BW&BK; has received the following press release:

Center Stage Management (CSM) is happy to announce the successful turn-out at Desert Rock festival’s sixth edition, held in Dubai Festival City on Friday 6th March 2009. 7,476 metal fans were in awe of the international bands performing live in Dubai for the first time!

Thousands of enthusiastic metal fans flocked to Dubai Festival City on Friday, forming a large queue that started around noon. As the doors opened, the crowd fought their way through the doors. First band performing was United We Rock competition winners SCARAB and HATRED (respectively from Egypt and Germany) who set the tone of the day, inviting the audience to the first headbanging. Home-grown and now international death metal band NERVECELL did not disappoint the crowd who were enjoying one of their last powerful performance in the UAE, before they head off to their festival tour in Germany this summer, which includes renowned Rock Am Ring, Rock Im Park, With Full Force and Wacken Open Air.

After AUGUST BURNS RED appeared on stage creating a moshing frenzy by inviting people to run from the front of house to front of stage, CHIMAIRA pleased the crowd performing a world premiere of new song 'Destroy And Dominate'. The next day they posted on their website “our first concert in the Middle East was beyond amazing. You would have sworn we were playing a hometown show the way the crowd reacted. Everyone knew every word and we were blown away. Dubai, thank you.”

OPETH, the highlight of the night for many, were greeted by enthusiastic fans who never in their wildest dreams thought they would ever experience their live performance, and flew in from as far away as Japan, Morocco, Armenia, Algeria, Egypt to name a few!

ARCH ENEMY's frontwoman Angela Gossow rocked the stage with her energy, followed by rock legends MOTÖRHEAD, still rocking after 30 years and for the first time in the Middle East! Classics like 'Metropolis', 'Going To Brazil' and 'Over The Top' were dispatched at break-neck speed. After an admirable guitar solo and a 15mn drum solo by Mikkey Dee they ended their set with much awaited 'Ace Of Spades'.

Desert Rock Festival sponsored by Lee Cooper, Oasis, A&E; and Playstation, was all about embracing heavy metal this year with the campaign “Metal Lives” which indeed did on Friday, March 6th 2009, leaving thousands of dedicated fans longing for next year.