Rock Im Revier is a relative newcomer to the European festival scene which some people say is overcrowded and at times, I do have to agree with them. You only have to look at how many festivals have folded recently due to financial instability, lack of backers or backers being unwilling to support and of course, the whole debacle surrounding Temples festival… But let’s not go into that because we could be here all day and this would end up resulting in a playground styled bitching contest.
As I mentioned, RIR is a relative newcomer, being an offshoot of the Rock Am Ring/Rock Im Park combo which as we all know, are widely successful and offer a huge variety of acts from across all genres. RIR however focuses more on the hard rock and metal side of things and in its debut year, Metallica and KISS were the main headliners. This time round, and probably the main reason for my attendance and return to Deutschland was the fact that Iron Maiden were the main attraction and given how ‘The Book Of Souls’ was my album of 2015, it would be rude not to attend to experience some of it live. Also joining the ranks were the enigmatic Ghost, Swedish power metal machine Sabaton, Thrash titans Anthrax and Slayer, Suicidal Tendencies, Tremonti, Goijira and Garbage (?!).
Needless to say, it was set to be an interesting three days!
Thursday 26th:
By the time we got to the venue and managed to exchange our E-Tickets to real tickets, we continued drinking with the revellers, making a few acquaintances and a lot of them being surprised that me and my trusty co-reviewer/better half had came all the way from England for the weekend. By the time we eventually got into the venue, we had missed the opening band Prime Circle, but we managed to locate more good quality German beer, good food and managed to take a quick tour of the place. It was huge, the perfect size for a good arena show and by the time we were set, it was coming up to the next band on the bill.
Powerwolf hit the stage with their Teutonic brand of power metal and it really pumped the crowd up. A band like these belong more on the Wacken bill than on this one given how pop-rockers Mando Diao and Garbage were also on their day, but the crowd were welcoming and rather into them. Singing and speaking in German, I was pretty lost given how my extent of that language extends to asking for two beers, but they engaged the crowd rather well with their melodic hooks and powerful riffs. I am a fan of Euro metal and power metal, but something about them just didn’t click for me. The melody, the riffs and the heaviness were there but personally I just felt they lacked the spark needed to excite me on a musical level. The rest of the crowd loved them though and I guess that is what matters in the end.
After acquiring more beers, it was time for Garbage. I was never really a fan of Shirley and the guys when they were really prominent towards the end of the 90’s, only knowing tracks like “Stupid Girl”, “Special” and “I Think I’m Paranoid”, all of which were played and well received by the crowd and in all honesty, they did sound pretty good. The pseudo-grungey alternative pop feel was a total change in style compared to the previous band and whilst the sound was good, I just found them rather dull. Shirley led the crowd well, owning the stage and still looking rather fine but aside from the visual side of things and the three tracks I actually knew, overall it bored me.
By this point, a fair few audience members were filing out and initially I presumed they were on the quest for beer, food and nicotine, however it was due to the upcoming band. Having a rough idea of what they sounded like already, I had toyed with the decision to cover them but my cravings for beer and sleep after a slightly disappointing first day won out so we called it a day from there. Given how there were only four bands on, I didn’t see it as a reflection of how the festival would be because basically, the main guns were on during the next two days and putting it bluntly, the first day of any festival usually has its rough patches and silly headliner choices (Trivium at BOA anyone?).
Friday 27th:
This was a day which promised to be a lot better given the quality of the bands on the line up. I’d not heard of The Wild Lies or Ravenage before and I’m not a fan of Tremonti (Though I go highly respect his chops on guitar!) so it was all about Ghost and seeing what the fuss and hype was all about, Sabaton and their dynamic and fantastic live show and of course, the legendary Iron Maiden.
Starting the day off were London’s hard rockers The Wild Lies. With a sleazy sound and a retro-look, this group really got things off. Shaky from the vocal sound initially, the sweet classic rock with a real hard edge to it, combined with a fantastic lead tone in the solo’s balanced it out and by the time the band got into the middle of their set and found their flow, they had the crowd lapping it up. With some pounding drums, catchy rock hooks and plenty of sing along and call and response moments, the Londoner’s did well to open the day to a decent sized crowd and taking their leave with the slightly more metal friendly “Can’t Carry On” and its moody vocals and massive low end sound, they did their job of getting the ball rolling.
Picking it up were Melodic Metal outfit, The Raven Age. Another London based band, this time here to help Iron Maiden out on their tour (Guitarist George is the son of Steve, proving that music really does run in their family with daughter Lauren being a front woman!) and once this fact was revealed to me, the cynic inside was saying he’s only here because Daddy is giving him a helping hand. Yes, as bitter as that might seem, that was the initial impression, however I was taken by surprise with how effective they were in the live setting. Rhythmically tight and bringing a metalcore sound which had leanings in the traditional metal ways, like Trivium but without the shite vocalist, The Raven Age did well. Technically sound, blending the thunderous galloping rhythms with flowing and accurate leads played with pinpoint precision, they tore through their set. The crowd received them well but I thought they just lacked that ‘spark’ to make them stand out and be a bit more noticeable.
Up next was one of the artists who I had very mixed feelings on seeing. Whilst I hugely respect and admire the talent and ability of Mark Tremonti, he’s played in some god-awful bands (hur hur.. See what I did there?). The six stringer with some pretty impressive finger-work took to the stage with his solo project, the self- titled Tremonti, and to be honest, whilst it was a lot more structured and better sounding than the previous band, I honestly felt like I was watching Black Label Society in the sense of “I am Mark Tremonti, I am going to show off and you are going to experience it”. Sure, the runs, leads and compositions were great, but it was basically as dull. Feeling the urge for food, beer and nicotine, I slipped away, deciding to refuel and prepare for the final three bands of the day.
Ghost confused me. They seemed to appear out of nowhere with a huge cult following and many devoted fans and seeing all this hype surrounding them, I honestly dismissed them as one of those bands – people rave about them because they’re quirky or different but it’s merely just a rehash of something else. However, I was in the spirit of covering this festival, more than prepared to give them a chance because sometimes bands are better live right?
I was blown away. Theatrical, dramatic, mysterious… These are some of the words I would attribute to Papa Emiritus III and his Nameless Ghouls and their appearance and mannerisms, but their music is something else. Powerful riffs, atmospheric and hypnotic, pounding rhythms and a venue which really suited their sound, they were phenomenal and easily the best band of the day so far and a surprise contender for band of the weekend (Excluding Iron Maiden because they were the main reason for my attendance). Papa’s vocals were oddly compelling, having me hooked on his every word and his flamboyant attire and gesturing was like he was controlling the crowd. Hanging on his every word, the crowd were clapping, bouncing, singing along in full voice. As an ‘outsider’ to the Ghost Phenomenon, I couldn’t help but watch in awe and get caught up in it myself to the point where I quickly left the standing area and made my way to the very top tier of the seating section, only to be blown away by the sight below. The entire venue was rammed out for this sermon and if this is what it was like for a band third from top, Sabaton and Maiden would be just as good!
As always, Sabaton rolled in with all the subtlety of a Panzer Battalion. With Europe’s Final Countdown as their ‘introductory music’, they charged right in, all guns blazing with the now iconic set opener “Ghost Division”. With plenty of pyro, powerful riffs augmented by symphonic overtures and a raw and dynamic vocal sound telling gripping stories, the Swedish Metal Machine continued on. The crowd, in full life and voice responded well. Though some may describe them as ‘Happy Clappy War Trivialisers’, the crowd didn’t care for that view. Whether it was tracks from the ‘Carolus Rex’ album or from modern conflicts in our time, everyone was in full voice. Energetic as ever, vocalist Joakim bounced round the stage, even obeying the demands of the crowd’s “Noch Ein Bier” chants, forcing him to down several pints whilst on stage, taking a picture for a fan on their mobile phone held out to them and even getting a young child in attendance on stage, giving him his sunglasses and a nod to his parents for teaching him well. In all, with tracks like “Swedish Pagans”, “Carolus Rex” and of course, the blistering “Primo Vitoria” and “Metal Crue” as the final two, the Swedes put on one hell of a show and really ramped the atmosphere up for the final band of the day… Oh, did I mention they had a drum rig set up like an Anti-aircraft gun which shot pyro? Yeah, Sabaton do it big folks!
Naturally, it was getting harder to slip about during the intermissions between the bands now, so re-beered, re-smoked and and happily fed, it was time for the headliners.
Iron Maiden are an institution of heavy metal. Crawling from the metal-primordial ooze with their self titled debut album in 1980, the band has gone on to enjoy global success and released arguably some of the most genre-defining albums and becoming synonymous with the genre itself. With a devoted fan base round the world, any time Maiden tour, tickets fly and with a seventy plus date world tour in support of the album which received my nod for 2015’s album of the year, “The Book Of Souls”, you knew it was going to be an epic.
With flags ranging from the USA to Serbia on display from the crowd, you could see the power and draw Iron Maiden have and with this being the first stop of the European leg of their epic tour, there was an even more electrified atmosphere than there usually would be before an Iron Maiden Set. With the obligatory blasting of “Doctor Doctor” through the PA which got the crowd in full voice, leading to the fancy CGI introduction film of the Mayan incarnation of Eddie launching the downed ‘Ed Force 1’ plane into the skies, the scene was set, and the theatrical “If Eternity Should Fail” kicked in. From Bruce’s dramatic and atmospheric monologue, there was an explosion of musical energy and the set kicked into gear.
With plenty of “Scream For Me Dortmund” shouts (I think I counted at least eight!), a blend of classics sandwiched between tracks from the Book Of Souls, jumping from the hauntingly beautiful NOTB album track, “Children Of The Damned” to the epic “The Red And The Black” from the recent release, it was a diverse set filled with just what you would expect from the Irons. Galloping basslines, elaborate three-part guitar harmonies, solid drums and a revitalized and re-energized Dickinson charging about the set, crowd favourites like “The Trooper” and “Powerslave” served as buffers to build up the crowd for the “Book Of Souls” which signalled the arrival of Eddie on stage, giving Janick his chance to run round and fight with the animatronic icon. “Hallowed Be Thy Name” got the crowd moving and as always, the hairs on the arms of everyone stood on edge as a sold out Westfalenhalle launched into full voice for the anthemic “Fear Of The Dark”. This of course signalled the final stretch and “Iron Maiden” tore through the crowd, letting Bruce unleash some of that sneer and edge in his voice but giving it the power Di’Annio never could before we got the brief intermission which led us to the encore of “Number Of The Beast”, “Blood Brothers” and the fantastic set closing number, “Wasted Years”.
With a set missing the likes of “Running Free”, “Wrathchild”, “Can I Play With Madness”, “The Evil That Men Do” and the over-played and annoying “Run To The Hills”, it was quite a solid offering, showing that whilst fans all know and love the classic Maiden numbers, the newer tracks like “Speed Of Light” and “Tears Of A Clown” can hold their own live, standing in the same spotlight as the old favourites, and as the traditional closing song “Always Look on The Bright Side Of Life” rang through the PA, the crowd filtered out, taking a moment to let it sink in that despite the worries some had about Bruce and him being able to stand up to the rigors of touring again after his medical problems recently, we were the first to receive this tour and Bruce sounds just as fresh as five or six years ago.
Sure, he might have struggled on some of the higher notes, but that is inevitable, the crowd could have easily sang the entire set for him and just allowed him to stand there, basking in the spotlight and adoration. Having never witnessed Iron Maiden indoors, seeing them in this venue which had a tremendous acoustic quality to it, I can honestly say it was one of the best indoor arena gigs I have done. With the promise of more beer back at the hotel, we bid Rock Im Revier good night once again, ready for the final day.
Saturday 28th:
The final day of this three day event proved to be the busiest. Whilst not as hungover as I was the previous day, it was still tough getting up and out of the hotel. After a few beers to take off the edge and a chance to chill a little before we headed in, the plan was drawn up – my night finished at Slayer whilst my partner in crime wanted to see the majority of the actual headlining band, Nightwish. Agreeing to the plans, we headed in.
The New Black were the first band up. Much like The Raven Age the day before, TNB brought a slight offering of melodic modern metal, but one which leaned more towards the metalcore stylings. Heavy with their delivery but painfully generic, they went down with the predominantly Teutonic crowd but for someone who still holds a soft spot for the Metalcore subgenre, it lacked any real kick or spark to it to have made it interesting. There were some good grooves and guitar riffs, but that was all which stood out. Deciding to acquire more beer, I missed the end of their set and re-located for the following act.
Suicidal Tendencies are a legendary band in the metal world. Bringing the crossover thrash feel, they were intense from the off. Having seen them previously, back in 2007, I wasn’t that impressed with them so my expectations were low. This proved to be rather good as the legendary crossover act were a lot better this time. With the crowd really getting into it, tracks like “You Can’t Bring Me Down” were well received, and the announcement of Dave Lombardo on drums for them brought plenty of cheers. Part of me wonders if a certain Mr. King heard those cheers and the adoration whilst polishing that chrome dome of his before he was to take to the stage later, but for the most part, I was trying to ensure I wasn’t flattened by a German three times the size of me in the pit! Sadly, there was no “Institutionalized” so I couldn’t shout loudly about not getting my Pepsi, but what can you do?
Thankfully, things were taking a more appealing turn. French metallers Gojira were up next and as expected, it was getting more active and progressively louder. Every single bass drum kick and bass string plucked sent vibrations through the chest of everyone in the crowd and the polyrhythmic grooves and thunderous sound brought out a sea of headbanging. As always, Ocean Planet’s “Backbone” tore the crowd a new one with the ferocity and ill intent in its delivery and the haunting and strangely hypnotic “Flying Whales” caught everyone under its spell. Like a steamroller, crushing and flattening everything in its path, Gojira marched on. For every soaring chorus, there was an equally crushing sledgehammer blow riff laden verse and the closing track, “Vacuity” was possibly the heaviest thing I had heard all weekend!
Beering up once more, it was time for the thrash. Celebrating thirty years of spreading their disease, New York Thrash Legends Anthrax were up and that was my signal to rush through the crowd to where the action would shortly commence. “Caught In A Mosh” opened up the set and for those unfortunate enough to haul ass in time, that is exactly what they were as a sea of bodies began to turbulently collide with each other. The classic “Got The Time” kept the energy going before the entire venue was shouting along to “Antisocial”. It was a great classic assault for the opening, but you cannot forget the Worship Music tracks. “Fight ‘Em Till You Can’t” upped the intensity (and led to a certain reviewer bleeding from the mouth for the rest of their set) and the material off their latest album, “For All Kings” was received just as warmly as the classics. Joey was in fine form, working the crowd, having them do his bidding and come the end of their set, the ritual of the war dance was performed as the floor opened up to reveal a vortex of chaos as “Indians” brought the curtain down on the legendary thrashers.
Calming things down, but in my opinion, in the wrong place on the bill (Should have been before Gojira!), the heaviest wood band in the world, Apocalyptica brought their unique take on classical music and heavy metal. No matter how many times I see or hear this band, it still amazes me just how evil a Cello can sound, and with the obligatory thrash covers of “Refuse Resist” and “Master Of Puppets”, it satisfied those who prefer their tribute work to their original material. With guest vocalist, Frankie Perez who recorded the upcoming “Shadowmaker” album with them performing a few tracks off the upcoming release as some of their older vocalist featuring works, the majority of the crowd was lapping it up, but I found myself a little deflated after such a storming performance from Anthrax was followed by this. The announcement of the ‘Plays Metallica’ tour brought a cheer along with a quadruple speed “Seek & Destroy” into “Hall Of The Mountain King” as a closing double. Whilst musically solid, they just failed to engage in the way they usually do for me.
With the oddly placed celloists out the way, the final three bands loomed on the horizon and you could tell, just by looking round the venue that despite there being more variety on offer today, the crowd wasn’t as stacked which is a shame as so far it had been going great. This was the cue for Neue Deutsche Härte outfit and crowd favorites In Extremo.
It’s a rather odd genre (Neue Deutsche Härte) and without sidetracking too much, it has all the underlying tones of industrial metal in its groove and pulse, but like similar bands, Tanzwut and Corvus Corax, it draws heavily on renaissance and folk, using more traditional instruments like the Hurdy Gurdy, Lutes, Bagpipes and Dulcimers. For the loosest way of describing it, think Folk Metallers Eluviete doing a duet with Rammstein.
Anyway, In Extremo were a refreshing act. With gratuitous use of pyrotechnics and storms of streamers and glittery confetti launched during the set, the upbeat, groove laden metallic core was accompanied by the melodic and odd but very well placed sound of bagpipes and dulcimers. The contrasting styles, combined with the energetic feel of the music and the energy and showmanship of their frontman had the entire crowd moving. Dancing, jumping, clapping along and in full voice, belting out the German lyrics with no thought, it was one hell of a sight to see. Naturally, I had no clue what was going on lyrically, but to see the way the crowd fed off the music, the way the bagpipes and distorted guitars worked in unison and created odd but alluring harmonies was a memorable experience and with every blast of pyro from the stage you couldn’t help but enjoy it.
With the feel good vibe in the air, I made my way to the bar, armed myself once more with more booze and headed right for the middle of the crowd. The ‘real’ headliner was set to take the stage and as always, I had to be in the thick of it. It was time for Slayer.
You know what to expect with Slayer live. Having seen them at least fourteen or fifteen times now, I could pretty much write out a template of their typical set for you which would be something like ‘lead song from newest release, disciple, few songs here being old and new, WAAAAAR ENSEMBLE!!!! few other songs, post mortem-r.i.b, , tom interacts, dead skin mask, something old, a surprise package, leave the stage, come back, south of heaven, angel of death, maybe another oldie to close it if time allows’. Sure, repetition and predictability can lead to a band becoming stale and in recent years, despite loving this institution of Thrash metal since the first day I heard the iconic thunderstorm which started Raining blood, I have had my grievances with them… Or should I say Mr. King but none the less, it’s a slayer set, something I take great pleasure in experiencing.
As predicted, the sample tape went right into the blistering sonic assault of Repentless and from there, it was business as usual. Bodies flying, heads furiously whirling round or up and down, the punishing shouts of Tom and the blistering riffs of Gary and Kerry and Paul Bostaph’s solid rhythm work were in full swing and the punishment continued. Disciple, Mandatory Suicide, Necrophiliac, War Ensemble… It was all there in its full fury and just as expected with the riffing and wild soloing, but once War Ensemble finished, the magic happened. Post Mortem, one of the greatest tracks ever penned in Thrash came in full swing, taking the crowd by surprise and as it thrashed its way through, the intensity rising all the way, it went right into Raining Blood. Dead Skin Mask was preceded by Tom’s brief interaction, but Slayer were never one for Interacting much, opting to just thrash it out and Hell Awaits rained down in all its fury before the encore of the classic Hanneman penned tracks South Of Heaven and Angel Of Death, both drawing a full on chant for Jeff and even more carnage and chaos.
Broken, bruised, a slight chance of having a concussion and winded, I survived the carnage with a few new trophy marks to show and lying there on the arena floor as the crowd began to filter out, I, like many of them were done with this weekend. Only one band remained and if it were up to me, I would have followed the crowd and taken my leave there and then, but my duty to cover the festival as much as I could was upheld. After the hour long changeover and some measure of composure regained, it was time for the billed headliner – Nightwish.
I never liked these guys the first time round when they exploded into prominence with Tarja on vocals and that annoyingly catchy song about a Disney fish, and with their disastrous set at Download 2005, forcing me to miss Three Inches Of Blood has always left me jaded with them. Since then I have experienced them at Wacken in 2008 or 2009 at some ungodly hour in the morning whilst finishing a beer and with a new vocalist and again, I wasn’t impressed, so when it came to this version of the band I just sat there and sucked it up. After all, sometimes a band can surprise you right?
Finally seeming to have a competent vocalist, Nightwish have made a lot of progression since my last brushes with them. The anthemic and epic overtures remained but that is a common trope and staple of fantasy based power metal and this is what Nightwish do. With a fair number of people in the crowd leaving after Slayer, it was less packed out, but that didn’t affect the symphonic metal outfit. With stunning visual displays and gratuitous pyro, the band pushed ahead and delivered a fairly solid musical performance. Huge sounding guitar riffs, backed up with powerful synth lines and well rounded vocals ran throughout the set, painting very vivid mental imagery to the fantasy land the music was describing to us. Engaging with the crowd at every possible moment, the band really brought an energy to the stage which in turn gave those who remained after Slayer a lift themselves. “Sahara” really got the crowd going and of course, the obligatory rendition of “Nemo” was one which raised the roof, even though that track with forever be synonymous with Tarja’s era as the voice of the group.
Ultimately, the need to sleep won out in the end and having to leave the venue just as Nemo trailed off, my weekend was done. In all, Rock Im Revier was a good experience. The venue had excellent sound which really brought the best out of bands like Ghost, Anthrax, Iron Maiden, Gojira and Apocalyptica but some of the positioning of the bands on the bill was suspect, especially the whole Anthrax into Apocalyptica moment.
Needless to say, for a newcomer to the festival scene which some argue is rather crowded, Rock Im Revier really did stand out as it focused this year on quality of bands over quantity given the indoor setting. With a great atmosphere all weekend, some very friendly folks who were impressed we made the journey to experience it and some damn fine beer and food, I’d recommend this festival to anyone looking for something small and less chaotic.
(Fraggle)
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