The Wacken 2010 Experience: By Doug Kasper Pre-Party in Hamburg: Day 1 (August 2, 2010) Pre-Party in Hamburg: Day 2 (August 3, 2010) Wacken 2010: Day 0 (August 4, 2010) Wacken 2010: Day 1 (August 5, 2010) Wacken 2010: Day 2 (August 6, 2010) Wacken 2010: Day 3 (August 7, 2010) Part five of a six part article I'm writing on my experience at Wacken Open Air 2010.  For those of you that don't know, Wacken Open Air is a three day metal music festival that is held annually in Wacken, Germany.  My friend Denis first made the trip in 2006 and we both made the trip in 2008 and again made the trip this year, 2010 for the 21st running of W:O:A.  For those that weren't able to go this year, or have never made the trip, I hope this article will give you an idea of what it is like to go to Wacken and, hopefully, inspire you to make the journey yourself one year. Bands I plan on seeing today are Dew Scented, Amorphis, Voivod, Endstille, Lizzy Borden, Arch Enemy, Slayer, Anvil and Atrocity. At least that was the plan. Woke up about 9 am this day and definitely slept better than the night before with the sleeping pad and extra blankets.  Hit the shower, ate some breakfast and got ready to head to the festival grounds to see the first band of the day.  The festival grounds open at 10 am (an hour before bands start) but someone forget to tell the meatheads (security) at the press area to open it at 10 am as well and they didn't open it until 10:58.  Fortunately once you get through the press area and over the bridge that connects the press area and the festival grounds you are only a hundred feet from the Black Stage. Dew Scented was first band to play on this day. My friend Dave is a big fan of this band and definitely recommended that I see them.  From what I know about them, they are a German thrash band and that was all I needed to know to be sold on them as Thrash Metal is my favorite sub genre of metal.  I made it to the Black Stage with a few minutes to spare before Dew Scented started their set.   Being the first band of the day they had quite a bit of an audience.  Being a new fan of theirs I couldn't tell you what songs they played but I really enjoyed their set and I am certainly not surprised that they had a very large audience regardless of having the worst time slot on the day.  I will definitely have to buy some of their albums and hopefully will get to see them again.         (photos of Dew Scented, click to enlarge) After Dew Scented, we moved over to the True Metal stage to see Amorphis.  Last time I went to Wacken I came away with five new bands that I had not really heard of but are now among my favorite bands.   Amorphis is definitely one of those bands for this year.  I had not heard of them at all before Wacken but after talking with people in the beer garden yesterday I was advised that this was a band I needed to see.  I was not disappointed.  I really enjoyed their set and their music and will have to get some of their albums.  After Amorphis, I wasn't scheduled to see anyone until Voivod played the Party Stage at 3:30 so we headed back to the beer garden were we had agreed to meet up with Jessica at 1 pm.             (photos of Amorphis, click to enlarge) We met up with Jessica and hung out at the beer garden for a while drinking.  As we had quite a few hours until Voivod we decided to head to the campsite where Jess and I Ryan were camped.  On the way we hit up this vendor that sold Pommes Frites (French Fries) with curry flavored ketchup that Jess had mentioned the day before were really good.  She wasn't wrong, they were really good and the curry flavored ketchup certainly made them better.  We ran into Ryan at the Fries vendor and headed to their campsite.  On the way over I found out, the hard way, that some of the inclines and declines between the different camping areas tend to get smooth and slick as more and more people walk over them and I slipped on one and landed on my ass pretty fast and hard.  Unfortunately, some of my fries and beer went flying (most of the beer landed back on me) but (knowing what is important in life) I did not drop either and just got quite a bit of dirt up and down my arms and legs to the point where I probably fit in with that campsite much more.  Showering is not metal you know.  They actually sell a huge towel at Wacken that says just that in German. We get to their campsite a few minutes later and met most of the people they are camping with. In addition to many tents making up the whole area they are occupying, they had an exhibit size tent, with a “borrowed” a table from the beer garden that just about everyone was sitting around and drinking. There is definitely much more partying and, in general, much more nakedness in these camping areas than ours.  We were just hanging out talking about the goings on for the past few days and their experience camping in this area when these two Swedish guys show up that were not wearing any clothes what so ever.  One of them came over and wanted to give Denis a hug and although I probably would have literally died laughing from the look on Denis' face while hugging a naked man, he declined. Both of them sat down and I heard the comment that one of the chairs they were using would need to be burned after he got done with it.  I probably wouldn't want to use a chair that had someone's naked junk touching it either and would probably advise that same course of action.  A few minutes later another guy decided he couldn't be outdone by the Swedish and was going to get naked as well. That and the two Swedish guys were enjoying each other's company in ways that I did not need to see so I took that as my cue to exit stage left.         (click to enlarge) Denis decided to head back to the campground and Jessica and I made our way to the party stage to check out Voivod.  I had known of this band for years and even more so recently because Jason Newstead joined the band from 2002-2005 and also because of my friend Armando who was, and is, a big fan of Denis D'Amour (Piggy) who passed away in 2005. TheVoivod sound has changed over the years but, for the most part, they are a thrash band and how could I pass up on an opportunity to see a thrash band at Wacken.  They were really good and have made the list of bands that I like much more now that I've seen them live. Surprisingly this was the only band that I saw on the Party Stage the entire festival.             (Photos of Voivod, click to enlarge) After Voivod Jessica and I headed back to the beer garden and didn't even get a chance to sit down before we were talking to these three brothers from (I think) Germany about metal (imagine that), how I got press access which lead into a discussion about moshking.com and some other stuff I don't remember.  We talked to them for about 20 minutes before they headed off to see The BossHoss, a Country Trash Punk Rock band that is out of Berlin.  Jessica and I hung out at the beer garden for a bit and then headed back to the Black Stage to see Endstille. We caught the end of The BossHoss set and I have to give them credit for making country music entertaining.  During the last song of their set, Jess and I started square dancing.  I'm sure we were the only people in front of the black stage, waiting for Endstille, and square dancing to The BossHoss. That was awesome.         (click to enlarge) Endstille took the stage shortly thereafter and for a black metal band (not my favorite sub genre of metal) I really enjoyed their set.  They played about 12 songs total and towards the end of their set had two different guest singers come on stage.  As I was very close to the stage, I was able to get some good shots of the band as well as the guest singers especially the first one who actually jumped off the stage and came right up to the barrier and sang from there.  I plan on writing a more thorough review of their set so look for that in the near future. After Endstille I had planned on going to see Lizzy Borden on the W.E.T. Stage but we ended up blowing that off and just sat in front of the Black Stage to wait for Arch Enemy to play at 8:30.  Denis had joined us at that point and we just sat talking with each other and just about anyone else in the vicinity.  It was really dusty but I was already covered in dirt from my spill earlier so I didn't care.  While waiting for Arch Enemy we heard an announcement over the PA telling people that circle pits, crowd surfing and wall's of death are not allowed at Wacken.  Ummm, right, like making that announcement is going to get anyone to stop.  Of course, it had the opposite effect but I'm sure the announcement was made solely from a CYA point of view.                     (Photos of Enstille, click to enlarge) Arch Enemy hit the stage at 8:30 and I had never seen so many people crowd surfing at the same time. There were also multiple pits going on simultaneously.  I didn't see anyone do a wall of death but with many pits going on at the same time, there really is no point in stopping that action just for a wall of death.  Jessica and I had made it pretty close to the barrier and it was literally one crowd surfer after another coming overhead.   They hit the stage with The Immortal and went into Revolution Begins and finished their set with We Will Rise before coming back for an encore of Nemesis and Fields of Desolation.  With regard to Arch Enemy, I never really heard of them up until about five years ago but they are definitely one of my top five favorite bands.  In the past five years I've seen them live every chance I've gotten and they never disappoint and this time is no exception. I'll be doing a separate review on Arch Enemy so look for that in the near future.                 (Photos of Arch Enemy, click to enlarge) After Arch Enemy, Jess and I head to the Wackinger Stage to see Equilibrium.  I had plan on seeing Grave Digger but I was told that they were a good band and that I should see them so I skipped Grave Digger (I have seen them before) and went to see Equilibrium instead.  To get to that stage we had to leave the main stage festival area and head over to the Wackinger Village to the Wackinger Stage.  We get out just fine but as soon as we get past the beer garden, totally clusterfuck.  I had never heard of Equilibrium before but apparently they are very big in Germany and because of this trying to get to the Wackinger Village was a major pain in the ass as many other people were also trying to get into that area to see Equilibrium. We finally made it into the village but it was just as bad as there were over 2,000 people to see them at a stage that really only has room for 1,000. This band, at the least, should have been on the W.E.T. Stage and, more likely, the Party Stage as they were drawing many people from all four other stages to see them.  We eventually weaseled our way to within five feet of the stage which gave us a much better view. While it was a total pain in the ass to get to this stage, it was worth it.  Equilibrium also plays folk metal but unlike Svarstot they blend the folk music with symphonic metal while Swarstot blends in death and black metal.  I enjoyed Equilibrium much more than I did Svarstot.  I was really impressed with their music and enjoyed their set immensely which is actually saying a lot considering I had never heard of them prior to coming to Wacken.  With the size of the audience that Equilibrium had and the amazing crowd reaction I can't imagine they won't be back at Wacken in the near future but don't expect to see them on a small stage.  Anything less than the Party Stage would be a crime and I would not be surprised to see them on the Black Stage or True Metal stage.  I watched about 45 minutes of their set before heading back to the Black Stage to get a spot for Slayer.  I thought there would be more of a crowd heading in the festival grounds for Slayer but apparently everyone was already there so I got there much faster than I expected.  I probably could have stayed at Equilibrium for a few more songs.                 (Photos of Equilibrium, click to enlarge) Last time I came to Germany when we were hanging out at the Ballroom Hamburg they had played Angel of Death. I was outside at the time but I just had to run into the club and head bang with my fellow metalheads to my favorite band of all time, IN GERMANY.  That was a surreal experience and one that I didn't think could be topped, until now.  Not only am I going to get to head bang to Slayer but I will be doing it while they play LIVE, in GERMANY.  Of all the bands that I have wanted to see here at Wacken, Slayer, of course, was at the top of the list and here I am just moments away from them hitting the stage. As it was now dark the metal bull skull and horns had been lit.  This makes the atmosphere that much more electric for Slayer.  They hit the stage with the fury that is totally expected of Slayer with World Painted Blood and went straight into Hate Worldwide. Now it was time for a little war, War Ensemble.  Anytime Slayer plays you are going to see pits and with an audience this large, huge pits but nothing could prepare you for the size of the pit once they roared into War Ensemble, holy fuckin' shit. This pit must have been about three miles wide and contain 50,000 people.  Not really but you get the idea.  From one song to the next it just got better and better.  The finished off their set with Angel of Death and then it was all over.  I couldn't believe it at that point. Hadn't they just started their set? I can't complain though as I just saw Slayer IN GERMANY. I can now die happy. I've seen Slayer many, many times and this show will definitely stand out in my mind as one of the best. I will be doing a full review of their performance so look for that in the future. After Slayer I had planned on seeing Anvil at 12:45 and then Atrocity at 2:00 am to finish out the day but I was so exhausted at this point that I went back to the campground and fell asleep.         (Photos of Slayer, click to enlarge) Continue to Wacken 2010: Day 3 Photos and Review by: Doug Kasper Event: Wacken Open Air Locations: Wacken, Germany