Since last year Finland is yet another big rock and metal event richer. The Rock Fest immediately caught the attention of people all over the country and far beyond those borders with big names like Rammstein and Evanescence gracing the line-up. Despite quite a few obvious flaws and bugs in the organisation, it was an overwhelming succes and they quickly announced an even bigger event of this time 4 days on a brand new location. Of course we had to be there to see if they improved on certain things and if this would be a legendary festival in the making…

Day 2

We got to the festival area on the second day bright and early to catch the very first band playing that day on the main stage: the Swedish fantasy horde Twilight Force (***). These guys brought a fresh wind to the power/symphonic metal scene by taking those typical epic fantasy elements and blowing them up even more than ever. D&D fans and fantasy geeks overall were in for a treat with these guys, having what looked like a representation of several of the races and classes to be found like a mage, elf, thief,… Brand new vocalist Alessandro Conti fit in like a glove looking like a brother from the Night’s Watch and overall it was a fun show to see despite the music not being completely my thing.

On the “Kivi” stage, the Finnish rockers of Shiraz Lane (****) had the honor to baptize the smaller outdoor stage with the first show of the weekend on that location. As usual and as expected, Hannes, Joel, Ana, Jani and Miki brought an energized gig of positive and bluesy hard rock. After several European tours in support of other Finnish rock bands like Lordi and Brother Firetribe and the release of their second full-length Carnival Days, they’ve shown how much they’ve grown musically and performance wise. These guys are steadily becoming a hard rock group that’ll give other bands in the genre a run for their money with their originality and genuine positive vibe!

When bringing together 3 musically talented brothers together, you get beautifully crafted rock as a result. The Finnish rock band Von Hertzen Brothers (***) played that magical music for all of us to enjoy and clearly the 3 guys were really passionate about and engulfed by their creations. It’s definitely music that I want to look into more, but for me personally the show lacked a bit of “oomph” and the music feels more like something to chill by at home with a good book. So I bailed on them after staying for a few songs to go back to catch the last part of the Shiraz Lane show at the other stage…

Next up on the main stage was rising star in the Finnish heavy metal scene Beast In Black (***1/2). Their mix of old school heavy metal with strong power metal brings quite the energy to the stage and every single member adds to that massive stage presence. Not a big surprise if you know that the band exists out of experienced guys who play(ed) with bands like Battle Beast, Amberian Dawn, U.D.O., Agonizer and more. A clearly beloved band by the fans for which they show themselves grateful throughout the shows with winks, smiles, pointing out people and so on.

Finnish rock band CMX (***) is an absolute legend in their homecountry. They’ve won several prizes and have been named Finland’s best rock band at least once. Personally I’m more a fan of their older hardcore punk material, but their more progressive and commercial rock is definitely worth listening to as well. Their show was simple, straightforward and a showcase of passion and musicianship.

Punk rock outfit Millencolin (****) was a whole different game! Lately they haven’t been able to play live much, but the Swedes have been on the forefront of the skate punk movement from the late 90’s – early 2000’s. Being around for about 20 years, they definitely haven’t lost any of their energy and gusto. Right from the beginning the kicked in hard and kept it up for the rest of the gig, throwing simply great punk rock at all of us. Classics like Olympia, Penguins & Polarbears and No Cigar all came to the stage and everyone simply loved it. I definitely felt like going home to play some old school Tony Hawk Pro Skater!

The guys from Lake Bodom are simply international legends in the metal scene. Finnish Children of Bodom (***1/2) are big players and are always up for one hell of a thrashing. And that is every time really apparent by the thunderous roar of the crowds when the guys climb the stage at the beginning of every show. They played some new stuff, they played some old school and of course classics like Are You Dead Yet?, Needled 24/7 and Hate Crew Deathroll were all present. Even though ringleader Alexi Laiho somehow came across a little bit tired or lacking some energy, it was yet again a solid show by this Finnish force of nature.

On the ‘Kilpi’ stage another popular Finnish rock band climbed the stage. Happoradio (***) brings melodic and passionate rock that is really popular in Scandinavia and their show was pretty decent. Vocalist Aki Tykki somehow reminded me somewhat of Ville Valo (HIM) with his stage presence. But honestly, we left the gig early to head to the ‘Perkele’ stage for…

… Sonata Arctica (***1/2) of course. These Finns have always an aura of positivism hanging around them and usually bring their melodic (power) metal with much vigor and energy. Another great show of the guys even though they played surprisingly enough barely any of their classics or hit songs and had more focus on their newer material.

The day before we said goodbye one last time to the Prince of Darkness himself. On the second day we got to welcome a re-energized Judas Priest (*****). Years ago they did a farewell tour themselves with the promise that they’d still make new music. That promise of new music was fulfilled at the beginning of this year with Firepower, which is a glorious return of the heavy metal legends! Going along with the release of that album, they decided to do a tour and thus here we are…

And the Priest is back, baby! Rob Halford was in excellent condition vocally and physically, not for a second showing his age and his band mates added even more power to the fire that seems to burn again within this band. I had the impression that Halford was supported a little bit by some tricks at the mixing table, but it never made it feel fake and the high-pitched parts were near flawless. The most impressing fact of the matter is that brand new tracks like Firepower, Lightning Strikes and Rising From Ruins fitted absolutely perfectly in the setlist with the classics like Breaking The Law, Painkiller and You’ve Got Another Thing Coming. Of course at the end of the regular setlist, Halford came rolling on stage on his Harley to bring Hell Bent For Leather, a classic moment that every serious metal fan should experience once in his/her lifetime! But what made us even more excited was them leaving us with the message “The Priest Will Be Back”. Something to look forward to…

For those who weren’t satisfied (or tired) yet, there were 2 so-called “after party” bands playing on the 2 smaller stages as good as every day. Sadly both bands played at the exact same time, so sometimes difficult choices had to be made. This day the choice was between the thrashers of Lost Society and the old school punkers of Klamydia. After plenty of deliberation, I decided to go for the show of the youngsters on the “Perkele” stage. Lost Society (****) has been a rising star for the past few years in Finland and when you get the chance to see them live, you quickly understand why. Their music isn’t anything new or mind-blowing, more like throwback to the good old days of thrash metal in the 80’s, but their live shows are nuclear assaults! All of the guys jump on stage with energy through the roof and don’t stop running and jumping around for a second. They remind me much of my fellow country mates of Evil Invaders and that definitely isn’t a bad thing! It was a “Riot“!

For more pictures go here.

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