[Dajana] And we're back on the last day of our first Summer Open Air. We were in the arena on time and the gang looked relatively…
[Sui] …fit. Apart from the obligatory tiredness at the beginning of the 3rd day. It was probably also due to the fact that no one really got smashed the day before. Somehow the beer seemed very thin, it just me?
[Psycho] I'm afraid it always tastes like this...
Instead of the predicted cloudiness, there was permanent sunshine and sunburn guarantee on the last day, which, according to the weather service, made the 24° C feel significantly warmer. But that was probably not the reason that the amphitheater was so empty again. It could even be that there were fewer people there on Sunday than on Friday – can't remember that this had ever happened before. The anger about the sound disaster at Testament is still palpable. Especially because the sound of all the other bands ranged from acceptable up to really good. I don't understand how something like this can happen...
:: pics :: IRON FATE ::
[Psycho] :: IRON FATE :: were announced as fare for friends of old Queensrÿche. The opener Crimson Messiah was way too heavy for that and would have much better fitted on Agent Steel's Unstoppable Force. The rest of the song material tended in that direction, with the band relying heavily on the singing and entertainment talents of their singer Denis. There's definitely still room for improvement, but on the whole it was a convincing performance that should have brought some new fans. Definitely the best opener this year.
[Sui] The clichéd band name didn't raise my hopes for a festival highlight. But that's how you can fool yourself! IRON FATE delivered a terrific opener gig. Heavier than Queensrÿche, but going in that direction through the singing alone, the band was convincing across the board. Singer "Iron Ivan" doesn't have to shy away from a direct comparison with Geoff Tate, as he impressively proved in the Queensrÿche cover Walk In The Shadows at the end of the set.
[Dajana] Queensrÿche came to my mind as soon as I heard the first notes and I totally celebrated IRON FATE. Walk In The Shadows actually got me goosebumps. The band is definitely one to watch out for. Great opener!
Band: Denis "Iron Ivan" Brosowski (vox), Harms Wendler (git), Oliver von Daak (git), Sven Mnich (bass), Kai Ludwig (drums)
Setlist: Crimson Messiah, Hellish Queen, Lightning Bolt, Malleus Maleficarum, Strangers (In My Mind), We Rule The Night, Walk In The Shadows (Queensrÿche cover)
:: pics :: UNDERTOW ::
[Psycho] The introductory description of :: UNDERTOW :: didn't really fit either - the guys didn't sound that much like Crowbar. The whole thing had a rather thrashy side, with quieter nuances interspersed again and again, but always with a tasteful heaviness in the riffs. To be honest I had never heard of the band before, but I really liked what was on offer. I have to listen again...
[Sui] For UNDERTOW I wrote down the catchphrase “wrecking ball”. Meant in the best sense of the word! If the band, who describes its style as Groove Metal, is actually going more in the direction of Crowbar, then they have definitely packed their heaviest tracks for the ROCK HARD FESTIVAL. They also knew how to convince all along the line and keep the mood in the audience high.
[BRT] Well, there was quite a bit of Crowbar in it, but it was much faster, thrashy and hardcore. Actually not bad, but at the moment it was just nothing that enthralled me. Unfortunately.
Band: Joachim "Joschi" Baschin (vox, git), Markus "Brandy" Brand (git), Thomas Jentsch (bass), Andreas "Hundi" Hund (bass), Oliver Rieger (drums)
Setlist: File, On Fire, Still Waiting, Shadows, Call Of The Sin, Everember, Three Double Chime, Crawler
:: pics :: WUCAN ::
[Dajana] Ah,:: WUCAN ::, had them on my live show bucket list for quite some time. BRT warmly recommended them to me. Now I could finally experience what they are about.
[Sui] Dresden-based WUCAN were warmly recommended to me by Nocturnal Hall colleague BRT as Retro Rock in the best sense of the word. And what can I say: Even if they fell even more out of the usual ROCK HARD FESTIVAL band-frame than Nestor, I found them just terrific. Superficially, of course, this can be attributed to the cheerful singer and multi-instrumentalist Francis. This woman seemed to play 3 instruments at the same time and everything at a very high level. In addition to the lead vocals, she also found time and air for flute, rhythm guitar, a bit of keyboards and an exotic instrument called the Theremin, the only musical instrument in the world that is played without physical contact. The timbres that this woman brought out were just incredible. That this didn't end in an acoustic chaos was due to an absolutely down-to-earth rhythm section. Above all, the bassist laid a solid foundation with his almost stoic, but still very musical bass lines. With the cover Zwischen Liebe und Zorn by Klaus Renft, the band also paid tribute to East Germany's musical past. Klaus Renft was one of the outstanding musicians of the GDR, who liked to mess with the authorities and was temporarily banned from performing as a result. For me personally the greatest discovery of the RHF 2023.
[BRT] I have WUCAN records at home, but somehow I rarely listen to them. Strange, but good that the band performed live and put on an absolutely outstanding show. This band is likeable, down-to-earth, offers something for the eyes and the music nerd. I'm sure that was 56 years of music history presented in just under 40 minutes. Just terrific, and I will certainly watch it live again as soon as possible. And listen to the records at home, I promise.
[Dajana] It was refreshingly different and Madame Tobolsky was on fire. Overall maybe a bit too quiet for such a festival. Nevertheless: Chapeau!
Band: Francis Tobolsky (vox, git, flute), Tim George (git), Alex (bass), Philip Knöfel (drums)
Setlist: Kill The King, Fette Deutsche, Far And Beyond, Far And Beyond (Until We Meet Again), Don't Break The Oath, Zwischen Liebe und Zorn (Klaus Renft Combo cover), Physical Boundaries
:: pics :: LEGION OF THE DAMNED ::
[Dajana] *Yawns*… I wouldn't say that :: LEGION OF THE DAMNED :: are bad, it's just like everyone's Death Metal. Besides, I had already seen them live last year. What I found weird was to announce them as a pure Thrash Metal band. Even if it came from the "enchanting Mandy"...
[Psycho] Yes, LEGION OF THE DAMNED were synonymous with cultivated bludgeoning monotony until their four-year creative hiatus. However, they don't master the art of understatement, as the (awesome) stage setting looked a lot like a headliner, even before 4 pm. What I've heard so far from the forthcoming album The Poison Chalice sounds much more differentiated than expected, which seems to be confirmed by the two new songs played. Apart from that, we got the usual fare, experienced in a positive sense and quite motivated. But the rest of the song material just sounded too similar. Let's wait and see how the band will continue to develop.
[Sui] And on we went with the contrast program. After the subtle sounds of Wucan, LEGION OF THE DAMNED let the cudgel out of the sack. The relentless thrash fire created the first mosh pits of the day and blew through the auditory canals properly. However, the song material was a bit monotonous in the long run, so that the first signs of fatigue set in at the end.
[BRT] Not as boring as usual, but we're just talking about nuances here. Boah, 45 minutes of tuneless full-throttle thrashing, no thanks.
[Seb] Maybe I am not harsh enough on them just because of my preferences and LEGION OF THE DAMNED being one of the few "harder" bands at RHF 2023. But, for me, this was the seriously the second best show of the day.
Sure, it wasn't exactly a demonstration of much variety and the band have never been known to push the boundaries of the genre, but I actually happened to like some of the songs from the upcoming album and the rest was just fine. And not only the crowd seemed to enjoy LEGION OF THE DAMNED a lot: One of the freighters on the canal killed the engines so they could listen for a bit longer ;-) .
Band: Maurice Swinkels (vox), Twan van Geel (git), Fabian Verweij (git), Harold Gielen (bass), Erik Fleuren (drums)
Setlist: Legion Of The Damned, Slaughtering The Pigs, Beheading Of The Godhead, Son Of The Jackal, Palace Of Sin, Contamination, Undead Stillborn, Doom Priest, Dark Coronation, Feel The Blade, The Poison Chalice
:: pics :: ENFORCER ::
[Psycho] Actually, I kind of like :: ENFORCER ::. Their heavy metal, shrouded in plenty of retro spirit, was tightly played and more than varied. Usually I don't have a problem with high-pitched voices either, but mainman Olof got on my nerves with his singing after 3-4 songs at the latest. Does he really talk like that? He usually hits the right note, but I find his voice very annoying. However, the crowd didn't let that stop themselves from celebrating the band properly; the guys also loved it and didn't want to leave the stage. Two encores were given, even though the stage manager wanted them to stop...
[Sui] Classic Heavy Metal, with proper playing mood and commitment was given by the Swedes ENFORCER. The boys are not afraid of clichés, on the contrary, they feed on them. And that's why the surprise-less set was completely uninteresting for me. Only the Mickey Mouse vocals stood out a bit and were annoying at some point. To play two encores instead of one, I thought was cheeky.
[BRT] Completely overrated band in my opinion. Terrible singer. Okay, the live performance is metal to the max, or hairspray rock to the max, depending on which focus the band is serving that moment, you decide. I was served fairly quickly too. We won't become friends in this life, but that's okay.
Band: Olof Wikstrand (vox, bass), Jonathan Nordwall (git), Garth Condit (bass), Jonas Wikstrand (drums)
Setlist: Destroyer, Undying Evil, From Beyond, Death Rides This Night, Zenith Of The Black Sun, Coming Alive, Below The Slumber, Mesmerized By Fire, Running In Menace, Take Me Out Of This Nightmare, Katana, Midnight Vice
:: pics :: TANKARD ::
[Dajana] *Yawns*… the second I'm sooo out of fun/beer/fantasy/cartoon metal bands. Can't stand them, nor can I flabby potbellies. Timeout.
[Psycho] Damn, all male editors of the NH have to go to the gym on time (and regularly) next year... And Andy isn't allowed to bring so much beer anymore...
Jokes aside: Gerre is and remains one of the best solo entertainers in German metal, the atmosphere in the round was correspondingly splendid. The rhythm section even made a very sober impression and formed a solid Thrash foundation (great bass sound by the way...), with which Andreas on the guitar often seemed to be lost. Sometimes he even made you think he was playing a different setlist... But that didn't stop the crowd from feeling really animated and roaring along, with, as usual, old classics like The Morning After, Chemical Invasion and the nightcap Empty Tankard getting the most crowds. They were on.
[Sui] Beer-soaked Teutonic Thrash by :: TANKARD :: - it feels like there is no RHF without Gerre and his backing band. Like Sodom before them, TANKARD thrashed their way through their classics, culminating in the inevitable Empty Tankard. For this, Gerre brought his singer colleague Sabina Classen from Holy Moses on stage. Fun without pretense, apart from the somewhat sloppy guitarist, TANKARD reliably delivered what is expected of them. At least Andy and I definitely didn't have a beer belly problem this year...
[BRT] Yes, I got it. Meddl, party, beer, good mood and so on. TANKARD can do that well, no question. They have my respect, but I'm not the target group and I can't get anything out of it. It also bores me musically. But well, there are enough people who are enthusiastic about it, so they do something right. [
Seb] I haven't seen TANKARD live on stage for easily 15 years - hadn't Gerre lost a lot of weight at some point since? Of course TANKARD play more or less one and the same hop-around-thrash-metal-song with minor variations in structure and topic for an entire hour, but that does not matter much: Open air and a beer in hand and you'll enjoy their energetic show more often than you will not. The audience and TANKARD always get along very well and in retrospect, this was without doubt the "real" main event of day three in terms of movement in front of the stage.
Band: Andreas „Gerre“ Geremia (vox), Andreas Gutjahr (git), Frank Thorwarth (bass), Olaf Zissel (drums)
Setlist: Rectifier, The Morning After, Ex-Fluencer, Rapid Fire (A Tyrant's Elegy), Rules For Fools, One Foot In The Grave, Octane Warriors, Chemical Invasion, Zombie Attack, Beerbarians, A Girl Called Cerveza, (Empty) Tankard
:: pics :: KATATONIA ::
[Psycho] :: KATATONIA :: were supposed to be my highlight of the day, but unfortunately nothing came of it. On the one hand, the band seemed strangely unprepared (merch forgotten at home, no backdrop), on the other they only played as a four-piece (Blakkheim was missing, his parts mostly came from tape), and the sound man didn't like them either. The band should be easy to mix, but Jonas Renske's vocals were permanently too low, and he was difficult to understand even during his announcements. But the music of KATATONIA lives in particular from the emotional singing of the frontman, so it's no wonder that the right atmosphere didn't arise. By the way, not with the band either. Somehow the whole performance seemed quite bloodless - in the direction of a mandatory program, where you've already been there... For me, definitely the biggest disappointment of all three days.
[Seb] If I had to summarize my thought in only one sentence, it would be: That show did not push forward, but instead went sideways. It was a strangely uninspired gig: not only was the audience more and more lulled into a lethargic state, at one point even vocalist Jonas forgot where in the set KATATONIA actually were and announced the wrong title. I can only guess why this all went wrong, it certainly did not help that KATATONIA not only lost all their merchandise and backdrop on the way to the RHF but also missed one of their band members (IIRC bass came from tape?). Or maybe these things were just symptoms of deeper problems within the band. Regardless of the actual reason, this was a disappointment even if one, like me, did not expect much in the first place. Even if KATATONIA had a better day, it is still beyond me why anyone would book them, or for that matter, a similar band for the co-headliner spot of the final day: Instead of creating a bit of excitement and giving the crowd some extra energy for a final push, their music rather works as a "downer". If you have to have them on a more prominent spot due to the big name (or better only lesser names involved on the given day) you should rethink your billing and/or running order. They belong in the spot where everyone can use an hour to relax and prepare for the finale ;-)
[Sui] Rarely has a band name been as programmatic as KATATONIA. I can understand that on the last day, especially after the Thrash wrecking ball Tankard, you want to give the audience a breather before the headliner. But apparently they wanted to put us into a coma. After that I was completely worn off.
[BRT] Compared to the furious (!) PartySan 2022 performance, KATATONIA at the RHF were unfortunately a lukewarm breath. The sound was mediocre, Renske mumbled incomprehensible stuff and actually only bass player Niklas Sandin seemed motivated. There was nothing wrong with the songs, but somehow it didn't fit. Bloodless hits the nail on the head, a real shame because KATATONIA are always a great alternative in the metal circus.
[Dajana] KATATONIA are actually a great band, even at festivals with sun and such. I have no idea what was going (wr)on(g). The guys came straight from a festival in Greece, maybe their stuff got lost at the airport, it happens quite often (well, I think they would have communicated that as well). But yeah, the band seemed to be kidnapped from the airstrip and dragged to the RHF without knowing why they were here. Blakkheim, by the way, rarely plays live with the band and is usually replaced. On their January run, where KATATONIA were light-years better, he was replaced by Nico Elgstrand formerly of Entombed A.D. A very disappointing show indeed. And actually I should write here now: Yawn... the third...
Band: Jonas Renkse (vox), Anders „Blakkheim“ Nyström (git), Roger Öjersson (git), Niklas „Nille“ Sandin (bass), Daniel Moilanen (drums)
Setlist: Austerity, Colossal Shade, Lethean, Birds, Behind The Blood, Forsaker, Opaline, My Twin, Atrium, Old Heart Falls, Soil's Song, July, Evidence
:: pics :: MICHAEL SCHENKER GROUP ::
[Dajana] The :: MICHAEL SCHENKER GROUP :: could already be seen live at the ROCK HARD FESTIVAL in 2015, so to speak, just in the Temple Of Rock version. Was a cool show at the time, only with too much solo stuff…
[Psycho] And then the day was almost over again, and nothing exciting had happened yet... Michael Schenker himself was in a really good mood when he came on stage – quite a feat, he had one half of the stage to himself and a permanent spot on him, while the rest of the band often stood in the dark on the other corner of the stage. It looked very hierarchical and to be honest it wasn't necessary - based on the sprawling leads and the double name dropping in the stage decoration, everyone would have noticed who it was about anyway. All of this could be seen as strange, but musically there was still nothing to complain about. The band was great and well-rehearsed, the song selection was quite tasteful and interestingly mixed (Doctor, Doctor already in third place). With Ronnie Romero there was a strong singer at the mic, who, however, visibly would have liked to be the real front man. MSG (or MSR from my point of view) seemed much more alive than e.g. the Scorpions (just to stay in the family). My respect. Nothing I would listen to at home but perfectly done for the type of music.
[Sui] After Brian Downey, MICHAEL SCHENKER was the next Hard Rock veteran who already celebrated his greatest successes in the 70s. The guitar hero was also in a good mood, but struggled with sound problems at the beginning. His band was in no way inferior to the zeal of their leader. Notable assets included bassist Barend Courbois and vocalist Ronnie Romero. It was somewhat ungrateful that now spectators left the round - the fate of most Sunday headliners. At least the band kept me at the venue half an hour longer than planned. Not everyone can do that.
[BRT] Well, MICHAEL SCHENKER has certainly had too much of a few substances in his life. A bigger ego is also hard to find on this planet. But he's got it, no question. We don't need to talk about his skills on the guitar here, the man is top-notch, he also wrote great songs and they really enthuse, even if the batteries are already empty on a Sunday evening. In addition, he has an absolutely outstanding singer, Ronnie Romero, who delivers an outright top performance here. I hardly have heard other singers that came closer to Dio. MSG offered a great cross-section of Schenker's career, the amount of hits was really impressive.
[Dajana] In fact, Ronnie Romero quit right after the festival gig and served Mr. Schenker his notice, as heard in an interview three days later ;)
Why Mr. Schenker wore a fur cap at 23°C and blazing sun was beyond me. Well, fashion is debatable. And maybe he has sensitive ears… ;)
[Seb] An entire band as a backdrop for some guitar masturbation – the man’s got it all ;-) I was actually quite happy about MSG being the Sunday headliner, got to be home one hour earlier than the other days. Yawn.
Band: Ronnie Romero (vox), Michael Schenker (git), Steve Mann (git, keys), Barend Courbois (bass), Bodo Schopf (drums)
Setlist: Into The Arena (MSG), Cry For The Nations (MSG), Doctor Doctor (UFO), Looking For Love (MSG), Lights Out (UFO), Red Sky (MSG), Shoot Shoot (UFO), Sail The Darkness, Let It Roll (UFO), Emergency, Natural Thing (UFO), Armed And Ready (MSG), We Are The Voice (MSF), Assault Attack (MSG), Rock Bottom (UFO) // Too Hot To Handle (UFO), Only You Can Rock Me (UFO)
[Dajana] The amphitheater was badly empty all day and emptied even faster in the evening. This indeed looked quite sad and should be heavy in the organizers' stomachs. The NH crew also set off in good time. The day parking lot was already emptied. And so we left with a wistful look... |
