Waterpop - Hofpark Wateringen, 10 August, 2019

I knew that Channel Zero lost their drummer rather sudden, This morning due to a Metalfan post I learned this was today on the day six years ago. As a member of the Mearfest family I also did know this is Molly's weekend. So combining both, nothing seemed to be more appropriate than to go down by bicycle against the storm to Wateringen in my Mearfest shirt. Waterpop is the biggest festival in het Westland, the glasshouse region south of The Hague. In the eighties Westland was big in metal. Often we went to see national bands in venues in the region. Nowadays even Waterpop does not shy away to ignore metal as a genre, but this year Channel Zero was on, after a failed attempt one year ago.

Channel Zero from Belgium starting some 30 years ago as a thrash metal band, moving to groove metal. Tonight they would give Waterpop by far the most energetic show of the day. Not too familiar with their CD's I liked their set, their songs and their Flemish introductions. During the last song the vocalist entered the pit and surprised some people at the field. So all in all a very entertaining set by what Waterpop called the best metal band of the Benelux. Further Waterpop is about seeing friends, have a drink and make sure you leave on time before a DJ starts annoying you out. So cheers and thoughts go to Channel Zero and Brian and Claire Mear.

Incantation & Beheaded - Musicon Den Haag, 9 August 2019

Another evening of Death Metal in Musicon. Incantation on their way back from Party-San and support Beheaded would give us something to bang our heads on. For me this weekend the cycling tour Pedal to the Metal starts, so why not open already on Friday. Turned out that we would not have a packed house, but it nicely filled up again. That is not bad given the competition of Into The Grave and Alcatrazz festivals this weekend.

First band on were Beheaded from Malta, and I guess the first Maltese band I saw. Well they played mainly uptempo Death Metal. While the vocalist tried with wide open eyes to attract more people forward most watched from a distance and saw it was good. Incantation was another band I hold no music of. What I liked more about them was the mix between Death Metal and very heavy doomy passages. Vocalist does not like posers and the band played on, even on bass with one finger out. This set was tight and made you understand how these guys are thirty years around. A nice opening of my series of 5 metal nights it was and with the cycling coming up a modest beer consumption to match.

Schollenpop - Zuiderstrand Scheveningen, 3 August 2019

Schollenpop is one of the many festivals around in the summer. For those not from the The Hague area the order is as follows. Kaderock early June hits of the season. In and around Musicon this is musically the most interesting festival, as it builds around guitars and usually includes more than one metal related band as well. End June Parkpop is the biggest festival. In the eighties/nineties they would attract up to 400,000 people, which is less now. That festival you can forget about as they ignore metal and hard rock completely for years. Than Delft holds Westerpop and Leiden Werfpop in July and early August Schollenpop hits the beach, before Waterpop next week in Wateringen sort of closes the festival season in the region. In the past all these events were for free, nowadays some charge a fee and yesterday for the first time we had to pay 3 Euro to enter the beach part of the festival. Schollenpop is also traditionally guitar driven and had some good bands in the past. Of course 2015 is Classic with Death Angel on the main stage and THHMA having an all day metal stage as well. Ever since you feel sorry that this had no continuation after the huge success of that day. This year there were some unknown bands who I later heard were pretty good, but the band I came to see was Moonkings. I decided to go strategically only after 18:00 as an early start guarantees a drunk departure as you always run into friends and more friends.

So after enjoying a sunny, not hot beach it was well past the scheduled starting time when Moonkings hit the main stage. This band is the new project of Adrian Vandenberg, Holland's most successful hard rock guitarist with his own band in the early eighties and later passing by Whitesnake. So for the style of music you can simply think late eighties Whitesnake. This is also made possible by the very strong voice of Jan Hoving. Bass and drums are handled by much younger guys who did so very well. Now I never bought the albums by Moonkings, so strangely enough I was welcoming some covers during this set. From Vandenberg we got Burning Heart and Whitesnake got a nice acoustic Sailing Ships, which next to the sea was probably their best setting ever. Judgement Day was a nice surprise and Here I go Again more obligatory. This actually is a pre-Adje Whitesnake song, but redone during the commercial years. After an own song they closed with the only disappointment of the evening. Covering Rock and Roll is so boring and cliche that you start disliking this in principle strong song. In the end we got a very professional show bringing us back to the eighties in style. Adje even told us he was born 3 minutes walking from this beach while I always thought he was a tukker. Next festival stop Waterpop.

Flotsam and Jetsam, Helstar & Dark Sky Choir - Baroeg Rotterdam, 2 August 2019

Flotsam and Jetsam have been returning quite often to Holland over the past years. The good news is that we don't get tired of them, but seem to appear in larger numbers each time. Two weeks ago they sold out Little Devil and tonight Baroeg looked packed. Not sure if it was sold out, but far too hot it became quickly. Suddenly those airco's in Musicon looked the best investment ever and that one week after the heatwave. But enough about the weather let's metal. Maybe the full house also had something to do with the very strong supporting double.

Opening band were Dark Sky Choir a band I never heard of until recently. Not knowing the band says nothing about the members. The vocalist Brian Allen I recognized from a Vicious Rumours show at Alcatraz some 8 years ago. Guitarist Ira Black played in so many bands I like, but I last saw him with Am I Morbid. The bassist I did not recognize, but even played live with Queensryche and is in Disturbed. Finally the monster of the band was wearing a white tie on a black shirt and hit the drums. He even got a solo spot in the 30 minute set, which was surprisingly entertaining with him climbing his drums while playing. I read somewhere he plays in Exxplorer, but just picked up my copy of Symphonies of Steel and he is not in that line-up. The music you ask? Well with this line up you get what you expect US Power Metal with trashy edges at times. I loved their show and songs, so now I have last album End of Days playing and all is good. A band to follow and if they ever add a cover to a longer setlist, may it be one by Exxplorer.

Second band of the day is an old favorite I did not see that often, Helstar. First time ever was when they supported Yngwie Malmsteen in Zwolle, somewhere late eighties. Second time was at the same Alcatraz festival I saw Brian Allen singing. Helstar is the band around James Rivera, one of metal's traditional vocalists who split opinions. Well I am in the fan-camp loving his high screams. That voice was still strong as we could hear from the beginning. The set visited the history with some more focus on the past (as we like it)  So soon the King was Dead, after which we should bow down to the King of Hell. Time was short, so the band rocked on. An instrumental break gave James the time to dress up. Coming back with a black cape and vampire teeth, we knew it was time for Baptized in Blood. Their one but best song, as they save the best for last. Run With the Pack! Pack! Pack! how I love shouting along with that one. This song alone increased temperatures another few degrees and it was a brilliant ending to a perfect set.

So after two very good openers it was up to Flotts to surpass this. Well they had no problems whatsoever as this probably was the best show I ever saw by them. Everything was right. The setlist, the full house an animated A.K. and the beers cold enough to keep us standing. Opening with new song Prisoner of Death all sounded good, although with the lights going on we doubted if they were sound-checking still. Well rumbling further into Desecrator the roof already almost came down. Following this by the best Iron Maiden song Maiden never wrote: Iron Maiden. If only Maiden would release an album with fast bangers like this again, it would be their best since at least Fear of the Dark, if not further back. Then back in time to Hammerhead from the debut and so the evening went on. Hans and I concluded rightly that Flotsam and Jetsam are so good live, as apart from their starting classics Doomsday and Disgrace, also their last albums are very good and relevant. I said it before, but the big four definitely did not release this century any albums as good as the so called smaller bands like F&J, Exodus, Death Angel, Heathen did. This evening was one perfect show by a band in top form and we know we will be back when they return soon. Not sure if that is valid for the too short set at Killfest for me though. What a great band Flotsam and Jetsam are, let's hope they keep on coming back every year.

Gruesome, Nervochaos & Melting Eyes - Musicon The Hague, 16 July 2019

It's Tuesday 16 July and for the second time in one week Musicon is the beating heart of metal in Holland. Let's hope that this becomes the new trend. The evening kicked of even 15 minutes earlier as Gruesome informed they would not play 60 but 75 minutes. So Melting Eyes were on stage already when I walked in. Known faces from the region and a decent death metal band. I just warmed up and met with some friends , so did not fully undergo their already started set. Guess I will see them again soon.

Next band were Nervochaos from Brazil. I did not know them before, but saw they brought 8(!) CD's along for sale. With Brazil being my past home-country I always make sure I can get a good impression of the band moving slightly more forward. Brazilians tend to be kind of musical by nature, so the playing is never an issue. In the case of Nervochaos it is packed in Death Metal. Starting with a slow instrumental arriving at fast banging songs. Arian told me I should write down that they played nice and tight, so here you go. Nice band who sorted themselves a place to stay already, so no B&B hosting for me this time.

Gruesome was the band most really came to hear and I was curious to see if they could pull off their albums live on stage. Well even if hindered by some technical issues they could. Speaking about tight bands, what we got hitting us here was nothing short of impressive. They call themselves a Death coverband, as musically they are just the same. At the same time they play their own songs with one cover only (Born Death). Two full and one half album into their career I own 1.5 of it. So some songs I thought I recognized, although that is always hard in this style if you had not played the album many times recently. Actually that did not matter as listening fresh to their songs also works when played so tight with impressive guitars. The floor got more slippery by the song and the mood was good, so nothing to complain during yet another fine evening in Musicon. Well maybe the T-shirts. The print of the Twisted Prayers cover (Ed Repka) did not come over all too well on the T-shirt, so I passed in the end leaving me now with a feeling of not supporting the band. Well I was there and will be back when they return.

Armored Saint & Metal Church - Iduna Drachten 14 July 2019

Next week it is Dynamo Metal Fest and I can't make it. To my luck two of the best bands of the line up decided to play the north of Holland a week before as well. Now Armored Saint made it to my favorite live show last year and as their last shows in Holland were in the middle of summer school holidays, Magchiel missed them. Doing the math 1+1 is still 2 and off we went all the way to Drachten making our Iduna debut. I say all the way, but Holland is not that big as an average stage in the Tour de France might be as far. Sunday show scheduled at the afternoon, just as we like it. Arriving at Iduna it turned out to be in an industrial area with as bonus a foodtruck outside. Not sure how many fit in, but turnout was good. So let the Saint March in.

Armored Saint plays Heavy Metal as we like it. Good songs and full of double or solo guitars spicing matters up. John Bush remains for me one of the best vocalists around and we were in for a party trip through their albums. Opening with Raising Fear and Can U Deliver and our necks were warmed up. Seeing Armored Saint means you get an overview of all their albums, but with the occasional surprise thrown in. This afternoon Muscle Memory (from the very strong Win Hands Down album) and Seducer were nice inclusions. We tried loosing our voice for good during Reign of Fire already making a start at that during my favorite Saint song Last Train Home. Every time this song is played live I wonder why that song never turned into a global hit. I mean you can even dance on it if you like. Meanwhile John glued all songs together where even a rather far sought speech turned our female football squad into potential seducers. He did his homework as he knew he was in the north of the Netherlands and the phrase "Make some F%$king noise for me Drachten" came out well. Strangely they were announced as support, but luckily they got some 70 minutes time for us. So when the March of the Saint was over we knew it was the end of yet another amazing Saint gig. Armored Saint always deliver.

A short break outside, gave time to catch up with Willem as well. Metal Church headlining today and I wandered back in time. I think the only time I saw them live was at Dynamo Open Air 1991 when they closed the day also after Armored Saint played earlier. Some years ago I was supposed to see them on their XI tour in Dynamo, but when Meshiaak pulled out I decided not to train down. In 91 Mike Howe was vocalist and he is back for two albums now. I must say that Damned If You Do, their last album is very strong indeed so curious what they would bring live. Opening with the title track of the last album and thereafter a song from XI showed the present is pretty OK for them. Mike Howe in red trousers and short haired jumping on the stage reminded me a bit of Graham Bonnett. The band was good and also they presented a trip through time. One comment form my side would be that they put very little focus on their start. I mean their self titled debut album from 1985  was what got us into the band. Only Beyond the Black was played and I could do with some Gods of Wrath or Battalions as well. That there was a certain focus on Mike Howe albums is Ok, but then I would love to see Anthem to the Estranged once live. Here I see that Watch the Children Pray cannot be skipped either and we should not overdose on calmness. Anyway nothing to complain overall as it was great to see Metal Church again on stage after so many years. While more up front during Armored Saint I thought by limited audience participation that most probably came for Metal Church. It turned out that also here we slowly had to walk more forward as the number of people chatting non-stop, catching up and getting pissed seemed to outnumber those who came to see the shows this afternoon. Yet we might be back for Holland Heavy in November as this was one successful Sunday afternoon in Drachten. Car it was so no need to look for Last Trains Home.

Exhorder & Hallowed Fire - Musicon The Hague 13 July 2019

It's Saturday night 13 July and Musicon is the beating heart of metal in Holland. At the doors  Rob already looked a busy man and what a delight it was to enter and find Musicon fully packed. Interesting enough this was for Exhorder a band that hasn't played Holland for 27 years and last time attracted 6 paying visitors in Baroeg. Nice introduction on the support band that evening by the way. This evening Hallowed Fire was a last minute substitute support band and another good reason to make people smile. Seems to me that Holland is starting to get flooded with good thrash metal bands nowadays. Great set, good playing and a lively presentation. Covering Damage Inc. in order to give us something we know as well and I guess they won over quite some new fans this evening.

After a short break Exhorder hit the stage. Opening with their song Anal Lust we knew we would be in for an evening of sheer poetry. While support Hallowed Fire  brought us enthusiasm and power Exhorder upped the level even more. Their mostly fast and short songs were thrown at us with a fire that was contagious. As a result there was almost through the whole set a circle pit going around. Now I must admit having missed Exhorder completely 30 years ago, but they won me over on the night. With their classic album being called Slaughter in the Vatican there was also a welcome dose of religion bashing. Closer of the evening was obligatory (as they told us) song Desecrator and nothing holy was saved indeed. What a surprising good party this evening turned out to be. Even the Airco died above us and started  spitting out drops of exhaustion. Let's hope that all who found their way to Musicon tonight will return. Next chance Gruesome this Tuesday.