Testament - Tesla - Annihilator - Monster Magnet - Insomnium - Orphaned Land - Blues Pills - Iron Savior

[Sui] A thunderstorm. Finally. Even if it had rainswept the opening act :: IRON SAVIOR :: True metal heads did not care and cheered the band. To me rather petty, like any musically but a solid entertainment. At this point: Goddammit, leave the backdrop up till the band has finished its gig!!! This is utmost disrespectful, adds sort of a flat-conveyor-feeling and saves 20 seconds at most.
Setlist: Last Hero, Revenge Of The Bride, Starlight, The Savior, Burning Heart, Condition Red, Heavy Metal Never Dies

:: pics ::

[Psycho] Great musicians do the wrong music, namely 70s retro stuff with lengthy (and boring) lead passages. It all well-done and singer Elin is awe-inspiring in every respect, but it’s nothing for me, really…
[Sui] Why great musicians should not do the music they would like to do I don’t understand, neither if there exists “right” and “wrong” music. But yeah, now it got difficult for retro- dispraiser. Because :: BLUES PILLS :: go back in time as none else on this festival. Even The Doors I could hear out at points. Sure, songs could be tightened here and there and sometimes the lead guitar sounded a bit aimlessly.
[Dajana] I admit the BLUES PILLS are better to enjoy in an intimate club atmosphere. Though the Swedes delivered a breathtaking performance here and got honored with a full arena at this early hour. I got goose bumps when Elin Larsson intoned Devil Man. What a voice!
Apropos backdrop: I think at the end of the BLUES PILLS show we saw the worst case in this matter. Not even that the backdrop was put down, also the back-curtain got opened and the the stage-techs had their hands on the drum-kit platform. During the show. This is absolutely a no-go! Fuck you for this!
Setlist: High Class Woman, Ain't No Change, Dig In, No Hope Left For Me, Black Smoke, Devil Man, Astralplane, Little Sun

[Psycho] :: ORPHANED LAND :: I actually like to see live always again. Not only because they stand for intelligent lyrics, but also because they are live so much better than on CD. If Phil Rind wouldn’t have scored already, then singer Kobi Farhi would have gotten the award for the most likeable frontman. The departure of main songwriter Yossi Sassi at least did not have a negative effect live on stage. As special delicacy Blind Guardian guitarist Marcus Siepen joined the band fort wo songs and it got announced that both bands will tour Europe together next year. Well, I guess the German have to apply themselves then…
[Sui] ORPHANED LAND spread an huge amount of good vibes and are always an enrichment for the RHF. The mix of Heavy Metal rhythms and oriental melancholy is just unique, especially at this high level of quality. Besides, the guys are way more used to the brutal desert heat as we are; which made it difficult to pay the attention the band would have deserved.
Setlist: All Is One, The Simple Man, Barakah, The Kiss Of Babylon (The Sins), Brother, Birth Of The Three (The Unification), Let The Truce Be Known, Norra el Norra (Entering The Ark)

[Psycho] Nope, Finnish weather this is not. But :: INSOMNIUM :: were not taken aback and turned out to be an unexpected surprise. First, the band played their brand of melodic Death Metal extremely tight and swinging and second, were really permanently in motion, headbanging and posing as if there is no tomorrow. That most parts of the show were choreographed did not narrow the pleasure watching them. They truly electrified the crowd, despite the heat. And, INSOMNIUM delivered the perfect track for this festival: Down With The Sun. Yes! Exactly!
[Sui] This song title is the only thing that got stuck in my mind. Melodic death on a high level with some sample problems. Hats off for the agility the guys has shown.
[Dajana] Yes, definitely! I think I would have been in need for an O2 tent + a cold chamber after only 2 songs. To me INSOMNIUM are meanwhile the better Dark Tranquillity.
Setlist: The Primeval Dark, While We Sleep, Only One Who Waits, Down With The Sun, Revelation, Through The Shadows, Ephemeral, Unsung, The Promethean Song

[Sui] I was especially looking forward to :: MONSTER MAGNET ::. And they did not disappoint me. Dust-dry and straight Stoner Rock with an asskickingly cool fronter Dave Wyndorf, surprisingly in good shape. How the hell did he make it in this thick black leather jacket? If I would smoke it would have been the perfect time now for a huge spliff. Though, a “power trip” it was not, only during Space Lord Motherfucker!
[Dajana] I did not have any expectations. A MONSTER MAGNET show lives and dies with the mood and condition of its frontman. And in this matter I have already experienced the worst. But yeah, I got positively surprised. At the end I could not stop swinging my heaps ;)
Setlist: Superjudge, Medicine, Nod Scene, Twin Earth, Dopes To Infinity, Tractor, Last Patrol, Look To Your Orb For The Warning, Powertrip, Space Lord

[Psycho] Jeff Waters and his backing group I have not seen for quite some time, so I was much curious. And it was worth the waiting. No other band at this festival was so tight and technically precise. And no other band has so rocked the venue. Man, what more could you ask for? :: ANNIHILATOR :: got rewarded with a huge mosh pit, getting close having Arizona proportions, and with an enthused audience that freaked out and frenetically celebrated the band at their classic per se: Alice In Hell. As for me the song selection could have been better, but if you get rather average tracks such as Road To Ruin and Brain Dance played with so much delight, it doesn’t matter anymore. ANNIHILATOR finished their gig with a ultra brute version of Human Insecticide – rad! Remains the question, why the hell the Canadians did not play as co-headliner?
[Sui] Once I got (quickly) used to the thin guitar sound of Jeff Water my Thrash heart was beating at 180. Yes, the band’s mastermind was in high spirit and the crowd was thankful for that. There is one advantage of Jeff Waters peculiar guitar sound: it’s extremely transparent. Every strike is to hear out, every killer riff hits you between the eyes, more about later…
Setlist: Smear Campaign, King Of The Kill, No Way Out, Deadlock, Set The World On Fire, Reduced To Ash, Alison Hell, Ultraparanoia, Road To Ruin, No Zone, Brain Dance, I Am In Command, Human Insecticide

[Sui] :: TESLA :: was not the band fans wanted to see next after Annihilator. So, many fans left the arena to get some food and/or more beer. TESLA play solid Hardrock, a bit past its best. They had their best moments when they got much more Blues-like with slide guitars or a bit heavier. But I had difficulties with the voice. Jeff Keith surely has skills but his voice sounds like a mix of Alvin and the Chipmunks, the smurfs and Kermit.
[Psycho] Hm, well, another band that zipped me past. Except for the awareness that Aerosmith are deservedly more popular it won’t change anything. Solid show for those who like Hardrock.
[Dajana] Same feelings, I had difficulties with the singing. After a while it was ok. Much more I had to fight with the heat and tiredness. Where the hell was the announced rain and cooling???
Setlist: I Wanna Live, Hang Tough, Heaven's Trail (No Way Out), Mama's Fool, Into The Now, MP3, The Way It Is, What You Give, Signs, Love Song, Gettin' Better, Modern Day Cowboy, Little Suzi, Cumin' Atcha Live

[Psycho] Bummer! Once again a show that could not live up to its expectations. Last time :: TESTAMENT :: played the ROCK HARD FESTIVAL Alex Skolnick had to sit out the show and the band was forced to perform as a four-piece. This year fill in for Megadeth on a quite short notice. Most of all the Californian guys had to struggle through sound problems. The sound engineers did quite a good job during the last 3 days, but now the bass drums and lower bass guitar sequences were so loud that all other kind of sound facets were pasted over. Rhythm guitars were hardly to hear and the songs, if at all, could only be recognized by the refrains. And this became increasingly more difficult as Chuck Billy seemed to have a very bad day. He had problems with timing (especially during the fast passages), he had problems with his voice and he had massive blackouts regarding the lyrics. Funnily enough it happened more often at the older tracks (Into The Pit, Over The Wall) then during the newer ones. The nominal strongest line-up with Steve DiGiorgio and Gene Hoglan could not live up our expectations. Or did you ever notice Gene Hoglan having timing problems? Disciples Of The Watch the band even had to interrupt, because none of them knew what the other was playing. This is so much regrettable as Alex Skolnick was as lively and motivated as hardly seen before. So, instead of a Thrash Metal highlight we got an unexpectedly bad headliner show. This may happen; sure, a great festival finale is something different…
[Sui] TESTAMENT came, saw and could have conquered. Expectations were high. The headliner change got partly frenetically welcomed. Instead TESTAMENT failed miserably. Right from the beginning the sound was shit and did not better any bit. When I saw them last year in Wiesbaden I thought it must have been the location. But as we just have experienced Annihilator with a crystal clear sound I suppose it is the TESTAMENT mixer who did a bad job here. Gene Hoglans bass drums almost killed everything and what’s left got mashed by excessive reverberation. And this is no hyperbole. Not even one of the classic riffwork was to recognize. And the second big problem was frontman Chuck Billy, who delivered an effort to make me feel ashamed. The low-point was, as already mentioned, Disciples Of The Watch, where Chuck Billy missed his cue two times, before the band gathered around the drum kit and interrupted the song. To write a slated review normally goes with a bit of spitefulness, but here it just hurts to see a (formerly) great performing like this. Only the wall of death and a huge plush frog distracted a bit from the disaster. My plea to the band: please get in shape again instead of damaging itself. You can do it much better!
Setlist: Rise Up, The Preacher, More Than Meets The Eye, Native Blood, True American Hate, Dark Roots Of Earth, Into The Pit, Practice What You Preach, The New Order, The Haunting // Over The Wall, The Formation Of Damnation

Résumé:
[Psycho] It seems to become natural that the highlights play in the afternoon/early evening (except for the last year). TRIPTYKON on Friday were unrivaled, so to say. On the following days SACRED REICH and ANNIHILATOR were the real stars. Is it a booking problem or just difficult to evaluate when doing the running order? The announcement that Overkill will play next year’s edition I see ambivalent – who wants to see the ROCK HARD FESTIVAL degenerate to a heavy Blackfield Festival where the same bands play every second year and gets deadly boring? Organizers should take care of this. Besides, it was way too hot but hey, none forced me to spend 3 days in this cement bowl at felt 35°C. Therefore it’s to foresee that I’ll be back next year.

[Sui] Sweaty it was, yes, but also extremely great. I rarely got so many positive impressions from the bands as it happened in 2014. The departure of eleven RH crew members and one disappointing headliner hardly carry weigh. To me the ROCK HARD FESTIVAL is one of the greatest festivals, especially since it gets attended by real metal fans and not that kind of party douche bags that don’t care of the bands and music while roaming the rocks and rings and parks. I’m looking forward to Overkill next year but Psycho is right: there are enough bands out there to avoid band recurrences. Apart from that: great festival! See you next year!

[Dajana] Yes, all in all the ROCK HARD FESTIVAL was great again. And I guess it was the hottest festival in their history. From an organizational point of view everything was fine, nothing to nag about. Only recurrent downer is the booking. With this huge amount of great bands in the metal genre I really, really don’t understand why almost a quarter of this year’s billing plays the RHF again. Confirmed Overkill will headline one festival day for the third time then. Well, I guess I’ll drop by next year again too for a beer or two ;)

• stories © Psycho, Sui, Dajana • pics © • Dajana Winkel Photography •