of leads dangling from the canopy there for the purpose. An excellent idea - other festivals take note.

Soon it's time for headliners Judas Priest, who get the full lights and stage but not the sound, it would seem. Although it sounds crystal clear, it's not nearly as loud as expected when 'The Hellion' intro kicks in. Halford enigmatically joins the band from the top of one of the ramps on 'Electric Eye' and we half expect the sound to jump with his entrance. But it doesn't, and 'Turbo', 'Changes', 'The Ripper' and 'The Green Manalishi' seem as if they'd all sound just as good on the stereo at home as here. Halford is on form though, stomping round the stage like some sort of studded automaton during 'Metal Gods', changing his outfits more often than Madonna and bringing the bike, leather and studs on for 'Living after Midnight'. It's a quality show; it's just missing that X factor you expect from a legendary act such as Priest.

Rob stalks the stage like the consumate professional and delivers all the screams impeccably; his performance on 'Beyond the Realms of Death' is particularly moving, but this is not the finale we were expecting and people are heading towards the exit before the mighty Priest have finished.
I understand that they lived up to their reputation at the Italian 'Gods of Metal', so perhaps this was just an 'off' night.
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All in all, the Graspop festival was a great success. Contrary to what I'd heard, it was very well organised. At 90 yoyos, it might've been the most expensive festival in Europe (the others coming in around the 50/60 mark) but that's for 3 days camping, your ticket in and parking. Oxegen in Punchestown is considerably more and I don't think anyone will be seeing change out of a fiver for a pint.

Food and drink were fairly priced, with the exception of water, which, strangely enough, was the same price as beer. Beer waiting time was reduced considerably however by the European tradition of changing your hard cash into 'Bonnen' - vouchers that negated the need for change. Additional facilities like a tent where you could recharge your phone free of charge and the Freshmatic where girls would attend to your every cosmetic need by applying sun cream, deodorant, cleanser or even brushing your hair were nice little touches. More importantly, the toilets were the best of any festival I've been to. At one urgent moment, I was directed by a steward to a WC he'd just cleaned - now that's what I call customer service!

Compared to other festivals, this was certainly one of the best I've attended. The Wacken Open Air might be a bigger festival, but as lineups go, it'll be a long time before we see one of this strength again.