Sonisphere Festival UK (July 30th -August 1st)

Posted by David Hayter on 08.04.2010

Rammstein, Iron Maiden, Alice Cooper, Motley Crue, Slayer, Fear Factory, Sick Of It All, Therapy? and many, many, many more rock Knebworth House to its core.



Background:

Sonisphere is a new international festival in its second year of operation. It works a series of festival dates all across Europe, with a variety of different acts. Most of the events were headlined by Metallica this year, but the Spanish variant had Faith No More, and the UK version had Iron Maiden and Rammstein. This was my first Sonisphere; I was convinced to go after hearing rave reviews of last years event and having been impressed by a stellar line up. It’s generally perceived to be a metal festival, but the organizers have been careful to state that it’s a “music” and “rock” festival first and foremost. They wouldn’t tie their hands and wouldn’t deny anyone (even Interpol they famously joked). So this amongst the likes of Slayer and Anthrax lie Pendulum, Gary Numan and erh...Family Force 5.

Organization and Atomsphere:

The organization of Sonisphere is simply superb. I can’t speak highly enough about the staggered two mainstage system. Which means you can watch all four headliners, and see all the bands that play both the Apollo and Saturn stages. When I heard large crowds would be walking back and forth between two stages all day long, I imagined a nightmarish mess of people bumping into each other, but there was nothing of the sort. The site is superbly laid out so there is no sound overlapping issues and no crush. The shops, food stalls, supermarkets, and after hours entertainment are all top notch, and the festival genuinely feels spacious. There was one failing however; the security. While they were very helpful to me personally (I had the wrong wrist band and they didn’t throw me out), the fact that they didn’t search anyone properly was a real issue. I was asked "do you have any glass bottles", I said “no”, I was asked "do you have any drugs", I giggled and said “no “ while smiling, and he still didn’t check me. I wasn’t actually carrying any weed but you’d like to think they’d take their job more seriously.

Now the atmosphere was tremendous. Sonisphere drew an incredibly friendly, musically knowledgeable crowd. You could sit down and have a conversation with practically anyone. This crowd was not only friendly but they were intense too. When it came time for the circle pits the crowd exploded and threw everything they had into the action. The campsite was quiet and friendly, it had the usual South Park shouting games but it was pretty much a pleasure to stay in. I can understand if you prefer a rowdy campsite but for me and many thousands of others; the site was pretty much ideal. With a few exceptions there was no “dickhead” behaviour, it seemed to be a crowd who had been to gigs before and wanted to have a good time. Quite frankly compared to Reading it was a genuine treat no 16-18 year old kids running around celebrating their exams by going out of their way to abuse and annoying their fellow festival goers. A+ stuff.

The Bands:

Friday – 30th July

Now before I delve right into the action I should point out that the Friday is a special day with limited ticket sales and only uses the Saturn and smaller stages, with the Apollo stage being opened the following day. It’s meant to be a fun party day to get everyone in the mood for the weekend.

Delain (The Saturn Stage) opened the proceedings bringing Sonisphere its first (but not its last) taste of European operatic/symphonic metal. The Dutchmen lead by the charming Charlotte Wessels blasted through a polished and competently executed setlist that served as a smooth wake up call to a bunch of exhausted festival goers who had spent the last four hour travelling and erecting tents. Most festival goers seemed to be more interested in better food and booze but by the end of their set Delain had turned a lot of sceptical scowls into approving nods.



Turisas (The Saturn Stage) were not in the mood to indulge a tired crowd and demanded pits and pogoing from the off. Sound issues plagued their set with the lead vocals being practically inaudible at times, yet the band still attacked the set with vigour. Their energy and enthusiasm paid off as they soon got the crowd moving and dancing (badly) to their brand of morose Viking Metal. They were too much fun to be denied, even when teased and taunted the crowd by half starting “Rasputin” it was all taken in good spirits. After blasting through an “interesting” cover of Black Sabbath’s “Supernauts” they soon had the crowd in the palm of their hands and sent the crowd into a frenzy with a rambunctious rendition of “Battle Metal”.

Yes thirty years on and Europe (The Saturn Stage) are still going strong. Proving that hair metal is firmly back in vogue as they draw the biggest crowd of the day so far. Their set meandered between bland dirges (“Last Look At Eden” & “The Beast”) and surprising thrills (“Rock The Night” & “Love Is Not The Enemy”) but it’s of course “The Final Countdown” that sends the crowd into ecstasy. Certainly not the greatest set of the weekend but a satisfying one none the less.

Black Spiders (The Bohemia Tent) are a prefect contrast to Europe; young, fresh and exhilarating. Blazing through their tracks to a surprisingly huge and excited crowd. They more than live up the hype with interesting and infectious arrangements. It saddens me greatly that I only caught the very end of their set as Europe over ran. After Black Spiders we’re treated to Bizarre Shizzle as the a lethal glad lady whipped the holy hell out of a poor (or lucky depending on your perspective) guy.



The deity of synth pop, the godfather of industrial and the self styled forerunner of trance Gary Numan (The Saturn Stage) is the next big act to grace the mainstage. He appeared to be on a mission to prove his relevance and importance to contemporary music. He beefs up his classic synth pop sounds with dark, churning industrial anthemics and if you squint a little you could be mistaken for thinking you’re watching Trent Reznor’s dad in action. Full credit to the man, he’s more than willing to adapt his sound to suit the audience and as a result he succeeds tonight. “Cars” gets the crowd dancing and “Are “Friends” Electric?” is a transformed into a pulsating industrial beast live. Yet surprisingly it’s a stirring rendition of “A Prayer For The Unborn” that serves as the perfect hands in the sky moment with which to usher in the sunset.



Alice Cooper (The Saturn Stage Headliner)

Setlist:
1. School’s Out (Part)
2. No More Mr. Nice Guy
3. I’m Eighteen
4. Wicked Young Man
5. Ballad Of Dwight Fry
6. Go To Hell
7. Guilty
8. Cold Ethyl
9. Poison
10. From The Inside
11. Nurse Rozetta
12. Be My Lover
13. Only Women Bleed
14. I Never Cry
15. Black Widow Jam
16. Vengeance Is Mine
17. Dirty Diamonds
18. Billion Dollar Babies
19. Killer
20. I Love The Dead
21. Feed My Frankenstein
22. Under My Wheels

Encore:

23. Elected
24. School’s Out

To say Alice Cooper pulled out all the stops would be a huge understatement. Alice Cooper pulled out the stops, killed them, set them on fire, killed himself, re-killed the stops in hell and then did a giant dance number to bring himself and the stops back into existence. Yes, it was that over the top, it was that ridiculous, and for 90 minutes the crowd absolutely ate it up. Alice Cooper (and I’m not making this up) killed Ninjas, killed nurses, killed lovers, threw diamonds into the crowd, walked around on a giant staircase, fired giant balls at the crowd, battled a Cyclops, hung himself, guillotined himself and strapped himself into an electric chair. To be honest he did so much ridiculous stuff I can’t actually remember it all. It was ridiculous, it was corny, but it’s just the kind of silliness that gets everyone in the mood to party.

Musically Alice Cooper played pretty much everything you could hope to hear. I was disappointed that amongst the twenty three strong set there was no room for “Teenage Lament”, but honestly I can hardly complain. We were given all the show stoppers, all the pageantry and all the hits. Alice was energetic and entertaining and his backing band was superb and kept the entire affair vibrant and polished. The bassist in particular did a superb job on backing vocals really helping to bolster Alice’s voice across a long ninety minute set. The highlights were obvious “Poison”, “Schools Out”, “No More Mr. Nice Guy”, “Feed My Frankenstein”, “Eighteen”, “Under My Wheels” and of course “Billion Dollar Babies” had the crowd in loud strong voice. Ninety minutes was perhaps too long a set and at times as Cooper’s bag of tricks ran thin, but by the final chords of “Schools Out” I didn’t hear anyone complaining.

Terrorvision (The Bohemia Tent) the days final headliner drew a crowd so large that I couldn’t get anywhere near the tent. So I wisely decided to spend the next four hours in the strongbow tent singing along to the Power Ballad DJs who played a suitably morose but a wonderful enjoyable selection of cheesy anthems.

Saturday – 31st July

The Sonisphere crowd were obviously in a good mood on Saturday morning as they actually gave Family Force 5 (The Apollo Stage) a fair chance. Unfortunately their brand of Christian Crunkcore is just as bad as it sounds. Yet despite the inherit awfulness of the largely plagiarised brainless garbage that was being played it is for the most part good fun, and the crowd took it for what it was, a chance to have a good laugh. Family Force 5 for their part were self deprecating and didn’t take themselves at all seriously as the lead singer sported Incredible Hulk hands during their “big hit” “Love Addict”.

Evile (The Bohemia Tent) on the other hand offered up a punishing thrash beat down. Blasting through their hits at extraordinary speed (even for them), they triumphed in front of a surprisingly big crowd. “Metamorphosis” and “Thrasher” were the clear stands out in their blistering five track twenty five minute set. An early highlight.

Sonisphere is the first majority metal festival I’ve ever been to, and while I’ve seen many metal greats over the years but this was my first time seeing Max Cavalera in the flesh. He didn’t disappoint. Soulfly (The Saturn Stage) performed the majority of their hits with their trademark guttural bluster. The usually flaccid “Back To The Primitive” sounded big and imposing live and the off tempo drum work Joe Nunez was a real delight. Unsurprisingly it was the Sepultura tracks that stole the show “Refuse/Resist” sounded as good as ever, and “Roots Bloody Roots” was a scream along anthem live. Surprisingly though, it was the set closer “Eye For An Eye” that had the crowd in full voice. The only complaint is that “Jumpdafuckup” was reduced to a mere snippet, otherwise great stuff.

Anthrax (The Apollo Stage) brought the hits and the feel good vibes to Sonisphere as they played in front the first huge crowd of the day. It was pure greatest hits from the off with “Caught In The Mosh”, “Got The Time”, “Madhouse”, “Anti-Social”, “Indians”, “Metal Thrashing Mad” and “I Am The Law” forming the setlist. They even found room for a quick “Heaven And Hell” cover as a tribute to Dio. It was a touching affair, a great success and an appearance that seem as thrilling for Anthrax themselves as it was for the crowd.

Saturday morning just kept getting better and better as Fear Factory (The Saturn Stage) were the next band to take to the stage. After the success of the superb Mechanize this gig felt like a celebration. Nevertheless they started on rocky footing with workmanlike renditions of “Mechanize”, “Shock and “Edgecrusher”. Luckily as the set wore on the band found their footing and more importantly their swagger. “Fear Campaign” was the initial spark that brought the set to life before Fear Factory proceeded to bring the set home in brilliant fashion with “Demanufacture” and of course “Replica”.

The lull then set in as Papa Roach (The Apollo Stage) took to the main stage. Jacoby Shaddix was in terrible voice, as he incosistantly wailed his way through Papa Roach’s many hits. If his vocals were bad, his banter was worse, making jokes that a twelve year old would find embarrassing. The irony of a man who wrote “...To Be Loved” mocking “Shitney Spears” is just too cringe inducing to be comprehended. Thankfully despite the general awfulness of the performances the crowd was in a great mood and happy to bounce along and sing the words with far more vigour than Shaddix could ever hope to muster. Surprisingly when he put the rockers to one side Shaddix did briefly manage to find his voice for a charming rendition of “Hollywood Whore”. A poor set, but one that was lapped up by a feel good crowd.

Good Charlotte (The Apollo Stage) were the first shamelessly poppy band to take to the main stage. To his credit Joel Madden admitted this up front saying “we’re not as loud or as fast as some of the other bands playing today, but we write damn catchy shit right?”, and he was right. While Good Charlotte certainly weren’t to my tastes I can’t deny that they put together a crowd pleasing set that was perfect to sit, chill and sing along to. They even threw in covers of “Dammit” by Blink-182 and “So Lonely” by the Police to keep the setlist open and accessible. They were perhaps the least interesting band musically on the entire line up but it didn’t stop them from putting on a solid show.

Sick Of It All (The Bohemia Tent) provided the first “you had to be there” set of the weekend. Their performance was unforgettable. They fired through hits old and new and had pits going from the first song to the last. From the front to the back the large crowd was thoroughly enthralled whether you were nodding your head or throwing yourself headfirst into some unfortunate. Picking out individual highlights is pointless as the thirty five minute set flew by in a heartbeat. During the sets finale the crowd was encourage to open a circle pit all the way out to the tents pillars. The crowd did just that and as huge (and hilarious) pit opened and was just a joy to behold. To conclude the set Sick Of It All demanded their customary wall of death during “Scratch The Surface”, and hilarity ensued. Without doubt a ten out of ten performance.



Malefice (The Jagermeister Stage) drew a surprisingly big and passionate crowd to the Jagermeister Stage. Those who made the trip were well rewarded as they blew threw a short set that left the crowd in the pit chanting “Mal-e-fice” long after the band had left the stage.

Motely Crue (The Saturn Stage Headliners)

Setlist:

1. Kick Start My Heart
2. Dr. Feelgood
3. Too Fast For Love
4. Live Wire
5. Same Ol’ Situation
6. Don’t Go Away Mad (Just Go Away)
7. Ten Seconds To Love
8. Rattlesnake Shake
9. Wild Side
10. Shout At The Devil
11. Girls Girls Girls

If you could see past Vince Neil’s Vince Neil T-Shirt, his Vince Neil Guitar, his Vince Neil Tattoos and for all I know his Vince Neil wrist bands you might have noticed the festivals first pyro-show. Crue set of fire works left right and center as they blasted out “Kick Start My Heart” and “Doctor Feelgood”. It became immediately apparent that the crowd was here to have good time and sing song and Crue certainly delivered a good time setlist. In the end it appeared to be perfect booking. We knew Rammstein would put on a hell of a show, but they wouldn’t give the crowd much of a sing song, so putting Motley Crue on just before was a master stroke. As the crowd clapped, danced and flashed their way through one of the fastest hours of the Sonisphere weekend.

Unfortunately Crue seemed to be suffering from sound issues, as Mars’ guitar was squealing off tone and Neil’s voice wasn’t coming across. Luckily three tracks in Tommy Lee came and entertained the crowd while the tech crew got to work. Thankfully the issues were resolved just in time for a show stopping rendition of “Same Ol’ Situation” that seemed to have everyone from the front to the back of the crowd clapping and singing out in unison. From that point on Crue could not fail as they worked their way towards to inevitable crowd pleasing finale of “Shout At The Devil” and “Girls, Girls, Girls”. It’s good to have Crue back, and back in fashion, because while they may lack artistic integrity Crue make up for it with dirty sleazy thrills.



Rammstein (The Apollo Stage Headliner)

Setlist:

1. Rammlied
2. B********
3. Waidmanns Heil
4. Keine Lust
5. Feuer Frei!
6. Weiner Blut
7. Fruhling In Paris
8. Itch Tu Dir Weh
9. Du Riechst So Gut
10. Benzin
11. Links 2-3-4
12. Du Hast
13. Pussy

Encore:

14. Sonne
15. Haifisch
16. Ich Will

Sonisphere gave the UK not only Rammstein first ever UK festival appearance but their first every UK headline appearance. It was the talk of the festival, they might not have been the most popular of the two headliners but they the one everyone wanted to see. Would they fall on their faces? Could they pull it off in the UK? How insane would their stage show be? Could they really pull off two hours? Well all those questions were answered. First of all there is no doubting that Rammstein succeeded. There was no talk after the show of Rammstein not deserving to headline but there was debate about just how good they were.

Musically it was much of what you expect repetitive, familiar, recycled and in some cases plagiarised riffs pounding out at maximum volume for the best part of ninety minutes. Variety was certainly an issue, Rammstein didn’t feel like an accomplished headliner musically. As their familiar attack became all too familiar over sixteen tracks. As a result they drew a very mixed crowd reaction. The front and middle were passionately involved and loving every moment but those in the back third were largely disinterested. Literally I had people staring at me for singing and clapping along to “Du Hast” (“Du Hast” for God’s sake), and their crowd certainly thinned as their set went on with plenty of people heading off to the food stands. However, most even at the back watched intently and were happy to appreciate the show Rammstein were putting on, and it was a hell of a show.



Rammstein seemed as acutely aware of their lack of musical variation as everyone else and have developed one of the most awe inspiring stage shows in music history to compensate. It truly is a sight to behold, a technological wonder. I still don’t know how they pulled it off. Spinning burst of fire spewed out over the crowd, light burst out of Till’s mouth, giant smouldering pots of Iron awe pour all over the stage, and yes whole reels of fireworks were blasted direct onto the stage as Rammstein performed. It was utterly mind blowing, even if the first hour of their show were, at times, torturous musical, it was certainly a feast for the eyes.

Credit to must go to Till Lindemann he proved he is one of the great front men. His voice was loud, clear and capable of rattling your rib cages even if you’re standing all the way at the back of the field. He had great power and depth; even when the arrangements were uninteresting his vocals never let the side down, as he powered out each syllable with genuine venom. There was no shortage of highlights once Rammstein hit their stride; “Du Hast” was as epic as you would have hoped, “Haifisch” was quite frankly hilarious, “Pussy” was even funnier (even if the symbolism of Till’s cannon was a little odd), “Ich Tu Dir Weh” was a monstrous anthem and of course “Sonne” never fails to deliver live. Rammstein ended up playing half an hour under their allotted time, but to be honest, ninety minutes was enough, it perfectly suited their sound and their show; more would have been torture, ninety minutes was right on the money.

Therapy? (The Bohemia Tent Headliner)

Why no Setlist I hear you ask? Well that’s because tonight was a very special night. Tonight, Therapy were booked to play Troublegum in its entirety and that’s exactly what they did. Sadly they encountered technical difficulties and in front of a mammoth crowd they had to restart their set three times as the generator kept blowing during the set opener. It looked tragic for a moment, but suddenly everything was fixed and Therapy blew through one of the best performances I have ever witnessed. As the crowd sang and moshed along from the first lines of “Knives” to the last chords of “Brainsaw”. The highlights were endless; “Screamager”, “Isolation”, “Knives”, “Die Laughing”, “Femtex”....I could go on and on and on it was all wall to wall brilliance. Therapy were great in their own right, aside from playing exactly what everyone wanted to hear, they were engaging and kept the crowd happy with extended singalongs and plenty of great banter. Make no mistake this one of the great sets.

Sunday – 1st August

Most of my Sunday morning was consumed by dismantling my tent and taking it back to the car so unfortunately I missed Karnivool, Henry Rollins, Skindred and Dir En Grey, but fear not I was in just in time for Slayer (The Apollo Stage). Those worried that the nightmarish sound issues that plagued their Rock Am Ring set would reoccur tonight were instantly reassured the minute “South Of Heaven” burst out of the soundsystem. This was very much a vintage Slayer as they briefly threw out some World Painted Blood era tracks before unleashing the hits. “War Ensemble”, “Dead Skin Mask” and “Angel Of Death” were the clear highlights, sadly there was no room for “Seasons In The Abyss” in an otherwise excellent set.

Kvelertak (The Bowtime Bar) pulled a large crowd to the Strongbow bar and gave their punters a damn good show in an environment that doesn’t always draw the most attentive of crowds. Alice In Chains (The Apollo Stage) on the other hand never had to worry about an attentive crowd as they played to a mammoth audience. While their set meandered and droned at times it never came close to failing as they had more than enough big hits and live nous to keep the crowd enthralled. Most surprisingly newee “Check My Brain” felt right at home sandwiched between mammoth hits “Man In A Box” and “Them Bones”. This Sonisphere performance proved to be the final leg of a triumphant return, by a legendary band with a new lead singer and new materiel.

Converge (The Bohemia Tent) kept the momentum rolling with a blistering set that saw them blend old and new favourites successfully. Yet it was “Axe To Fall” that really, and rightfully, set things off. Converge continue to go from strength to strength. Inner City Dewellers & The xcerts (The Bowtime Bar) played in front of handful of people while the monotony of Pendulum dominates the main stage. Both bands put in solid performances, and while they may have only played to thirty punters, they may have won over thirty new fans (well I said maybe).


Iggy & The Stooges (The Saturn Stage Headliners)

Setlist:

1. Raw Power
2. Search And Destroy
3. Gimmie Danger
4. Shake Appeal
5. 1970
6. Night Theme
7. Beyond The Law
8. Fun House
9. I Got A Right
10. I Wanna Be Your Dog
11. Your Pretty Face Is Going To Hell
12. Open Up And Bleed

Encore:

13. Death Trip
14. No Fun

Ah Iggy Pop, if you’ve seen one of his shows you know what to expect. Energy, craziness and stupidity abound as he tears through what can be considered to be a greatest hits set. Starting on rip roaring form he holds his smallish crowd in the palm of his hand, before meandering through some less interesting sax heavy works. Thankfully the positives out weigh the negatives and the stage invasion during “Shake Appeal” was a sight to behold. A man in the red shirt got to sing with Iggy and it looked like his dreams were coming true. At another point Iggy battle with a security guard to let more people on stage it was all tremendous stuff. Once the meandering was over Iggy set about thrilling the crowd and everything from “Fun House” to “No Fun” was utterly irresistible. It may have been sporadic but it was one hell of a memorable show.



Iron Maiden (The Apollo Stage Headliner)

Setlist:

1. The Wicker Man
2. The Ghost Of The Navigator
3. Wrathchild
4. El Dorado
5. Dance Of Death
6. The Reincarnation Of Benjamin Breeg
7. These Colours Don’t Run
8. Blood Brothers
9. Wildest Dreams
10. No More Lies
11. Brave New World
12. Fear Of The Dark
13. Iron Maiden

Encore:

14. The Number Of The Beast
15. Hallowed Be Thy Name
16. Running Free

Sunday’s headline performance by Iron Maiden was truly a tribute to one of the UK’s finest exports. Bruce Dickenson and co embarked on a setlist comprised in its vast majority of tracks from the post-2000 era. Most bands of Maiden’s age rely on nostalgia but Maiden proved that a sell out 55,000 people (keep in mind Rammstein didn’t sell out all their day tickets) will pay to see Maiden play the new stuff. They did more than just turn up though, this huge crowd sand along to “No More Lies” and “Dance Of Death” with just as much vigour as “Fear Of The Dark” or “Iron Maiden”. Six years ago I saw Maiden play a set of tracks taken from the first three albums only, and it was a real disappointment, it didn’t feel right, but this performance by contrast felt perfectly natural.

Maiden were energized tonight, they were visibly thrilled that people were into the new stuff. Their performance was superb and if I’m honest “The Ghost Of The Navigator”, “The Wickerman” and “These Colours Don’t Run” absolutely blew “Iron Maiden” and “Wrathchild” out of the water. These are tracks that suit Bruce’s voice and character. He delivered with every track with real vigour. Even the ridiculously over blown “Dance Of Death” was transformed into a Godzilla sized anthem; as the crowded danced and hummed along to each of it’s three core riffs.



In between the mass sing-a-longs and staggeringly slick guitar work Bruce regaled us with his always endearing banter. There’s no two ways about it, Maiden are just likeable, and that clearly counts for a lot as the fans have never really lost faith in them. They also showed they’re never too old or too big to engage with the crowd as Bruce and the boys pulled out all the tricks to make sure the crowd were having a damn good time. At their age they really could take it easy and let the music do the talking but Maiden still seem happiest when they are going balls to the wall to please a crowd. It’s always great to see a band just being themselves and Maiden are happy to revel in their own ridiculousness and if Sunday night was any evidence their fans love them for it.

Of course as the set reached its conclusion Maiden pulled out the classics “Fear Of The Dark”, “Iron Maiden”, “The Number Of The Beast” and spell binding rendition of “Hallowed Be Thy Name” sent the crowd home happy. “Running Free” was the surprise set closer and it was a great choice and left the crowd singing at the top of their lungs as Bruce played chanting games. Each and every track was greeted with “Maiden” chants, and rightly so as tonight they put on a dazzling spectacle. What made this headliner performance extra special was the way in which those new songs “Ghost Of The Navigator”, “Nor More Lies”, “The Wicker Man” and “These Colours Don’t Run” felt right at home next to the old war horses “Hallowed Be Thy Name” and “Number Of The Beast”. Proof positive that Maiden are far more than wondering relics. On this evidence it would seem there is plenty more gas left in Maiden's tank.

The 411: Sonisphere was not just a musical extravaganza jam packed full of unforgettable sets, but a wonderful organized and endearing event. Sonisphere UK had a great spirit, a charming crowd and was genuine pleasure to attend. The music was phenomenal. Amazing sets from Maiden, Therapy, Sick Of It All, Alice Cooper, Rammstein, Anthrax and Fear Factory were the highlights but there were stellar performances up and down the card. I can't recommend Sonisphere highly enough, and I will most definitely be attending next year. A welcome addition to the festival circuit.

Final Score:  9.0   [  Amazing ]