Hard to believe, but in a stretch from 2000 to this past July 30 to August 1, I’ve made an annual pilgrimage to Mecca (aka Wacken Open Air) in the northern corner of Germany. 120 mph/200 km cab rides, liters of beer, meters of meat and heavy metal galore, all part of the Wacken experience. Or it can be, as the details are as numerous as its attendees (77,000 this year, including all bands, employees, etc.), travelling from literally all corners of the globe for three official days (although many campers are there longer and this year bought up all the best t-shirts even before the grounds opened!) of mud, metal and mayhem of a good natured, non-violent variety.

It’s rare that Iommi and Dio are on the undercard, but Thursday, July 30th the vast majority of a crowd approximating 50,000 gathered to see RUNNING WILD, an act that only ever played a handful of dates in North America, and that was almost 30 years ago, at the beginning of their career. This was to be the well-publicized swan-song for the pirate obsessed Germans, Rock n Rolf Kasparek (guitar/vocals) having since thrown his lot in with the glam obsessed Toxic Shock. His short crop of brightly dyed red hair could be seen beneath the kerchief covering his head, also sporting a frilly shirt and a single gold earring dangling from his left lobe. Following a couple of actors portraying captured sailors and an old, toothless crone, the band took the stage to ‘Port Royal’, quickly followed by ‘Bad To The Bone’. Given this was a finale, the set list was an odd, mostly lifeless assortment of oldies, with no apparent over-the-top antics (apart from some camera tricks simulcast on the twin Jumbo-trons), nor much banter (albeit solely in Deutsch anyway), which would that might have made the proposed DVD more exciting. ‘Riding The Storm’ soon proved prophetic, as the gathering clouds soon unleashed a quick torrent of rain, cooling an already breezy evening to the point of seeing one’s breath! ‘Black Hand Inn’, some flash bangs and flames in ‘Battle Of Waterloo’, ‘Purgatory’, ‘Tortuga Bay’ and ‘Raise Your Fist’ (which ended the proper set) were sprinkled around a confusing mid-section that included a drum solo, ‘Raging Fire’, ‘The Brotherhood’, ‘Draw The Line’ and ‘Whirlwind’, in succession! Thankfully, the early satanic albums weren’t forgotten, in the form of ‘Branded & Exiled’ and ‘Prisoner Of Our Time’, while the encore of ‘Conquistadors’ and ‘Under Jolly Roger’ sent most away in an improved (but “Oh, what it could have been”) mood.

(Coincidentally) the heavens had opened up just prior to HEAVEN & HELL, but the well-kept Wacken grounds soaked up the muddy soup as the entire crowd watched in awe as BLACK SABBATH 2009 launched into some of the finest metal moments known to man! Messrs Dio, Iommi, Butler and Appice were bang-on tonight, kicking off with the obligatory instrumental, 'E5150' before 'The Mob Rules'' fist-pumping riot began. The glorious 'Children Of The Sea' was prophetic as Dio welcomed the sea of people into the band's lair of darkness and down-tuned genius, thousands of voices following the piper at the gates of dawn. Dehumanizer-era Sabbath was touched on by the likes of 'I' (a little too early in the set) and 'Time Machine' (complete with bland drum solo from Appice) - an album that kinda pales in comparison to Mob Rules and Heaven And Hell. The newer Devil You Know material - 'Bible Black', 'Fear' and 'Follow The Tears' - were greeted politely by the crowd, but you easily sense that the wealth of deep Dio catalog was on the minds of the masses. So when the mellow tones of 'Die Young' appeared, every eye was on Iommi as his textured leads mesmerized Wacken city until the veritable eruption of Butler and Appice pulsated wildly. More tasteful Iommi noodling led into 'Heaven And Hell' (the song) being the ultimate anthem for this crowd, both young and old, gripping us tightly as Dio's towering voice saw the wee icon atop metal mountain. Encores included the brief intro of the rarely performed 'Country Girl' (an odd, but well-received choice) and the grand finale, 'Neon Knights'.

As Metal Tim so accurately noticed, for a festival christened with Black and True Metal stages, there was a decidedly lack of black/death acts to be found, particularly under late evening or darkened skies. Certainly none of the genres’ biggest names were on tap. The few that there were present were generally relegated to the smaller “Party” stage (including ENSLAVED, NAPALM DEATH, BORKNAGAR), although VREID, ENDSTILLE, EINHERJER and CATHEDRAL were the initial pair on the big Black stage Friday and Saturday (respectively). Speaking of start times, over the years organizers have pushed back each successive morning. No longer do the two main days begin at 10AM and the Saturday’s finale doesn’t kick off before noon. Wise. Newer, crossover appeal artists continue to gain a foothold at Wacken, like COHEED & CAMBRIA, VOLBEAT, BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE, WALLS OF JERICHO and matching outfitted HEAVEN SHALL BURN. The later trio all had the opportunity to play the enormous “Black” (?) stage.

The first “must see” band of Day 2 was GAMMA RAY. Kai Hansen’s troupe had nothing to promote, thus it was a hits package, although bits and pieces of his current and past (HELLOWEEN) were often interchanged at a moments notice. For instance, riffs from ‘Gorgor’ and the initial few bars of ‘Future World’ were tagged onto ‘I Want Out’. ‘Ride The Sky’ was book-ended around the opening ‘Heavy Metal Universe’ and reprise. ‘Rebellion In Dreamland’ showed up in abbreviated form, but we also got full versions of ‘New World Order’, ‘Heaven Can Wait’ and the ‘Send Me A Sign’ encore. Most enticing was a newbie, a mid-tempo stomper ‘(Hail) To The Metal’ planned for the forthcoming album! Sounds good.

The moody TRISTANIA could muster just six songs in an hour (including ‘World Of Glass’, ‘Mercyside’ and the title cut to what is still their best performance “Beyond The Veil’), male vocals being handled by ex-GREEN CARNATION/TRAIL OF TEARS frontman Kjetil Nordhus (substituting for Osten Bergoy who is awaiting the birth of twins). Just enough time to cross the grassy infield to catch the long absent NEVERMORE. Playing as a single guitar foursome didn’t appear to hurt the sound, Warrel Dane in a Behemoth all-over print t-shirt, Aardshok baseball cap (what happened to those BW&BK; headgear we gave you?) and a pair of black, fingerless gloves. Sun-tanned guitarist Jeff Loomis backed on vocals. ‘Dead Heart In A Dead World’ began a cappella, followed by ‘Enemies Of Reality’, ‘The Heart Collector’ and ‘Narcosynthesis’. ‘Inside Four Walls’ and ‘I Voyager’ led up to the concluding ‘Born’, where Dane spun in circles, on the ball of his foot. Undoubtedly you’ve already read Jim Sheppard’s comments about the reinvigoration of playing live and getting ready for the studio (see here) so get The Obsidian Conspiracy done guys!

Stuck my head inside the W.E.T. tent long enough to catch some of reunited Jersey thrashers WHIPLASH. Tony Portaro (guitar/vocals), he of the five-pronged beard, wore a white cowboy hat for ‘Last Man Alive’ and ‘Warmonger’. The trio gave fans, many of whom weren’t even born when Power And Pain was originally issued (’85), including ‘Stagedive’ and ‘Nailed To The Cross’. Given the confines, a hellish circle pit broke out during ‘Power Thrashing Death’. Sadly, an enormous show like Wacken keep you on your toes, often catching only bits and pieces of various performances, especially when trying to document them, either visually or with text. Same was true of DIMMU BORGIR guitarist Silenoz’s as yet unsigned offshoot, INSIDIOUS DISEASE. The omnipresent mushroom haired bassist Shane Embury (NAPALM DEATH and scores of others) thrashing madly.

DRAGONFORCE and AIRBOURNE prefaced HAMMERFALL on the main stage, mainman Oscar Dronjak now with blonde tresses (and black stubble!), thin as a rail in red leather pants. Joacim Cans wore black nail polish and eyeliner, apparently tactics to attract a younger, female demographic beyond the denim jacketed true metallers. ‘Blood Bound’ and ‘Renegade’ were the opening salvo. A stadium style staging, complete with silver stairs and central ramp, located in front of drummer/backwards cap wearing Anders Johansson. An old-school blast from the duo ‘Heeding The Call’ and ‘Glory To The Brave’, the later saw three guitars across the front of the stage. Cans chided the crowd with “I know tomorrow you will wake up with a hangover from drinking too much beer, but who cares? Life is now!” prior to the song of the same name. After ‘Riders Of The Storm’, ‘By Any Means Necessary’ and ‘Let The Hammer Fall’ he again joked, “Who’s seeing Hammerfall for the first time? What have you been doing for 12 years?” and it was on to closing ‘Hearts On Fire’. In a move that surprised me, the band plans to return to these shores, in March 2010, which might well be your last chance to see Hammerfall domestically. Don’t miss it.

With emo kiddies taking center stage (literally, in terms of BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE), it was off to quench the thirst before MOTÖRHEAD, a trio whose aggregate age probably surpasses BFMV plus any one other of their contemporaries. Yet, they still can’t rock like Lemmy! “How you doing tonight? (enthusiastic response) We’ll fix that!” Like Father, Son And Holy Ghost, the noise trinity took the stage with a vintage 1-2 punch of ‘Iron Fist’ and ‘Stay Clean’. Phil Campbell in ski cap, Lem with a peaked cavalry hat. A little promo for the more recent efforts, ‘Be My Baby (off Kiss Of Death) and ‘Rock Out’ (from last year’s Motörizer), before returning to ‘Metropolis’. Then the venerable Brits (OK, Mikkey Dee’s a Swede) took a detour into the B-side world of ‘Head: ‘Over The Top’, ‘One Night Stand’, ‘The Thousand Names Of God’ (complete with Campbell guitar spot). Things turned round with the recently re-discovered and finally appreciated ‘Another Perfect Day’, followed by ‘Just Cos You Got The Power’ and ‘Going To Brazil’. The proper set finished with ‘Killed By Death’, only to return for the obligatory ‘Ace Of Spades’ and ‘Overkill’. Not the usual setlist, but that’s what made it more interesting… or was it the slinky Fuel Girls shimming across the stage?

As the clock struck 11:15pm, EPICA and IN FLAMES played on opposite ends of the gigantic grounds, thus it was impossible to view complete sets by both. Only afforded 60 minutes, it was off to photograph the lovely Simone Simons and after listening to a few death-injected symphonic metal anthems from the Dutch (opening ‘Indigo’, ‘Obsessive Devotion’, ‘Sensorium’ and ‘Cry For The Moon’). Had to miss ‘Sancta Terra’ and ‘Consign To Oblivion’ (damn responsibility and scheduling conflicts), but have since heard clips online. It was nearly a half hour trudge, dodging prone drunks and a massive wall of humanity 50-60,000 strong at that point, before I could get to an enjoyable vantage point for our longtime Swedish friends (the BW&BK; booth hosted the IN FLAMES signing session at their first North American appearance, as part of Milwaukee Metalfest). Walking away from the smaller “Party” stage, one could hear the strains of ‘Only For The Weak’ getting louder, as the “Black” stage (see what Tim was talking about?) approached. The rest of the BW&BK; crew informed that I’d missed ‘The Hive’ (off ’97 Whoracle! Damn, not likely to hear that Stateside). Did get ‘Embody The Invisible’, alongside ‘Come Clarity’ and ‘Alias’ and ‘The Chosen Pessimist’, both off the underrated Sense Of Purpose. This isn’t some little club band anymore, as missing-in-rehab guitarist Jesper Stromblad is also undoubted finding out. Plenty of fire plumes and hi-tech video walls, although during ‘The Quiet Place’, the matching Jumbo-trons flanking the stage played the accompanying promotional vid upside down (!). The small board over the stage had it in the correct orientation. Anders Friden dedicated ‘Take This Life’ to “All the girls and ugly guys.”

Germany’s metal queen, DORO PESCH was reserved until quarter to 1am (hey, it’s a Friday night/Saturday morning), the late hour restricting her to just an hour. Enough time for the opening quartet of WARLOCK gems ‘Fur Immer’ (odd opener though), ‘I Rule The Ruins’, ‘Burning The Witches’ and ‘True As Steel’. In addition to a pyro-filled performance, the DORO band was in the midst of changing guitarists. Enter Ex-AFTER FOREVER Bas Maas and Luca Princiotta (BLAZE), the later having previously substituted for keyboardist/second guitarist Oliver Palotai when his commitments to KAMELOT overlapped. Flown the coop full-time and just released his SONS OF SEASONS solo project, as well as being romantically linked to Simone Simons (lucky man!) Palotai is no more, as it seems is longtime guitarist Joe Taylor. As to the onstage fireworks, drummer Johnny Dee later laughed it off, summing it up this way. “Imagine stepping onto that (huge) stage to play for that crowd without being briefed on the pyro and the possibility of being barbecued!” Apart from Ms. Pesch’s studded black jumpsuit, the only thing smoked was the set (particularly the opening half), highlights of which also included ‘Fight’, ‘Burn It Up’ and the closing ‘All We Are’. A North American trek kicks off in NYC, Sept. 7th, check for local dates.

As the temperatures dipped below chilly, to inducing visible breath, for the second straight night, the setting was perfect for hearty men from the North, the burly, beer-fed and bearded AMON AMARTH. Seemed cold enough to solidify the sleeveless Johan Hegg’s alehorn, but the anti-freeze inside flowed freely. Opening with the title track from last year’s Twilight Of The Thunder God, the Swedes unleash a lightning storm of strobes, practically recreating daylight hours. A dragonhead longboat juts towards the audience, Fredrik Andersson’s kit perched atop, a red and white vertically stripped “sail” (emblazoned with the A rune) spread behind him. ‘Asator’ gallops into ‘Guardians Of Asgaard’. ‘Rune To My Memory’ hangs on the lips of those that have stuck around (considerable numbers) and ‘Cry Of The Black Birds’ goes down easily, despite 3am beckoning. The concluding ‘Death In Fire’ seeks to literally recreate the titular phrase, an incessant amount of smoke and shooting flames throughout the number! A visual spectacle like this just isn’t possible in North America, probably not even outdoors. Hope that one ends up on a DVD (either the annual Waken recreation, or the band’s future bonus section). Wow!

DAY 3

Finland’s KAMPFAR were the lone noted cancellation of the fest, replaced (via electronic announcement) by SODOM mainman Tom Angelripper’s alter-ego, ONKEL TOM. Speaking of Finns, the fur-covered, red & black face-painted TURISAS filled the W.E.T. stage to overflowing, the humppa styling of ‘One More’ and ‘Battle Metal’ paying big dividends in the festival atmosphere, despite frontman ‘s (accurate) protests about playing the smallest stage. Lee Dorrian, in basic black from head-to-toe (perhaps THAT’S why it’s called the “Black” stage) led his doom caravan, aka CATHEDRAL through a career kaleidoscope that included ‘Soul Sacrifice’ a surprising ‘Cosmic Funeral’ and ‘Hopkins Witchfinder General’, which saw the ginger haired singer waving his arms and jumping around like it was yesteryear.

Seems TESTAMENT would have made a reasonable choice for the Black Stage (moreso that the day’s later participants GWAR and Bay Area compatriots, MACHINE HEAD), but semantics aside, it was a wicked set, similar to the greatest hits option from the recently complete North American tour (where fans in each city pre-chose the set, either New Order, the debut or a compilation). Old-school at the start (including ‘The Preacher’ opener, ‘Over The Wall’ and ‘Practice What You Preach’) and ending with the title track from the recent studio effort. In between were a couple of interesting (less obvious) choices, like ‘D.N.R.”, ‘The Persecuted Won’t Forget’ and ‘3 Days In Darkness’. Not sure how long this reunified version will remain, but they’re a lethal machine and really get the pit moving, especially Wacken size.

Not every Wacken story is a rousing success. Pity the plight of Mexico’s SPLIT HEAVEN. Like numerous acts, they won a contest to represent their nation on the W.E.T. stage. The smallest of the four proper stages (although this year organizers added a medieval/Viking stage outside the main gate to house a couple of bands, then there was an unannounced platform inside the Metal Market), after days of rain, public urination (mostly male) and beer wagon run-off, the entrance annually become a cesspool to be gingerly navigated. After countless pesos, hours of travel and untold effort, they only played 30 minutes, to the roughly 100 people who ventured to see them. Then again, they are getting mentioned by a major international publication!

Part of their problem, going up against AXEL RUDI PELL, something of a 30-year national hero, despite his status as a virtual unknown this side of the Atlantic. Shame, as vocalist Johnny Gioeli and drummer/mohawked madman Mike Terrana are both Americans, if Gioeli’s Affliction t-shirt didn’t give it away. The criminally overlooked Gioeli (known over here, if at all, for the infinitely less substantial HARDLINE) is one of hard rock/metal’s best voices. Combined with Pell’s emotive, Blackmore-influenced guitar-work, it’s a win-win scenario. Pretty much a live greatest hits package (peppered with a few too many obscenities from the frontman this go-round. Well, he is American.) The opening ‘Tear Down The Walls’ does just that, followed in succession by ‘Strong As A Rock’ and ‘Masquerade Ball’ which effortless transitioned into ‘Casbah’. A pair of slower tunes gave way to ‘Tales Of The Crown’, which ended with a reprise of ‘Casbah’, ‘Rock The Nation’, ‘Mystica’ and ‘Fool Fool’. Check them out

On the other hand, IN EXTREMO is a guilty pleasure that doesn’t translate so well. Must be a cultural thing. Is there anything more preposterous than a strangely attired guy playing an oversized bagpipe with what appears to be a toilet plunger on the end? How about three onstage simultaneously, swaying to the beat! What about a giant, handheld harp? Welcome to IN EXTREMO!

Has anyone had a more precarious metal roller coaster ride than MACHINE HEAD? Heralded in the early 90s as saviors, via the release of their Burn My Eyes debut, Robb Flynn then spent the better parts of a dozen years as the genre’s pariah, having embrace newer/modern sounds. The Blackening hanged all that, welcomed back into metalheads’ homes, it’s little wonder the band is in no rush to follow up that ‘07 platter. Needless to say, half of the 10-song set came from those two discs (‘Beautiful Mourning’, ‘Aesthetics Of Hate’, ‘Old’ and the concluding duo of ‘Halo’ and ‘Davidian’). The interplay between Flynn and mainstay guitarist Phil Demmel (polka dot, Randy Rhoads style Flying V) is almost as frenetic as the vortex generated by the circulating crowd.

Norway's under-rated progressive black metal geniuses ENSLAVED were stricken with bad luck; as mentioned, with the weak black/death contingent, they at least could've been on the Black Stage, but were pushed to the out-of-the-way Party Stage; secondly, their set clashed with Machine Head's, one of the biggest moments of the fest. Sonically, the band were audible during Robb Flynn and Co's set, but the crowd lacked size due to the competition. Methinks the Head crowd could've learned a valuable metal lesson by viewing the prowess of this band as they enveloped the few thousand strong with selections from their current album Vertebrae. Enslaved were limited to nine songs, peppering the faithful with mostly latter-era material, virtually ignoring their blackened roots. But the likes of 'Ruun', As Fire Swept Clean The Earth' and set closer 'Isa' proved beyond potent even with Bay Areas blasts interjecting in the background.

To a large extent, SAXON owes Germany, Wacken and current manager/one of Wacken’s four founding partners their continued longevity. While Biff Byford and Co. have righted the ship and are churning out some of the finest music of their three decade career, without the aforementioned, they would have sunk into obscurity at the dawn of the Nineties. Regardless of the history lesson, SAXON returns bi-annually to 50,000 or more fans. Thus it was imperative to try something different to celebrate the festival’s twentieth year. They let fans pick the set and perhaps unbeknown to them, the final running order was restricted to one song from each album, plus one non-included track selected by each band member. The set was almost reverse-chronological, with the newer material up first (‘Battalions Of Steel’, ‘Metalhead’, ‘Killing Ground’ or ‘Lionheart’), a first select gems sprinkled in (‘Strong Arm Of The Law’, Wheels Of Steel’ and ‘Motorcycle Man’), then save the killer oldies for the end/encore. Certainly were songs one thought they’d never hear again (‘Rock N Roll Gypsies’, ‘Forever Free’, voted in place of ‘Iron Wheels’ on the spot, or the skipped Christopher Cross cover, ‘Ride Like The Wind’). Interesting, but they could never sustain momentum. As a fan since ’80, I’ve been forever spoiled by the recent NYC appearance at BB Kings. Making up for decades away from the Big Apple, it was as close to an intimate, hungry, career-starting gig as one can get until a time machine is perfected (check out our New York City live report here).

Apparently organizers don’t feel the same way about KORPIKLAANI as I do. They are the perfect festival band (the Finns only English lyrics are obsessed with alcohol: ‘Beer Beer’, ‘Vodka’, ‘Happy Little Boozer’ and ‘Bring Us Crates Of Beer’ amongst them), lively onstage (particularly guitarist and frontman ), plus smiles all around. Certainly could be better served that next-to-last slot on the final day, when many have expended all their energy (money, insides of their stomachs, etc.). And oppose main stage GWAR? Hopefully another, more timely (?) invitation is in the offing.

Anyway, Wacken 21 has already confirmed IMMORTAL for 2010, held August 5th-7th. Will you be there?

A BraveWords.com Wacken 2009 Photo Gallery can be found here.