Hammerfest II

Arriving at the venue fully prepared for a weekend of Metal Mayhem at Hammerfest II, we are somewhat amused by the setting. It's not that the Pontins holiday park isn't fully prepared for the metallers, after all they've hosted events like this before. But are the metallers prepared for Pontins?

The walls inside the entertainment area are plastered with huge, pshychotically smirking cartoon characters trying to show you where you should be; every bit of grass houses an oversized play area, while the exterior of the accomodations are all painted a cheery yellow. Yet the people filling every possible freespace are dressed in a uniform of faded black jeans, band shirts and bullet belts. It's a bizarre twist on the norm, but hey, who are we to complain? the line-up over the weekend promises to be something no less than amazing, and we can't wait!!

Band one - SOLSIKK
Solsikk start off quite promisingly, a skantily clad blonde chick, (which happens to be one of her strongest appeals) while the band are seemingly uninteresting. I can safely say that Vykki Turner is the only redeeming feature of this band, although that's before her attitude hits! The riffs were mundane, uninteresting and overal a pretty mediocre performance. The audience clearly aren't too thrilled with their 'entertainment' for the day either, and call out for a band they've paid a lot of money to see, Turner screams out "They're not on until later, fuckwit". Not a way to win over your audience when you're a band trying to make yourselves heard. SOLSIKK's vocalist continually tries to 'justify' themselves, by shouting out that they weren't supposed to even be at the show performing, until the previous night. What are they trying to convey with this message? Not a wise move. With a missing bass player, and a quick stand in, it's obvious that the band aren't quite gelling together. The melodies (if you can call them that) are all over the place and quite painful to sit through.
Oh, and in case you missed it... SOLSIKK weren't even supposed to be there!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Band two - EPICA
This is a band with a lot to say, a bit of a 'Nightwish' feel, only with a lot more depth. The performance was amazing from the get go and managed to draw the crowd and have them moshing at their feet.Vocalist Simone Simons shows off her incredible voice as if it's the easiest thing in the world and with a stage presence reminiscent of Amy Lee (Evanescence) she is a true rock princess. Well received, and talented, the entire band put the opening act to shame with their set. Strong harmonies mixed with the chilling power behind Simons spine-tingling voice, the overtone of keyboards, and the hardcore crunch of the guitars, give EPICA an incredibly rich sound.
Not only is It refreshing to see a metal band with such a good female vocalist, but EPICA are entirely captivating and a band that has the making of something truly great. The fact that their vocalist is a woman with an angelic voice doesn't distract from the fact that this band has some incredibly heavy and gothic sounds to it, a true metal band that isn't afraid to show its depths. This musical sextet give it their all with a sound like thunder, synths like some dramatic performance of a Greek tragedy, yet the soothing voice of Simons over the top, backed with the growls and grunts of guitarist, Mark Jansen, make one hell of a unique show! The band, hailing from the Netherlands is well received by the audience, with the entire front 5 rows moshing along! Overrall we are quite literally blown away by EPICA's entire performance. It was almost a shame for them to end. Definitely a band to watch out for!

Band three - KATATONIA
The first thing crossing your mind when Katatonia take to the stage is... 'They know how to introduce you to their world of darkness!'. The Swedish metallers waste no time and bang away at their instruments as if their lives depend on it. Having taken a turn from their old sound, KATATONIA's vocalist, Jonas Renkse proves that he really does have an astonishingly good voice. Sweden's dark souls' performance is filled with some meaty guitar riffs that seem to derive from deep suffering, yet despite the macabre sound to their music, it all becomes somehow uplifting which leaves the entire room completely captivated. Each song starts out with a heavy introduction which all speak with an element of pain and sadness, but KATATONIA definitely speak their name, as if they are physically trying to wake every member of the audience from a catatonic state, and you know what? They do it well! This is a band that definitely has a sound that is conveyed amazingly in a live setting. The band play a good range of songs, mostly from the latest album 'Night Is The New Day' but many from previous releases, including "My Twin" - the melody and vocals are somewhat surprising due to the difference in quality the sound brings. From this song it is obvious KATATONIA's previous album shows the more upbeat side to them. (No, they are not all doom and gloom!) An uplifting tune you can really let your hair down and bang to. A song like this really ups your thrill and has the effect like a shot of something strong to keep you pumped!
On the whole, KATATONIA have a really beautiful sound and are strangely calm on stage, somehow not quite what you'd expect from a dark rock band such as them. Heavy, dark and delve right into your solar plexus, what a way to go for a friday night! Third band in and they don't disappoint. Instead, they just leave you pumped and raring to go for the next installment of metal madness!!

Band four - DEVILDRIVER
Long before we even catch sight of the band, the audience are keen and eager for this bunch to come into view with an unrelenting chant of "DevilDriver! DevilDriver". The world goes black and it feels as if we've been thrown into a scene from a horror movie, with the backing track of none other than "Cry Little Sister" which was famously in the 80's vampire movie "The Lost Boys", to get you in the mood for something special!
The first song throws out some tribal and ethnic introduction, fast and heavy thrash metal melodies embodying the power of the titans with front man Dez Fafara'a gutteral vocals booming around the arena like a voice of God. There's something about DevilDriver's audience as compared to the others, everyone, from right at the front barrier, to the very back, just before the seating area are cheering with arms in the air. The powerful momentum building up not only the musical tunes, but the audiences adrenaline. DEVILDRIVER are fast paced with strong guitar badgering and catchy riffs and you really can't help just heandbanging along to it. Dez's favourite phrase tonight is "Mother fucker!" which nobody seems to mind, and who can blame them. It's all in the name of metal, right?! With Dez addressing the crowd, arms raised and clapping to the rhythm, the audience follow suit... however he doesn't stop there. "Make some fucking noise!" he cries out. And when the audience are at their roudiest, he gestures towards the area of the floor in front of him "This is our stronghold - OPEN IT UP!" to form one hell of a mosh pit! DEVILDRIVER certainly know how to own a stage and the crowd. There are some crazy ass sounds in there from the likes of guitarists Mike Spreitzer and Jeff Kendrick - crazy ass in the awesome variety. The entire live performance rattles your core and not a single person is standing still. Like teasing wild animals, the riffs just erupt through your system by their dynamic and plenteous hardcore sound. With minutes to spare at the end of their set, Dez doesn't want to get off a moment too soon, and uses his time wisely, to stop everyone and open the biggest pit ever. Complete chaotic madness that you just love to be a part of! DEVILDRIVER are a driving force with more body than a bouffant with an entire can of extra strong hold hairspray!

Band five - FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH
This is Friday night's headlining band and the audience are hyped, buzzing and raring to fucking go, even after four other bands! As with Devil Driver, the crowd go beserk, way before the band even grace the stage. The room is now filled to bursting with even more rockers, and the entire audience are eagerly awaiting FFDP's presence; doing the 'Death Punch' chant which consists of one half of the room screaming "Five Finger!" the other half following with "DEATH PUNCH!". No sooner than the first member steps onto the stage, the crowd are burning with a metal loving fury and scream louder than the amps can even project! Frontman Ivan Moody has to have one of THE best stage presences of the night, his proud stance making him look mighty and strong. A large amount of the crowd are already singing along to every single word right from the 1st song while guitarist Jason Hook's solo is greeted with a massive cheer. The band do not relent with their antics, and are only fueled more by their passionate fans.
Moody, seen as always with his knuckle duster mic and a menacing smile, does his best to intimidate the crowd, but they just adore him anyway; there's just no scaring this lot off, son, no matter how 'Moody' you are! The most appealing thing about FFDP is their incredibly melodic yet bone-crunchingly heavy tunes, and Moody's extremely amazing voice, which is a contradiction of his "Hard nut" appearance! Half way through the set, Ivan Moody calls attention to both guitarists, Zoltan Bathory and Jason Hook, and the audience is eager to show them how much they are appreciated with heavy cheers! Matt Snell takes to the mic, encouraging the crowd to cheer on bass induced prompts. When the audience get a simple chant wrong, he does not give up, they will do as he damn well tells and he won't fucking stop until he gets his results; you'd think he was a sergeant training them for the elites! A long night, and Moody is the not-so-caring soul, shouting out words of 'concern'; "Are you awake?!" and squirting them with bottles of water to ensure they're sprung to life. A little refreshment is just what they need anyway! The heavy riffs continue to raise the roof; but now the ENTIRE audience are all on their feet, EVEN those in the seating area at the back. With the addition of the four lovely ladies on stage, dancing in little shorts and fishnet stockings, it really puts FFDP up there on the grand scale of epic win tonight. Oh, did I mention these girls have been on stilts all night??
Now the time comes for Ivan Moody's trademark crowd-surfing-hand-shake. He addresses his people, saying he wants as many to "make their way up there and shake his hand". Looks like the security guards are in for a little more work! Bring on the fun, boys! Even as the song starts, there's at least 5 crowd surfers already on the go, eagerly lunging themselves forwards to shake their idols hand. He tries not to miss a single one and we can safely say he gives it his best shot. His interaction doesn't stop there, as FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH are determined to be the names on everyones lips tonight! Silencing the crowd, Moody announces that Dez (DevilDriver) and himself made a bet backstage. "We said Five Finger Death Punch could get the bigger circle pit!". And the challenge is fucking ON. Upon the next song, there is a good pit, matching DevilDrivers; but determined to win, Moody announces the wall of death! It's an eye opening experience for all thosewho are not brave enough to join in, watching such a packed crowd part like the red sea. A couple of over-eager lads jumping around in the middle, causes Moody to pick them out "Your sex live must be bad coz that was WAY too premature" Well said! 3 ... 2 ... 1! And the two crowds painfully become one. A collision of hundreds of metallers thrashing about to try and win a bet is definitely a sight to see! After their final song, Moody announces "Dez owes me a hundred bucks!" and makes his exit.
They fans are not accepting that this is over! HELL NO! And inging loudly through the room, it only takes a matter of a few moments before the band are back on stage. Moody addresses his audience once again, eager to know what this rampant lot want to hear for their final song. Hundreds of heavy metal rockers scream out their preferred song, which left Moody only one choice; a shout out poll. But it was the super hit "The Bleeding" that won the audience, and FFDP are eager to adhere to the fans request with their super ballad. Now that's what you call a finale!
This is one band that can't seem to disappoint. Not a single fault can be picked with their performance tonight, an exceptional performance all round.

Band six - NAPALM DEATH.
Well... If only it had ended with Five Finger Death Punch, then the night would have ended on a much happier note. The thrash band from Birmingham are traditional heavy metal heroes, though screaming so loudly it may aswell just burst your eardrums, and riffs so fast it's hard to even distinguish. We're half expecting the majority of the audience to turn out like a scene from 'SCANNERS', yet still the riffs only get louder and merge more into a block of painful noise. Not a good thing to follow bands such as DevilDriver and Five Finger Death Punch. With unrecognisable lyrics, a sea of screams and chaotic instrumentals, NAPALM DEATH put the midlands to shame... but truthfully... who COULD top the previous performances? The crowd clearly had enough too, the size of the pit diminished to less than half the size it was for FFDP, BUT Napalm Death do have their hardcore fans with a good sizable few lines banging away at the front. Vocalist Mark 'Barney' Greenway spat and screamed and is all over the place, writhing like a constipated epileptic on acid, showering photographers and audience alike with "Eau de man", which IS probably a positive thing, considering it livened things up a little. He at least gives it all he's got, which unfortunately, isn't enough at tonight's show. A chaotic balance of vocals and activity, but at least they were in tune and played their instruments well. As much as tonights performance, sound wise, was total pants; the band are at least a talented bunch of fellas who certainly know how to properly demostrate a wild thrash metal show. Just a shame the melodies tonight didn't compare with their undying amounts of raw energy.

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