Sweden Rock Festival
Day 2
10 June 2005
Another notable release this year has been Rob Rock`s Holy Hell featuring more great guitar hooks from the prolific Roy Z and hence another set I was looking forward to. However, maybe it was too early in the day as I couldn`t put my finger on why the set just didn`t seem to spark.
There was absolutely nothing wrong with the backing, provided by three members of Narnia and the guitarist from Platitude and Rob Rock`s vocals were soaring, it`s just I became as bored as bassist Andreas Olsson looked playing the songs.
First Winds Of The End Of Time, featuring a great chorus, picked things up but following Judgement Day, the guitar of Zakk Wylde squealing in the distance had a greater pull.
Rob Rock set list included:
Rock The Earth / In The Night / First Winds Of The End Of Time / Judgement Day
Black Label Society have been cancelling gigs left right and centre on their current Euro tour and their recent display at London, which saw Wylde not only planting his guitar but some of his monitors into the crowd, gave the impression that perhaps all is not well.
Perhaps it`s the large biker presence, or as Wylde puts it the "BLS Swedish Chapter", but the main man seemed as happy as Larry today. With the weather fine the likes of Funeral Bell and Suicide Messiah were a perfect backing to sit on the grass with early beer in hand nodding along.
Of course there`s lots of guitar noodling and during one extended instrumental work out the presence of a random bloke on stage who`s sole purpose was it seems to hold Zakk`s beer and shout "yeah" into the mic was rather odd. However as Genocide Junkies wraps things up you couldn`t help but feel satisfied by the experience.
Black Label Society set list:
Stoned & Drunk / Destruction Overdrive / Been A Long Time / Funeral Bell / Suffering Overdue / Suicide Messiah / Demise Of Sanity / Spread Your Wings / Fire It Up / Stillborn / Genocide Junkies
Overkill have soldiered on through thick and thin and multiple line up changes and still always put in workman like performances. This time the change is behind the drums with former Hades tub-thumper Ron Lipnicki taking up the sticks.
Overkill`s set had really kicked in to gear by Rotten To The Core, with Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth tearing off his shirt to reveal a six pack a man of his years shouldn`t be able to attain. Wrecking Crew raced by with bassist DD Verni roaring the chorus upwards into his Lemmy style raised microphone. The classics continued with Hello From The Gutter and it`s no surprise to see Blitz have a brief sit down on the drum riser for a breather fag in hand.
After a churning Nice Day For A Funeral, the treat comes with a quick change behind the drum kit. Blitz announces an "ugly old thrasher" was to join them who turned out to be none other than Mike Portnoy of Dream Theater. Portnoy of course handled Elimination with the ease as if he`s been playing it for years.
The set ended in party style with the punked up Old School giving way to raised fingers for F**k You. Given Exodus played it last year on the same stage, it seems the thrashers AC/DC song of choice is Dirty Deeds, as Overkill say goodbye to Sweden.
Overkill set list:
Within Your Eyes / Damned / Rotten To The Core / Wrecking Crew / Hello From The Gutter / Nice Day For A Funeral / Elimination / Thanx For Nothin` / Under One / Necroshine / In Union We Stand / Old School / F**k You / Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap
With the familiar vocals of Andy B. Franck at times it`s difficult to draw a distinction between his two bands Brainstorm, who played Sweden Rock last year, and Symphorce who took the stage today. Both deliver quality power metal with a US edge of the likes of classic Vicious Rumors, though perhaps Symphorce are a little more progressive.
With a frontman with as much energy as Franck the band are on to a winner if they are pulling their weight and the seven strings of Cedric Dupont and Markus Pohl were certainly doing that as Fallen sped by.
Echoing his performance last year, by third song Tears, Franck is in the photopit getting close to the crowd. He jokes about being given three extra seconds when one member of the crowd calls for Five Seconds To Live.
An obscure cover of Nice Dreams by Powermad was an odd diversion in the set which concluded back in Brainstorm territory with Slowdown.
Symphorce set list:
Fallen / Whatever Hate Provides / Tears / Touched & Infected / Two Seconds To Live / Nice Dreams / Cause Of Laughter / Slow Down
Dream Theater were a massive draw on the Rock stage and if the festival is going to continue with such attendances perhaps video screens should be considered here also. The fact that I couldn`t see anything except for the occasional glimpse of James Labrie due to his white ice-hockey shirt meant I was bored before the band had even finished opener This Dying Soul and decided I would wait to see them under better circumstances.
Dream Theater set list included:
The Root Of All Evil / A Fortune In Lies / Just Let Me Breathe / Panic Attack / Peruvian Skies / Pull Me Under / Never Enough / Endless Sacrifice / The Spirit Carries On / As I Am / Metropolis Pt 1
The huge polystyrene icebergs littering the Festival stage brought back memories of Iron Maiden`s Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son tour, and it`s apparent that Hammerfall would love to be in that league. Certainly they pulled a very large crowd and all seemed to be putting 100% in making full use of the stage when not stood with one foot planted on, …erm, icebergs.
However, knowing I would be seeing this show at Bloodstock in September meant I had already decided to devote my time elsewhere on this occasion, hence it was just four songs of fist pumping for me.
Hammerfall set list:
Secrets / Riders Of The Storm / Renegade / Let The Hammer Fall / The Templar Flame / Fury Of The Wild / Glory To The Brave / Hammerfall / Hammer Of Justice / Crimson Thunder / Heeding The Call / Templars Of Steel / Blood Bound / Hearts On Fire
That earmarked time was very wisely spent in the company of Behemoth. Quite simply the band were crushing. Previous experiences of death/black metal bands at Sweden Rock had seen the sound a bit lost in the outdoor environment, but with a unit as tight as hell itself, Behemoth turned in the set of the festival for me.
To say this band want it would be an understatement as their hunger is blatantly obvious. Opener, Sculpting The Throne Ov Seth, is greeted by a sight akin to a set of synchronised washing machines with the band spiralling their hair in unison. Even drummer Inferno headbangs without missing a beat.
Tracks from latest album Demigod featured early in the show, with Conquer All particularly brutal. However, even the older material I had no knowledge of, which for black metal live is often difficult to digest on first hearing, was gripping.
The corpsepaint look often looks a bit daft nowadays, however Behemoth`s take on the image works and coupled with a spot of fire-breathing and Nergal donning an iron mask and PVC cape for the closing Pure Evil & Hate, the presentation was classy as the performance.
Behemoth set list included:
Sculpting The Throne Ov Seth / Demigod / From The Pagan Vastlands / Antichristian Phenomenon / Conquer All / Hekau 718 / Christians To The Lions / Decade Ov Therion / As Above So Below / Pure Evil & Hate
Although I did see a bit of Status Quo and Sammy Hagar it was not sufficient or with the concentration to include a review.
Behemoth
Hammerfall
Dream Theater
Symphorce
Overkill
Black Label Society
Rob Rock
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