Now that the Festival Stages are coming to a close, it’s time to head over for the main event of this tour.
Reviewing the Mayhem Festival is a different monster in and of itself. It’s all-day long; it’s constant; and it’s about as relentless as George “Corpsegrinder” Fisher’s windmill headbanging. Yes, it can get tiring, but where else am I going to get a day full of some of my favorite metal bands from past and present all in one place?
As much as I love the Festival Stages (and seeing Cannibal Corpse do what they do), the Main Stage is where I’m going to see one band I’ve liked since I was 12, another I picked up on when I was in high school, and two others I didn’t pick up on until later, but I do enjoy their stuff. So it’s off to the lawn section I go.
It’s a few minutes until our first band takes the stage, and already most of the pavilion has been filled, and people are still filing into the lawn. Some look anxious, while others look like they’ve been out in the sun all day and may have indulged a little too much…
Most of the good spots are taken already, and where I positioned myself was right behind one of the pavilion’s giant support pillars, but at least I have a big screen I can watch, unlike Mumford & Sons last September where if you squint you may see what looks like an ant playing.
Right on cue, the music hits, the cheers erupt, and Trivium greets a near-capacity crowd to open this second half of the festivities.
I’ll admit to not really listening to Trivum much since they ditched the heavy hardcore sound, but their thrash sound really suits them, and having never seen them perform before, they have a great grasp on what it takes to put on a show. Frontman Matt Heafy is in total control, and every move the band does doesn’t seem out of place. They perform guitar solos like it’s nothing, demand crowd participation, and direct all of the attention to the stage. It was as if someone wrote out a blueprint and Trivium took it and made it their own. The downside? The crowd might have been a little out of it to fully embrace what was going on. Chalk it up to spending all day out in the sun and a combination of free Rockstar and booze coursing through their veins. However, the ones that are still with it are getting it. They’re shouting back at the band and throwing their horns up like any enthusiastic metal fan. Overall, not a bad way to kick things off. Let’s see if this crowd can shake it off as we go further into the night.
I’ve given up on my spot in the lawn after certain events transpired. Time to walk around and find a new spot. Walking around, it’s a very diverse audience. Mayhem tends to attract an older audience, but we have a few kids thrown in there. Some of which can’t be any older than 8 and are going harder than their parents. Let that sink in.
I’ve found a new spot, slightly higher up but has a better view of the lawn. Many around me are laying down and are showing signs of fatigue, but our next band looks like they’re about ready to go, as evidenced by the light-up double As that have been set up on both ends of the stage. Now, bring on Asking Alexandria.
In terms of their setup, it’s a little more than Trivium’s black-on-black, with their light-up letters and red curtained boxes adorning various areas. They even use smoke canons during some of their songs. As far as their performance, I can’t help but wonder if maybe this is a band that benefits from playing on a smaller stage where things can get more chaotic than a lager, more controlled amphitheater. It’s not from a lack of effort. Frontman Danny Worsnop is engaging enough and the overall musicianship was pretty solid. Those that got it, definitely got it. In the section where I was, the crowd seemed more interested in waiting for Korn to take the stage rather than give their time to whoever was performing now. In the end, it wasn’t bad, we just might be at a point where the main stage might be a little too big for their kind of show.
At the end of AA’s set, we take time to honor and recognize an Indiana soldier, as part of the Mayhem Festival’s Metal of Honor charity. He is awarded an autographed guitar as the thousands in attendance applaud and show their respect. Hey, he earned it.
I won’t lie, I’m really anxious to see Korn. Despite being one of my favorite bands since I was 12, I’ve only seen them one other time, and that was in 2006 when the Family Values Tour was still a thing. An interesting note: when I saw them then, Brian “Head” Welch had just left the band and Dave Silveria was still the drummer, and now Head is back and Dave has been replaced with Ray Luzier. Also different this time around was the stage setup. This was a band that once put a cage full of fans behind them during shows or built an elaborate set that turned See You On The Other Side into a full-blown production. This time, they’ve toned it down a little, instead utilizing LEDs and performing on a floor that lights up. Hey, we’re not too far removed from The Path To Totality.
Korn eventually takes the stage, and almost as fast as it took them to playing the opening line from “Falling Away From Me,” the crowd wakes up and headbangs almost like frontman Jonathan Davis does on his mic stand. They may be touring in support of the recently-released The Paradigm Shift, but for the most part, they stick with the “greatest hits,” the older stuff that everyone knows and loves them for. Heck, they introduce “Freak On A Leash” as a song that everyone here should know. Perhaps the biggest reaction came during “Shoots and Ladders” when the bagpipes were broken out.
Back in 2006, there was little talking, with the band mostly sticking to the music. This time, they just looked like they were having more fun. Davis talked to the crowd more, and we as an audience shook off whatever funk we were in to party like it was 1998 and Follow The Leader was the greatest thing we had heard.
But the fun can’t last forever. They end things with the one that started it all (“Blind”) and inviting a few kids on stage during it before sending us off on our way, or at least into the long, borderline agonizing wait for our other headliner to perform.
Korn definitely gave me that jolt I needed, but now we’re in the “hurry up and wait” portion of the evening. A lot of people look like they’re leaving, which I guess can happen when we’re at a festival-style concert. I know a lot goes into setting everything up (backstage in press this afternoon, they were still wheeling in Avenged Sevenfold’s massive setup), but that doesn’t make it any easier. They even put up a giant curtain so you can speculate what’s going on behind it. It’s like your favorite suspense movie, but the payoff in the end is a metal band.
It’s 9:39, the sun has set in Noblesville, AC/DC’s “Back in Black” is pouring through the house speakers, and just when it feels like this wait can’t get any longer, the lights go out and the curtain is pulled back, revealing giant castle walls complete with deathbat sculptures at the top, tattered banners, fire, and a giant statue of the king seated on his throne. Only the fire illuminates the stage as the members of Avenged Sevenfold come out, playing the first few bars of “Shepherd of Fire.” Frontman M. Shadows greets everyone, and it’s right off into the show we go.
For those who remember the last time A7X rolled through town, it felt like a condensed version of their last performance: Shadows is as engaging and charismatic as ever, musicianship is top-notch, their stage show is a sight to behold (pyro, video screens, and all), and even though the crowd is fatigued and on the brink of collapse, there’s still something pretty to be said about having enough energy to jump around, throw their horns up, and mosh around. Plus, have you heard that many people shout back “it’s your f@#king nightmare!” at the top of their lungs?
If there was ever a downside, it was that this show had a little bit different feel than from 9 months ago, and not for better. They played a shorter set, and parts of the crowd looked like they were just kind of there. The biggest difference? One they were headliners on their own tour where everyone wants to see them, the other they were headliners on someone else’s tour. Take it for what it’s worth.
But perhaps the standout moment of the evening was when they slowed things down to pay tribute to their fallen friend and founding drummer Jimmy “The Rev” Sullivan. It’s been nearly 5 years since his tragic death, but the band makes a point to remember him. They do so with “So Far Away,” which concludes with a lighter/cell phone salute by nearly everyone in attendance to pay their respects to The Rev and anyone else we’ve lost over the years. It’s a very touching tribute, enough to give goosebumps to anyone within earshot (me included), and somewhere out there, Jimmy is seeing this and smiling.
They pick it back up with “Afterlife” before closing things out with “This Means War” and bidding farewell to those who stuck around.
Wait, what? No, we want more. Chants of “one more song!” and “encore!” break out around me, while others clap in unison to try to get the band back out on stage. We’re all sitting in the dark for a while before we hear a voice asking if we want more. We may be tired, but what’s a few more songs.
A7X makes their way back and thanks everyone for coming out, and also taking a not-so-subtle jab at the naysayers who were saying there weren’t “metal enough” for Mayhem. They respond by playing perhaps one of the least-metal songs in their catalog (their words, not mine): a NSFW tale of love, murder, sex, and revenge (in that order) called “A Little Piece of Heaven.” It’s about as disturbing as it sounds, but maybe more so because the video they made for the song is being shown on the two video screens on their castle walls. To close things out, it’s a trip to the past with “Unholy Confessions” before they bid us a final farewell and the promise of coming back soon. We’ll hold them to their word…
Now the show is over, and everyone heads for the parking lot while “Across The Universe” pours through the speakers. Those who had the pit tickets in front of the stage stick around to try and catch discarded guitar picks and drum sticks. Me? I’m walking back to my car to prepare to hurry up and wait so I can get home and translate all of these thoughts into words for a review.
Final verdict?
Covering the Mayhem Festival may feel like a marathon, especially as we get further into day, but what’s better than a day full of metal? Mayhem has a high repeat attendance rate (close to 80%), and I can see why. As far as the main stage goes, it was diverse, it was heavy, and despite a few misses, it was definitely entertaining.
Besides, isn’t life better with a little bit of Mayhem?
The Good:
Definitely the diversity. Not only were they showcasing bands from past, present, and future, but each one had their own sound and feel. Definitely something that was welcome when it comes to keeping someone interested in who’s next.
The Bad:
Its biggest strength could also be its weakness. Mayhem is diverse and it’s big, but maybe a little too much. A lot of people were sunburned and fatigued by the end, and some bands work better on other stages. Nothing huge, just something you notice on a festival show.