This year’s Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival made it
worth every dime that the fan shelled out. In my opinion this year’s tour was
like eating at a buffet of music. You could take a sample of Industrial add a
piece of Deathcore and top it off with a slice of Thrash metal on your plate.
Whether you are a new fan or a 30 year veteran of the music scene you left a
show that finally made you full and not hungry an hour later.
For the new school fan the Sumerian Record’s and
Jagermeister stage is the perfect place to mosh your afternoon away. With bands
like Whitechapel, The Devil Wears Prada and As I Lay Dying on the Jager Stage
to Upon A Burning Body, Dirtfedd on the Sumerian Stage. It was the perfect
first plate of food at our buffet.
For fans like me who can remember seeing Metallica in a club
of less than 200 people back in the day the main stage was a metal head’s wet
dream. The first band Asking Alexander taught us that the new breed of band can
bring it. Then we get to the good part Motorhead followed by Slayer and
Slipknot. And like anyone who loves a buffet style meal we are tired, full and
want to get home and take our pants off and reminisce about the delicacy we
were just served.
Now it wasn’t a perfect meal there was a miss or two. After
a 30 year career Anthrax deserved to be on the main stage instead of Asking
Alexandria. I have really never gotten a clear cut answer why Anthrax headlined
the Jager stage instead of opening the main but it did leave a bad taste in my
mouth. The festival grounds had plenty to offer in free giveaways and swag and a
performance by the Metal Mulisha
freestyle motocross team.
Whoever booked this year’s show pulled of an amazing feat by
giving every metal head no matter what their age a concert that hand’s down
beats any incarnation of past Mayhem tours and if you missed it or skipped it
you will look back and regret it as some of the bands are getting older and you
just never know when you will see such an amazing group of bands put together
on one show. Look I’ll be the first to say that the music festival scene in
America is not what you’ll get in Europe. It doesn’t have that moment in your
life feeling you get when you attend a metal fest over there. But what it was
is a killer stop on a brutal tour that will leave any metal fan happy and sated
till next year’s show.
Sick Sixx
