3-Days-Ticket: 97.90 Euro (incl. fees)
3-Days-Ticket + Camping (Hard/Smart): 123.80 Euro

Day-ticket Friday: 39 Euro
Day-ticket Saturday: 45 Euro
Day-ticket Sunday: 49 Euro

Watain - Lizzy Borden - Tygers Of Pan Tang - The Idiots - Chapel Of Disease - Vulture

Gamma Ray - Cannibal Corpse - Skid Row - Symphony X - Heir Apparent - Carnivore A.D. - The Vintage Caravan - Tyler Leads

Anthrax - Possessed - Magnum - Fifth Angel - Long Distance Calling - Visigoth - Zodiac - The Spirit

[Dajana] There it is this special time of the year again ;) The first spring-like days call up festival feelings and lead to first ideas and planning. Which festivals we would like to attend this year? No matter, how often the one or the other nags about the billing or the weather we always start the open air season with the ROCK HARD FESTIVAL at the beautiful :: Amphitheater Gelsenkirchen ::. It is our annual family meeting, you know?

:: Stories :: Friday :: Saturday :: Sunday :: Résumé ::

:: Pics :: Friday :: Saturday :: Sunday :: Impressions ::

[Psycho] Our family was complete again, only Sui was sorely missed.

[Öko] The nagger comes forward. For possible extreme weather no one can be blamed for. For a weak line-up we can. Yes, it is always a matter of taste too, but this year’s edition is pretty weak. Just look at the three headliner: WATAIN – a band with a highly questionable political view; GAMMA RAY – nothing to say against but I do not care about at all; and ANTHRAX – a band, every Heavy Metal fan has probably seen 1000 times, especially, if you keep in mind the high average age of the common ROCK HARD FESTIVAL goer. Otherwise, I agree with the foreword.

[Psycho] We had this effect already several times. As more expensive the headliner(s) are, as less edgy is the rest of the line-up. This is a thin line organizers of a festival have to walk. The numbers of attendees was visibly less than the last couple of years. If that works, we will see. Of course, this had also a positive effect: there was hardly ever a queue or throngs, insofar partly overstrained staff did not create some itself at the food booths.

[BRT] The “weak billing” is surely a matter of view. I’m sure there have been enough fans celebrating every single headliner to the max. Yes, I myself would have loved to see more top-class acts, other ones too. Even then, the naggers would have reported. You cannot please everybody. However, I think this year’s line-up was a good mixture with great bands and some surprises. There should have tidbits for everybody. Sure, Death, Thrash and Black Metal bands were underrepresented…

[Dajana] From an organizational point, not that much has changed. The price for the 3-days-festival-pass has slightly increased - the daily tickets did not. The drinks were upgraded to 0.5l cups for 5 Euro for beer, Fanta and Coke; water 4 Euro, all of them with 1 Euro deposit. Cocktails have increased and food too. There was a new and pure vegan food booth with huge tasty doners for 5.90 Euro, which was bigger, richer in content and cheaper than the Asia noodles for 6 Euro. The second RHF-parking at Gelsenbergstrasse for 5 a day has stood the test, now with a 3-day-ticket. Cool.
[Psycho] Merch pricing remained the same too.

[Dajana] Last but not least we would like to say THANK YOU to the festival makers, to the Rock Hard Magazine, to all the helping hands behind the scene, :: CCS Security ::, cleaner and lavatory attendants. And we would like to say THANK YOU to all bands for another great Pentecost festival weekend :)

story • Psycho, BRT, Öko, Terry, Dajana • pics © Dajana & Dajana Winkel • Photography