Here is the English translation of our Festival Report on the Metalfest Croatia. Enjoy....
Metalfest Croatia - Metal and vacation
For the first time ever, a Metal festival of international format has been organized in Croatia. The event occurred at the historic seaside resort Zadar, on the peninsula Puntamika to be more precise. From June 3rd to 5th 2012, more than 3500 Metalheads celebrated - with mostly sunny weather conditions - the successful festival premiere at the coast of the Adriatic Sea.
The established "Metalfest" Circus stopped for the first time in Croatia this year. The city of Zadar counts 75.000 inhabitants, sited directly at the Adriatic Sea, and was the destination for the gigantic tour train which traveled through Europe during June. Since in addition to the billing a charming Location was waiting for us, it became clear which one of the eight Metalfest-Events we would visit.
“Was the trip to Metalfest Croatia worthwhile"? This was the most frequently asked question after we returned. YES, of course! - The combination of sun, beach, and festival is worth an unlimited recommendation ". Why? Find the answer in the following report.
As mentioned in the beginning, this was the first Metal-Festival with international format on Croatian ground. Thus, there was a certain skepticism next to all joy on the trip as we picked up our flight to Split on Saturday afternoon. However, when we arrived in Croatia the sun laughed with a nice 25°C and questions were: „How will the festival be organized? Will the Festival turn out to be a killer or just a lukewarm event like so many others?" Nevertheless, these gloomy thoughts became secondary when we saw all the palmtrees and the unblurred look onto the crystal-clear water of the Adriatic Sea. A smooth vacation atmosphere arose while we drove the 150 kilometers along the picturesque coast street to the City of Zadar. The formalities have clarified quickly after our arrival, and we used the chance to gather a first splendid impression of the festival ground.
The peninsula of Puntamika is surrounded by the sea on three sides. So, cage attitude as usual on other festivals, is thus not necessary. The beach is also completely open and invites everyone for a bath in the Adriatic Sea between the band appearances or an excessive sunbath alike. Also positive is the heavily vegetated Festival ground. Pine trees offer a lot of shadow, which grants a kind of comfort for the visitors. The floor-like site also offers plenty of nooks and crannies to chill, so the atmosphere remained relaxed and smooth. During the three days, people treated each other very friendly and respectful. Certainly, the credits for this shall also be given to the very friendly and inconspicuously acting security team.
We stayed in a modern flat with view onto the Adriatic Sea. A flat like this, suitable for 4-6 people, is fully equipped with air-conditioning, TV, kitchen, shower, terrace (balcony), parking spot and costs approx. 55, - € per night. Alternatively, one can stay on the campground. Located a five minute walk away from the festival ground, the pine grove provides excellent showers, a small kitchen area and a lot of shadow which is very pleasant when it’s already 20°C at 10am in the morning. A fee of approx. 11,-€ per Person has to be paid for the duration of the Festival.
Day 1 – 03rd of June 2012
Many fans were early risers today. Maybe it was because of the great weather, or because the Metalfest Croatia is already starting at noon. However, a large number of fans made their way to the festival site. When you make your way from the Campground, you will pass by one of the yacht harbors. Many of the yacht owners in the nearby cafe eyed the blackly dressed procession with interest. Even as the café paid tribute to the festival during the next days and changed the music from Oliver Dragojevic or other Croatian Artists to classic Metal tunes, no refusal was to be sensed. It was a pleasantly loose atmosphere, one with each other. As the café, many of the adjacent shops began astonishingly quickly to seize the opportunity for additional business. As late as on day two, the mile from the campground to the festival was completely in the grip of Heavy Metal!
Back on the festival-site, the first bands appearances already started at noon. One was able to hear from a great distance that the party had started. Until the early evening, mainly Croatian bands were playing on the smaller “Liburnian-” stage. Later, bands like Graveworm, Lake of Tears or Skull Fist ,just to name a few internationally known acts, had their appearances here. Meanwhile, international sizes frequented the main stage, called “Visigoth Stage,” in a continuous stream. The whole area in front of the 12m main-stage also marks the highest point of Puntamika and is framed by trees, which is an enormous help in keeping a good sound. For the first bands of the day, the feedback was relatively low, but when Triptykon entered the stage, the crowd grew decently. The music of the legitimate Celtic Frost successor seems somehow misplaced in the bright sunshine, but the feedback from the fans was still good. But when ALESTORM ascended the stage, the madness reigned in front of the stage! The self-proclaimed Metal-Pirates celebrated a huge party with the fans. The beer started to flow, while the crowd cheered the Scots. Speaking of beer: it was available by a bon-purchase-system for a fan-friendly price of 15 HRK (~2, - €). Sufficient exchange boxes, where everybody could exchange his Kuna (1, - EUR = 7.557 HRK) in accepted festival currency, were spread across the whole area. While Legion of the Damned, and above all Moonspell, the infield filled rapidly. Legion of the Damned satisfied the Fans with their brutal death metal, while Moonspell were widely celebrated for their dark and atmospheric gig.
Meanwhile we checked out the food offers for the first time. Next to very delicious hamburgers and chips for 2,50€ there were fresh prepared pasta-dishes for the same price and pizza for 3,50€. Very unusually for us were the grilled fish specialties. Grilled sardines or grilled calamari were sold at 5,-€. The following evening, this offer was renamed „F**k them all" menu. For just 7 € there you got 1,-kg (!!!) of freshly grilled sardines. Cool offer!
Heading back to the Stage, Hypocrisy (with Peter Tätgren celebrating his birthday) got a big support by a cheering crowd during their Old-School Death Metal set. But, next to the very positive impressions of the first day, it was Blind Guardian who could leave the most lasting impression of all bands. It seems to be the same every time: It does not matter where the Germans occur; the resonance of the fans is always overwhelming. They are a perfect headliner and left behind a party-willing and happy crowd.
We left the festival directly after this impressive performance, but many fans either celebrated with pleasant weather at the beach or entered the party ship. This is a small yacht that offers space for 200 persons and cruised in the Adriatic Sea until dawn. A Croatian party tent...
Day 2 – 04th of June 2012
Like the day before, we were greeted with sunny weather on the second day, although this pleasure should last until evening. At prime time dark clouds moved up, and a light rain began to fall. Until then, however, the Croatian sun laughed and a powerful wake up call by HUNTRESS let the writer of these lines explore the surrounding areas a little more.
The Campground was the first target. You will not find the typical high decibel campground atmosphere here. Everything seemed in rest to prepare for the day. No roaring generators that cover the ground in a waste gas cloud. No 50.000-watt installations with non-metallic earache Hits like 'Erna Schabulski' or other crap people do not want to hear. No, in the stone pine grove everything went on quite calmly. You see only a few people having a BBQ, or just hanging around and drink some Beers and booze. But if you want to party, you got the party at the nearby beach.
Along the entire promenade, blackly clothed Metal-Fans and tourists mixed up to form an extremely colorful clash. Some courageous ones found the way into the 16°C „warm" Adriatic Sea. Others simply devoted themselves to the sun, armed with some beer, enjoying the days in Zadar. In spite of the contrast to the "normal tourists," it was a friendly vis-a-vis. Not few tourists and inhabitants asked curiously about the festival. As mentioned in the beginning also the restaurants and cafes paid tribute to the festival visitors now, and offered attractive 'Metal-Meals' for a fair price.
Back on the festival ground Powerwolf, Grand Magus and Vader played three inspiring shows at best festival weather. Especially Vader's appearance is worth to point out. The Polish Death-Metaller played a set full of energy and power and were wildly celebrated by the crowd. Their stage performance was also over the top, according to their last shows. We listened to really good Swiss Folk-Metal by Eluveitie at the “Meet and Greet” tent, which actually was frequented very well by the fans. Especially the enthusiasm of the native fans is unbroken.
The start of the evening was marked by arising rain. While Symphony X were playing it began slightly to rain. A little surprisingly the band was accepted extremely well by the Fans. And they payed back for this warm welcome with a really convincing show. And so did Behemoth. Nergal, who has fully recovered from cancer, obviously enjoyed playing live again. And everybody had a feeling that they are stronger than ever before. A really tight, asskicking performance by the Polish Black-Metal flagship. No need to say much about Kreator. Germanys Thrash Metal Band No.1 is still the measure of all things. Their live-power and aggression are still unbroken and tonight they proved this thesis to be still 100% right.
We quit the scene directly after Kreator and checked the surrounding area once more. Although there is only a small road towards the festival, there was surprisingly enough no big traffic jam despite the fact that 3000 people left the area at once.
Day 3 - 05.Juni 2012
Sunshine and festival form a perfect symbiosis. After the rain at the evening before, the sun shines relentlessly again, once we left our flat at noon. Finally we want to pick up some festival merchandise and also visit the beautiful old town of Zadar, but festival shirts were nearly out of stock. Very disappointing for us, but who cares... We bought some other items and took a cabby to the Old Town. Taking a ride in a cabby is a low cost experience in Zadar. Just 20 Kuna for a distance up to 5 kilometers is really cheap. Especially when you have in mind that fuel is not that much cheaper in Croatia than in Germany for example.
After our disappointment at the merch-table, the old town of Zadar was a highlight, which one must have seen. This historic part of the city pays tribute to the last 2500 years of mankind. You'll find everything here: a roman Forum Romanum, simple churches from the 9th century or the gorgeous churches of the High middle ages and last but not least the typical Venetian architecture of the 15th and 16th century. The highlight is for sure the unique sea-organ. It plays music by capturing the sea waves in tubes located underneath a set of large marble steps. The waves create somewhat random, but harmonic sounds.
Meanwhile our short excursion Brainstorm and others were performing at the festival-site. We returned just in time for In Extremo. Back on the festival ground, we saw the announcement that W.A.S.P. had cancelled their appearance at Metalfest Croatia. And it also became clear that also Dark Tranquility had to cancel due to technical reasons. That was a very disappointing situation, for the fans and organizers alike. One can only speculate about the true reasons, but the fact is that this caused massive shifts in the running order. The remaining bands filled these gaps with increased playing times, starting with In Extremo. Their cool show increased by two songs.
Because of the cancellation of two bands, we had some time, which we decided to spend at the beach. We were surprised, that the whole beach was extremely tidy. Everything was clean up to the last day. Beach, festival ground, access roads and last but not least the toilets. The wonderful Location seemed to show a positive effect on everybody's behavior. This impression reflected the fact, that in spite of the cancellations a quiet and loose atmosphere is sensing. However, it went on far less loosely when Fear Factory appeared on stage. Immediately, a huge party was started by the fans in front of the stage. Even though the cold, clinical sound of the band did not suit the summery weather, it was an asskicking performance by the band. Maybe the clean vocals of Burton C. Bell did do not sound as accurately as they did in 1995, but nobody cared about that.
An hour earlier than initially announced, the widely awaited Megadeth play their headliner set. They started very promising, and everything could have been fine, if ... a small group of so-called, „Fans" hadn’t started to blame Megadeth, and Dave Mustaine specifically, for the W.A.S.P. cancellation. „F**k You"! In addition, „We want W.A.S.P." cries echoed across the ground. As if the situation wasn’t sad enough already, mugs and other objects flew onto the stage and the situation escalated. Dave Mustaine left the stage immediately without any finishing words after just fifty minutes. His band mates followed him, a bit irritated. Dave Mustaine is surely a quarrelsome personality, but his reaction is fully understandable. It is very sad to see that a small group of idiots damaged the otherwise overwhelming atmosphere of the Metalfest 2012 within seconds. {You find a comment of the organizer at the End of this report}.
After this incident Death Angel, which got the headlining position involuntarily, saved the mood with an extremely powerful and tight set. They played their debut album in its entirety and ended the Metalfest Croatia.
In spite of the unpleasant moment on the last day of the Metalfest Croatia, it was a very successful festival premiere in Croatia. Not only because of the extremely good organization, the lovely location, and the fair prices we can give an unlimited recommendation. There is absolutely nothing to complain about.
Next to the festival, it is also a good occasion for a relatively low-cost vacation at the Croatian part of the Adriatic Sea.
For sure, the festival will also take place in Zadar next year. This year's Metalfest Zadar was so unique; it deserves a name that really fits the extraordinary location. Who experienced the crimson sunsets on the Adriatic coast knows that there is only one suitable name: Burning Sea Festival!
Info's on the web under:
www.burning-sea.com
And
www.metalholiday.com
geschrieben am 29.06.2012 von Blizzard
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musikalischer Background des Verfassers NWOBHM; Thrash- / Speed- / Power- / US- / Death- / Doom / Stoner Metal ; Glam / Classic/ Hard Rock & Sleaze,
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3. Gary Moore "After the War"
4. Mötley Crüe "Shout at the Devil"
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