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Review: Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival 7/8/2012 Denver, CO
Gweedo
July 8th brought Mayhem to Denver. Don’t believe me? Well ask anyone that was in a block radius of Comfort Dental Amphitheatre! If you're new to these kinds of events, they pretty much grab a bunch of metal bands, give them two stages, and let them spend all day doing their thing. It is my opinion that this year was a total success. There were great bands all around and a great atmosphere.
Gweedo
July 8th brought Mayhem to Denver. Don’t believe me? Well ask anyone that was in a block radius of Comfort Dental Amphitheatre! If you're new to these kinds of events, they pretty much grab a bunch of metal bands, give them two stages, and let them spend all day doing their thing. It is my opinion that this year was a total success. There were great bands all around and a great atmosphere.
Clown of Slipknot.
This year Mayhem Fest brought Slipknot, Slayer, Motorhead, and The Devil Wears Prada to the main stage. The side stage was graced with the likes of Anthrax, Asking Alexandria, As I Lay Dying, White Chapel, Upon A Burning Body, and local blood Iconocaust. Other local talent, No 1 Left Standing, entertained the masses waiting to get into the building on a cool mobile stage. For those of you who attended last year, the stage set up was the same with the Rockstar Energy tent in the middle of the street and the side stage in the intersection. The big change, to the rejoice of all the fans, was that the side staged played first and then moved to the main stage to feature the headliners. Last year, you had to move back and forth between the stages: often missing bands completely or missing your favorite songs because you were in transit. Thanks for the improvement Rockstar!
Phil Campbell Motorhead signed pick.
The merch tents were good when you were waiting between bands. I scored some autographs and meet and greets. Some of the bands had two times for meet and greets, so that was convenient. Clown from Slipknot was out at his booth for most of the day selling his book of photography and signing any items you bought. There was also a limited edition lithograph of Clown that had 100 copies only being sold in Denver! Corey Taylor, Sid Wilson, and 133 of Slipknot came out and signed some posters for those that bought the new compilation CD by the group. Slayer guitarist Kerry King had a limited signing. Motorhead didn’t have anything set up but you could buy signed merchandise at their booth. The rest of the bands signed posters at various tents throughout the day. Rockstar provided free “pick me ups” during the side stage festivities. There were drawings for signed merchandise. Zippo had a big tent selling lighters, hosting signing events, and showcasing a Zippo Jeep Wrangler. Jagermeister also had their tent hosting signings and showcasing a Jagermeister themed Jeep Wrangler. There were even two masseuses on hand to work out the kinks from the mosh pit!
Clown Slipknot signed drum mallet.
Lemmy of Motorhead.
With all these extras, there’s still the point that this is a concert with music. So what about it? Well, let me tell you. Honestly, I didn’t see all the bands, and I’m not big on bands that only do screaming. With so many people, it is hard to get in right when the doors open. Because of this, I missed the performance of Iconocaust. I didn’t hear anyone saying they were bad, so we’ll assume that they had a good performance. I did make it to Upon A Burning Body. Not my cup of tea, but they were laying down some good metal and had a lot of energy up there. Probably supped up on Rockstars! White Chapel was next: still pretty screamo, but they are hard working and always touring. They’ve done work to get where they are. As I Lay Dying followed, and they also did a great set. Next up was Asking Alexandria. I got to meet these guys, and they were pretty cool and down to Earth. They had an energized, heavy set. A lot of people were really getting into it. Last act on the side stage was Anthrax... It’s Anthrax! What do you want me to say? They killed it. Who knows why they weren’t on the main stage? The crowd was off the hook, and they put out a solid performance.
Kerry King of Slayer.
Let’s move onto the main stage with The Devil Wears Prada. They did really well for a band clawing up the rock tiers. The crowd wasn’t big into them. Looking across the amphitheatre, the majority of the people were in their seats, and the pit was but a dull roar. This wasn’t from a lack of trying though. They played some good songs and dished out a good energy. It was just a byproduct of people standing all day and finally having access to a seat. Bring on Motorhead. Those guys can rock a stage: a three piece that doesn’t know how not to entertain. Now really, I only understood half the things that came out of Lemmy’s mouth, but I’m not there for a speech; I’m there to hear the old boy belt out some raspy lyrics. If you’ve been around for 37 years, you’re obviously doing it right, and I can attest to that. Slayer… slayed. Yeah, I said it, but it’s true. Every time I see these guys, they put on a great show. Really, it seemed like most of the audience was there just for them. Throughout the day, you could hear impromptu “Slayer” chants spreading through the masses. As another elder of the rock world banging heads for 31 years, they got the blood pumping. The mosh pit really lit up once these guys played along with the stage with all pyrotechnics. This lead up to the crazy 9, err… 7! Slipknot never disappoints. Even with the lost of Paul Gray and Jim Root recovering from a ruptured appendix, it didn’t stop them from putting on an amazing show. Clown brought all his antics with Chris Fehn’s and his awesome drum rigs. From front to back, the crowd went crazy for these guys. The set included pyrotechnics and, of course, Joey Jordison’s spinning drum kit to finish it off!
Corey Taylor of Slipknot.
So, what just happened? Well, to sum it up, another year with talented bands and an atmosphere built for fans. This is something that metal fans should never miss with opportunities that might never happen again. On to the next show.
Tom Araya of Slayer.
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