Digital Diversion

Another sunny day in the Bay Area and time for another festival.  I arrived before the gates opened, eager to shoot all the bands on the bill and I kid you not when I say that the line of people waiting to get in went nearly to my parking space.  I headed straight to will call to pick up my press credentials where I found a short but ridiculously slow line.  For some reason they had the VIP ticket holders using the same line as the press; while I’m somewhat used to the potential hassles of will call, I would have been pissed if I was expecting the VIP treatment.

In any case, by the time I got into the venue, all those people that were lined out to the parking lot were now inside and the first band, Norma Jean, was already done.  So much for getting an early jump on things.  I made a quick trip to the backstage press area where I checked out some of the bad-ass-est stage props that I’ve seen in a while. Custom mic stands seem to be the “in” thing these days and, while I have great appreciation for Jonathan Davis’ Geiger stand, I have to give the nod to Rob Zombie’s skeletons for the one I’d most likely try to steal if given the chance. Seeing all that stuff sitting there definitely added to the anticipation of the main stage performers. But there were 8 bands between me and the main stage and no time to dwell.

For being so early in the day, the place was packed and I couldn’t help but stop and admire the boldness (yes, I’m being polite) of the couple that chose to bring their infant, stroller and all, to Mayhem Fest.  The fact that we were only one band into the day and the baby was clearly unhappy made this couple hands-down winners for the day’s Digital Diversion inaugural Parenting Award.  Congratulations!  It was nice to get that award taken care of so early in the day!

Unlike the craziness of Warped where there were multiple bands playing concurrently, the Mayhem organizers took the rational approach of setting up the second stages right next to each other, making it easy for the crowd, crew and photographers to move back and forth.  Highlights for me were 3 Inches of Blood, Winds of Plague and Shadows Fall. I also gotta give some props to the local openers, Vengince, who held their own with the big hitters on this tour.  By the time that Hatebreed took the stage the crowd was enormous and, before long, they had fueled one of the largest pits I’ve ever seen.  It literally wrapped around the tent where they kept the soundboard … and it wasn’t even the only pit!  I’ve never seen anything like it in my many years of concert going.  More than anyone else, Hatebreed put the mayhem in Mayhem Fest.  After suffering through a few songs of In This Moment, the band that proves the point that you can get ahead in music even if you can’t sing by being good looking, I b-lined it to the main stage.

In between Five Finger Death Punch and Lamb of God we were treated to a special performance by Oompa Loompas.  I have no idea what they were doing there, but it was pretty damned funny.  Lamb of God was insanely good and there was a huge pit up on the lawn.  By the time Rob Zombie took the stage, the sun had gone down.  Between the lighting, big screens, flames and props, the stage show during Zombie’s set was stunning.  Regardless of whether you’re a Rob Zombie fan or not, it was hard not to be impressed.  Last up was Korn, their stage decorated in the Oildale theme with pumps, rigging and a refinery backdrop set up a cool ambiance for a performance that was not only solid, but much better than I had expected.

Click the links below to see pictures of each of the bands.

Main Stage:

• Korn
• Rob Zombie
• Lamb of God
• Five Finger Death Punch

Jagermeister Stage:

• Hatebreed
• Chimaira
• Shadows Fall
• Vengince

Silver Star Stage:

• Winds of Plague
• In This Moment
• Atreyu
• 3 Inches of Blood

© 2010 Alan Snodgrass | www.digitaldiversion.net. Please do not use without express permission (contact). If you like what you see, leave a comment below and subscribe so you can be notified of new posts.  Or even better, come find us on Facebook and become a fan.

© 2010 Alan Snodgrass | www.digitaldiversion.net. Please do not use without express permission (contact). If you like what you see, leave a comment below and subscribe so you can be notified of new posts.

The day after Thanksgiving is best known for door-buster savings and the start of the holiday shopping season.  This particular Friday, an extreme lineup of nine bands playing for eight and a half hours of blistering metal redefined the meaning of “Black Friday!”

I didn’t get to the Warfield until 6 pm by which time 4 bands had already played but I did not go home disappointed.  I was previously unfamiliar with Unearth but they put on a great performance including an on-stage beer bong by the guitarist.  Not able to finish it, he blew the remaining beer into the crowd.  Thankfully I was far enough away to be spared the shower.  Up next, Chimaira nailed a short but blistering set to be followed by Cannibal Corpse whose extreme black metal had the crowd going more nuts than over any other band.  Maybe the crowd needed a much-deserved rest because things seemed to thin out up front for Trivium’s co-headlining set but they were still fantastic … certainly the highlight of the night for me … and announced that they’d be taking time off to work on a new album next year.  A special treat for tonight’s crowd was a performance of Sepultura’s Slave New World with Corey on vocals.

Last on the line-up were Hatebreed.  Where ever the crowd had gone during Hatebreed’s set, they were back in force.  Hatebreed fans may not be the prettiest of people but man are they fiercely loyal to their band.  While no match for the insanity during Cannibal Corpse’s set, the crowd was singing along and moshing hard.

Enjoy the photos and, as always, feel free to register and leave a comment.

Edit:  You can see the Hatebreed and Trivium set lists all the way at the bottom of the page.

Unearth

Chimaira

Cannibal Corpse

Trivium

Hatebreed

Trivium Set List:

• Rain
• Drowned and Torn Asunder
• Pillars of Serpents
• Ascendancy
• Down from the Sky
• Throes of Perdition
• To The Rats
• Detonation
• Slave New World (Sepultura, sung by Corey Beaulieu)
• A Gunshot to the Head of Trepidation
• Pull Harder on the Strings of Your Martyr

Hatebreed Set List:

• Everyone Bleeds Now
• In Ashes They Shall Reap
• Smash Your Enemies
• Merciless Tide
• Perseverance
• To The Threshhold
• Live For This
• Last Breath
• Doomsayer
• Before Dishonor
• As Damaged As Me
• Tear It Down
• Ghosts of War (Slayer)
• This is Now
• Empty Promises
• Defeatist
• Proven
• A Call For Blood
• Destroy Everything
• I Will Be Heard