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Saturday
One
of the beautiful things about WFF is the lake right next to it.
The lake is basically a flooded gravel pit with lovely, clear
water and hundreds of hot heavy metal fans in it. After a good
swim we feel ready for the opening of day two. Since both stages
open at the same time, we decide to go for the main stage and
German nothingcore (?!) outfit A.O.K.
(T: ?/100, B: 78/100). Ready as we felt just before the insane
asylum was unleashed upon us unsuspecting foreigners, just as
big is our surprise as we slowly realise that this band insists
on giving us the full Monty. Literally.
It
is as if the Bermuda shorts of the two singers have been soaked
in oil because they just won’t stay on for long. On and off
they go, and all the while food is flying through the air,
starting when the band plays a song called Baguette, Baguette,
Baguette and has prepared a few for the audience. The baguettes
are followed by a couple of glasses of Bockwurst, a fat Lolita
doll, three boxes of heads of lettuce, a broom stick and a
guitar(!). As it later appears that the guitar doesn’t come
back, one of the singers throws out the guitar case as well as a
polite gesture. To conclude the food circus, several boxes of
corn flakes rain over the first rows of the audience.
The
music? Well, none of us pay much attention really. It doesn’t
sound that good, to be honest. Except perhaps the song that the
band decides to mime. But
then again, the show isn’t really about (good) music in the
first place. The German versions of Madonna’s
La Isla Bonita
and Nirvana’s Smells Like Teen Spirit don’t win A.O.K. extra
points. Downright weird, that.
Up-and-coming
Danes Raunchy
(72/100) play a decent show without impressing as much as I had
hoped for. Focusing mainly on the material from the brilliant
‘Death Pop Romance’, Raunchy could be rolling all the way,
but instead they appear a tad insecure.
Owing
to the complex chorus structure on the album, the band uses
playback on some of the chorus voices. This is much to the
dismay of a German ‘fan’ who inadvertently keeps yelling
‘Playback pussies!’ Look, if you can’t face the fact that
not all bands are Motörhead and actually want to try something
else, then change the fucking channel and let the rest of us
have a good experience, dimwit.
After
trip back to the lake, a tour of the camping area and a heavy
intake of asian food, we head for the biggest death metal
experience of the festival, namely Obituary
(90/100). Today, the boys from
Tampa
are the kings of death metal as they launch into the groovy
Redneck Stomp from the comeback album ‘Frozen in Time’. The
sound is divine, the vibe is good. More or less presenting a
best-of selection, the band looks comfortable and relaxed. The
title track from the band’s debut album is received by the
audience as a lost son and I get the goose bumps as I’m
propelled 15 years back in time to Rock Hard Festival in Berlin
where Obituary killed everyone, included the then mighty
Sepultura. It strikes me at some point that Allen West is the
only guitarist so far during this festival who’s been able to
play a decent solo that actually sounds good. And he manages to
do so twice, even.
Taking
over from Obituary and moving us all into an entirely different
musical ballgame is Clawfinger
(T: 90/100, B: 78/100). Earlier this year, the Norwegian/Swedish
combo returned with a more than decent release, and today’s
show cements the fact that Clawfinger are back with a vengeance.
The enthusiastic performance from Zak Tell and the boys turn the
area in front of the main stage into a veritable mosh and jump
party. New songs What We’ve Got Is What You’re Getting and
The Faggot In You go down really well and fit in nicely with
smash hits of the past like Nigger, Truth, Rosegrove, Do What I
Say and Biggest & The Best. Only song really missing from
this party was Pin Me Down, but let that rest for now…
Benny:
It does, however, subtract from the overall score, that Zak
forgets some of the lyrics in Rosegrove,
and the fact that it simply isn’t
loud enough. There had been some
feedback problems on the main stage earlier, and perhaps turning
the volume down was the initial way of solving them.
In
Extremo
(85/100) offer a pleasant break from the round-of-the-mill
festival music. With fire and flames and colourful attire, the
band pours their hard pumped Middle Ages rock over a grateful
audience who doesn’t for once feel the obligation to mosh but
to just stand back and enjoy the sights and sounds.
And
the winner is…In Flames
(T: 95/100, B: 100/100). What a show! It is not a if there’s
anything new under the sun; the band is tight as a virgin’s
arse, the riffs are shot at us like machine gun fire, there’s
fire and flame and the crowd goes berserk! If Clawfinger was a
party, then this is a sodding ball! The atmosphere is absolutely
fantastic as In Flames hammer out hits like Leeches, Trigger,
Take This Life and the mighty, mighty System. It would seem that
there is no stopping this band. WFF didn’t, that’s for sure.
The
show ‘only’ lasts around 75 minutes, but that is about all
we can take. Completely soaked in sweat and gasping for air, we
can do little more than just gaze at the fantastic 20 minute
fireworks show that follows the concert. In fact, it almost
seems like part of the concert, because the first rockets start
to go off even before the band has left the stage (and the crowd
is still demanding “Zugabe”).
Although
we love to get our beauty sleep, two bands on the tent stage
keep us awake a bit longer. The second Danish feature on this
festival, Volbeat (T:
88/100, B: 75/100), line up at
1 a
.m. If Elvis had been into metal, this is what he would have
sounded like. The bouquet of songs from the fabulous debut album
‘The Strength/The Sound/The Songs’ aired
get a deserved positive response and wins over a bunch of new
fans. Groovers like Caroline #1, Pool of Booze, Booze, Booza,
Danny & Lucy show that Volbeat have grown into a convincing
and tight act. As a little treat, the ballad Soulweeper has been
beefed up with an interlude that is nothing less than the
opening riffs of Reign in Blood. Nice one!
Concluding
Saturday night’s programme is German techno-metal phenomenon Die
Krupps (T: 80/100, B: 72/100) who to some are most know for
their Metallica cover album. There’s a lot more to Die Krupps
than Metallica covers, though, and this late-night séance is
another proof of that. Although there’s been quiet around the
band for some time now, there is still energy left and the
danceable industrial metal tunes speak for themselves as the
crowds enjoys that last party on Saturday night.
For
all sorts of silly reasons, we have to return home Sunday
morning, thus missing a major part of the great programme of
this festival. Too bad, so sad, shit happens. But there is a
festival in Roitzschjora again next year, and we’re certainly
not going to miss it!
See
the images from the festival here! (Opens a new window). |
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