Archive | Festivals
Ozzfest might not being doing too many shows in the States, but the touring festival sure is getting more stamps on its passport this year. We already heard about Ozzfest U.K., but now it’s been announced that an Ozzfest show will be taking place in Israel as well. The Israeli edition will feature Ozzy, Korn and more bands to be announced shortly, and will take place on September 28 at HaYarkon Park in Tel Aviv. Ticket prices are a bit high, ranging from 325 to 425 Israeli New Shekels (or around $84 to $110 U.S.), and the chances are that the lineup won’t be too much different from the U.K. edition. Either way, though, it’s still pretty cool that more is being done with Ozzfest this Summer. That doesn’t change the fact that this year, in both lineup and number of shows, is much weaker than in the past. However, it seems like the festival is taking tentative steps instead of going all out and failing, like many other tours and festivals have done this year.
Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune is reporting that Illinois Atty. Gen. Lisa Madigan might be in the midst of conducting an antitrust investigation against the promoters the Lollapalooza Festival. The issue at hand is whether or not the festival’s exclusivity clauses they have their performers sign are overly restricting.
Exclusivity clauses, which prevent bands from performing in a venue within a certain mile radius of the festival for a long period of time, are nothing new or unusual in the world of major destination festivals. In a coinciding piece, Kot breaks down each American festival’s stipulations. With Lollapalooza specifically, performers are not allowed to perform from 180 days prior to 90 days after the festival within a 300 mile radius of the Grant Park site in Chicago, unless given written permission from C3 (the promoters). Many club owners in the Midwest are claiming that these clauses are cutting their business for more than half the year. “If I put 300 million, trillion dollars into a festival I would want these clauses. But as a small club that lives and dies by the talent that’s available, it would be nice to present these acts without those clauses restricting them,” claims Bruce Finkelman, owner of the Empty Bottle.
This tends to become a bit of a sticky situation. While it’s awful to see clubs suffering from this, you also can’t blame big festivals for wanting to cover their asses. The amount of cash Lollapalooza probably had to shell out just to get Lady Gaga is probably unfathomable. And major acts like the reunited Soundgarden lose a bit of their draw if you can see them perform somewhere else. Clearly though, there needs to be some sort of compromise between the club owners and promoters (and street festivals as many club owners have pointed out in addition). We’re already feeling the heat from low album sales, let’s not add on to our list of troubles.
It’s official: fans in America won’t be the only ones complaining about Ozzfest’s lineup this year. It has been revealed that the U.K. edition of Ozzfest will be held on September 18 at London’s O2 Arena. The bill will feature Ozzy Osbourne (of course), Korn, The Murderdolls, Skindred and a yet-to-be-announced act in addition to second stage acts. Ozzfest U.K. will also feature a “lower-tier” ticketing scheme that will allow buyers to purchase tickets that will be valid for the especially enlarged standing area and lower-tier seating.
Not to knock the British version’s lineup, but it sounds like it’s got something in common with it’s American counterpart: a somewhat lackluster lineup (sounding familiar?). The Murderdolls and Skindred are admittedly more popular in the UK than they are here, but are they really that big of a draw? Granted, maybe I should reserve my judgment till they announce the additional main stage act and second stage lineup. But if we learned anything from this year’s U.S. Ozzfest, maybe we shouldn’t hold our breath.
By no means am I implying that both the U.K. and U.S. lineups are godawful (hell if I could, I’d go to either show). But compared to previous years (remember, this isn’t the first time they’ve had an Ozzfest in Britain), it’s still pretty weak, especially considering that this is Ozzfest’s “major return”. But on the bright side, at least Ozzfest is doing a little more than just six dates, even if it is with a different lineup and outside the country. It’s a good sign that bigger things may come next summer, or at least better planning. Plus, now Ozzy can add something else to his growing list of things he’s doing (and it isn’t a Christmas album!).
In the world of journalism, there’s something called “burying the lead.” Basically, that means hiding the main part of a story a few paragraphs in while the headline states a less important start of the story. It’s done all the time in media. It’s why Ben Roethlisberger’s suspension was announced the day before the NFL draft so it would be overshadowed by the draft. It’s also why some companies that have dismal quarterly earnings announce their results on Friday, hoping the rest of the world (and their investors) don’t notice and the media doesn’t report on it. You see what we’re getting at?
The 2010 version of the Ozzfest is going to be announced later tonight via Ozzy’s Twitter. It’s actually cool to see Ozzy/Sharon/management getting involved in social networking, and the way they unveiled the album art and will be announcing the lineup is pretty cool. But for them to do it on a Friday night after the 9-5 crowd and metal blogosphere has logged off for the weekend seems to suggest that the announcement itself might be a little underwhelming.
Going by rumor alone, the tour looks to be scaled back from previous Ozzfests, with less dates and fewer bands. Less dates is fine, and so are fewer bands, if those bands are good ones. Ozzfest is a brand by now, and that brand has been damaged for the last few years by inactivity and the “free” experiment. And in the past few years, multiple hard rock tours have sprung up, with Mayhem, the rumored Disturbed/Avenged Sevenfold/Stone Sour “Uproar” tour and the Sevendust/Shinedown/Chevelle’s “Carnival of Madness” tour. Not to mention this summer’s “American Carnage” tour with Slayer, Megadeth and Testament. It’s a crowded market, and many of the bands that might have played Ozzfest are already touring. With Ozzy’s new album and new lineup, interest for him is higher than it’s been in a while, and we hope that when the lineup is announced later today, it’s a good one. But we can’t help but be a little skeptical.
2010 started off with the internet abuzz that Soundgarden had gotten back together. And then… nothing happened. Now, something is happening, as the band announced on their Web site that they’ll be headlining Lollapalooza on August 8th in Chicago’s Grant Park. What is this, 1992? Or 1996? The grunge foursome actually played Lolla both of those years. In between this, Faith No More’s reunion and a new Hole album, it’s feelin’ kinda ’90s up in this bitch.
While the band have already announced it on their site, at the time of this post, Lollapalooza’s official site is playing it coy, unveiling bands like it’s the world’s biggest game of “Wheel Of Fortune.” Other bands we’ve made out from the four or so letters they’ve given us seem to include Social Distortion, Spoon and the Strokes.
ONE LAST THING….SOUNDGARDEN WILL BE ONE OF THE HEADLINERS AT THIS YEARS LOLLAPALOOZAFESTIVAL. WE HOPE TO SEE YOU ALL ON AUGUST 8TH AT GRANT PARK, CHICAGO ILLINOIS.
BEN, CHRIS, KIM AND MATT
It’s a pretty insane week for festival announcements. As if Bonnaroo and Rock on the Range aren’t enough, the granddaddy of metal festivals, the New England Metal and hardcore Festival, has gone official and unveiled their lineup.
We already correctly guessed that the Mastodon/BTBAM/Baroness tour would be part of it, but that’s only part of the fun. The two-day fest, at the Palladium in Worcester MA on April23 and 24, will include those bands on Friday night, plus Cro-Mags, Earth Crisis, Death Threat, Death Before Dishonor, COA, American Me, Thick as Blood, Forfeit, XTheWarx, Grave Maker, Rose Funeral, Conducting From the Grave and Howl.
Saturday’s lineup consists of Cannibal Corpse, Amon Amarth, Job For A Cowboy, Whitechapel, Skeletonwitch, Eluveite, 1349, Impending Doom, Lecherous, Nocturne, Tony Danza Tap Dance Extravaganza, Chelsea Grin, Abacabb, Arsonists Get All the Girls, Malefice, Swashbuckle, Cattle Decapitation, Acara, Holy Grail, Disembodied, Cruel Hand, Reign Supreme, The Mongoloids, xTyrantx, Foundation, Soul Control, Alpha & Omega, Burning Empires, Mother of Mercy, Gaza, Across the Sun and Monsters.
Tickets for Friday, which starts at 3, are $40. Tickets for Saturday, which starts at Noon, are $46. Tickets for both days will save you a whopping $6, at $80. We’ve been going to this for a while, and with the possible exception of the Scion Rock Fest (free is a lot cheaper than $80), it’s pretty much the best metal festival around.
Way back in 1990, GWAR’s “Sexecutioner” had the immortal line “how do you hide money from a hippie? You put it under the soap.” Now they’ll have a chance to make fun of hippies in their natural habitat, Manchester TN, as they’ve been named one of the bands playing the Bonnaroo Festival. While the Coachella Festival stole headlines around the metal blogosphere a few weeks ago when they announced that Faith No More would be playing the Fest, Bonnaroo seems to be doing a fine job of curating a diverse set of bands to play from June 10-13.
Clutch, The Bakerton Group, The Melvins, and Tenacious D are among those acts announced so far in addition to GWAR. Bonaroo has been gradually unveiling the lineup via their Twitter account. They’ve had some good bands in the past, with Dillinger Escape Plan and Shadows Fall playing. Looks like this year will be no exception. While not confirmed, other bands rumored to be playing include Isis and Baroness, who are also playing Coachella. Stevie Wonder and Jay Z are among the headliners at the fest.
Dust off your backwards baseball cap and serve yourself a nice heaping glass of haterade, Limp Bizkit is coming back! While they’ve already played some European festivals, Fred Durst and company are playing the first American show since last year’s reunion at this year’s Rock on the Range festival, taking place in Columbus Ohio on May 22 and 23.
Actually, there are some pretty solid bands in the lineup, with Deftones, Helmet, Mastodon, Killswitch Engage, Rob Zombie and Coheed and Cambria among the 39 bands playing over the course of the two day festival. Other acts playing include Godsmack, Slash, Five Finger Death Punch, Bullet for my Valentine, Cold and Sevendust. While we’ve been vaguely aware of the festival in the past, this is it’s fourth year. Tickets for this testosterone fest go on sale on February 20. For more information, go to rockontherange.com.
Last year’s Scion Rock Fest took people by surprise – a well-run festival featuring a stellar lineup (Mastodon, Neurosis, High on Fire) of bands that was completely free for all attendees. This year it’s back, in a completely different city with a completely different lineup and four times the venues of last year – but still for free. And where last year’s Fest featured a more hipster metal-ish lineup, this year’s is augmented by some classic metal, hardcore and grindcore, with Cannibal Corpse, D.R.I. and Brutal Truth among the headliners. And while last year’s was in Atlanta, this year’s is in the equally exotic locale of Columbus, OH. Read on:
On March 13, 2010, Scion Rock Fest will take over Columbus, Ohio. This year, 24 metal bands will descend on four different venues. The powerful lineup includes metal institutions Cannibal Corpse and Voivod, as well as supergroup Shrinebuilder and the recently reunited D.R.I. Though Rock Fest features an impressive list of legends, there will also be performances by rising stars like Liturgy and Landmine Marathon, plus local Columbus bands Dead Sea and Struck by Lightning. And the entire concert is free when you RSVP at scion.com/rock.
We can tell you this much: like last year’s Fest, we WILL have tickets to give away starting next month. If you’re in the Midwest, you have no reason not to travel to this. Full lineup and more details after the jump. Read more »
For the last ten years or so, the Coachella and Bonnaroo Festivals have been great standalone multi-day music experiences. Both of them started out more for fans of indie rock (and in the case of Bonnaroo, jam bands) than anything else, but in recent years, they’ve become more inclusive. Clutch and Shadows Fall have played Bonnaroo in the past, and Tool have played both festivals. This year, Coachella, taking place from April 14-16, seems even more geared towards discerning metalheads.
For one, Faith No More is playing what’s going to be their first-ever United States show since their reunion last year. The biggest breakthrough this year is Baroness, who will be playing their first festival, likely in front of the largest audience they’ve played for. Porcupine Tree will also be playing, which should bring the prog band to an audience that’s likely never seen them and will be blown away. Dillinger Escape Plan, Coheed & Cambria, Them Crooked Vultures, and Les Claypool will also be performing. They’ll be joining mainstream artists including Muse, Jay Z, Gorillaz, and maybe Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke. We are so there. And by so there, we mean if any Metal Insider readers want to fly us out and put us up, we’re totally in.
Ozzfest might not being doing too many shows in the States, but the touring festival sure is getting more stamps on its passport this year. We already heard about Ozzfest U.K., but now it’s been announced that an Ozzfest show will be taking place in Israel as well. The Israeli edition will feature Ozzy, Korn and more bands to be announced shortly, and will take place on September 28 at HaYarkon Park in Tel Aviv. Ticket prices are a bit high, ranging from 325 to 425 Israeli New Shekels (or around $84 to $110 U.S.), and the chances are that the lineup won’t be too much different from the U.K. edition. Either way, though, it’s still pretty cool that more is being done with Ozzfest this Summer. That doesn’t change the fact that this year, in both lineup and number of shows, is much weaker than in the past. However, it seems like the festival is taking tentative steps instead of going all out and failing, like many other tours and festivals have done this year.
Posted by Zach Shaw on Thu, Jul 8, 2010 at 11:47 am
Festivals, Temple Of The Ozz