I can't remember how many times I have visited the Trix venue in Antwerp, and I certainly can't count all the awesome bands I have seen there. From Cecilia::Eyes in the small café over Uncle Acid & the Deadbeats in the club to Tricky and Pentagram in the big hall, I've spent countless of hours (and euros) there. I got acquainted with several bands but I never thought I would visit Trix to say goodbye to a band. But yesterday, exactly that happened when one of Belgium's finest metal bands thrashed the stage one last time.

First things first, you can always count on Belgian public transport company De Lijn to arrive late everywhere. However, if you know that, you can just take an earlier bus (if that one even shows up) so you won't be that late. So I was only a little late to see what Bark does. Believe it or not, but I had never given them much attention. Why? I don't know. They just slipped out of my attention span I guess. However, after their slab of brutal energy on stage at Trix, they indeed convinced me. Their aggressive and dirty blend of hardcore, stoner and sludge at times even brought acts like Nailbomb and Pitch Shifter to mind. They also played some stuff from their upcoming album. I'm quite looking forward to that one. I think I'm going to keep an eye open for these guys from now on. This was an excellent opener for an awesome night.

Distillator is The Netherlands' ultimate answer to eighties thrash metal, period. With their fiercely blasting songs, flashing solos and sheer speed the trio easily set Trix on fire. I've seen them before, at Rocktoberfest (read). I was stunned then and I was amazed yesterday. Perhaps, for some people, this approach to thrash metal might be somewhat outdated, especially with those high pitched vocal parts. But to me, and apparently to plenty of people in the audience, this was sheer nostalgia and pure moshing fun. I have to admit, I didn't see the entire show because hamburgers, but what I saw can be repeated. Distillator too played a track from an upcoming album, and that one promised thrash metal galore...

Back in 2008, a bunch of metalheads decided to start a band, something that happens a lot in Belgium. Over the course of nine years, this band had been growing, supporting acts like Flotsam & Jetsam and Metal Church, playing Wacken, Graspop and loads of other festivals. With their energy, their massively varied blend of metal styles and the amazing stage presence, Bliksem had become a household name in pretty much every Belgian metal family. They were about as promising and professional as a band can probably get. 

However, all good things must come to an end, and unfortunately, that also counts for Bliksem. The band has split up by now, but the music still wanders through the city. After a brief, and bloody awesome intro, the band blasted like an atomic bomb, effortlessly grasping the audience. Horned fists everywhere, beer cups flying through the air, crowd surfers, the audience went nuts, much to the delight of Peggy who truly looked like a metal queen. The band clearly enjoyed this gig, regardless of what's behind the split.

Bliksem raged on and on. This was simply a classic metal concert, seemingly enjoyed by young and old. To be honest, I have never seen the age of the audience vary this much. I guess the youngest audience member was 8 and the oldest 80. Just to prove that good metal is for all ages. The venue was packed to capacity too, which must have felt amazing for the guys and girl in the band. You could feel the energy, the tension and the emotion. Of course, there were tears but everybody knows that this is not the end.

This is a goodbye, not a farewell. I am sure that members will pop-up in other bands again, hopefully with the same level of professionalism and energy. I am sure that Peggy's soulful voice will blast through speakers again. And - to be brutally honest - it wouldn't surprise me if somewhere on some festival Bliksem would reunite, maybe just for one gig, one song even. Nobody would mind, on the very contrary. After seeing this breathtaking final show at Trix, I don't think anyone could not become a Bliksem fan.

Thank you for nine years of metal !!!
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​Serge

p.s. Dario Mars and the Guillotines had been selected to play the after party but for me it was time to honor a personal tradition and start the six kilometers walk home. I'm sure I can catch them another time.

First things first: since my task at Rocktoberfest consisted of selling Metal Decks at the merchandise booth in the "Into The Pit" stage, this will be pretty much half-a-review. I was pretty much confined to one stage, apart from the occasional smoking break. I know, you could say "well, go see the other bands instead of smoking" and you could be right but to be brutally honest, I prefer tobacco over hard- & metalcore. It's just a matter of personal opinion. That being said, I was quite happy to be stuck in the 'Into The Pit' hall, that was my kind of shizzle.

Another thing: it's remarkably easy to get from Berchem to Lier by bus. It's about seventeen kilometers apart but I only had to walk 360 meters, according to my walk-logging thing. I know, for most of you this is completely useless information but for me, it's good to know, I can go to gigs in Lier more often. My range-of-action just expanded, hurray...

So I left the calm and relaxed Merchants Of Air headquarters around noon. At the bus stop an ancient lady was firmly holding onto her purse to keep it from being stolen by absolutely nobody. Like many of the artifacts on that street, she was scared of anything and anyone. Oh, and she was pissed at me because I took her favorite seat, close to the driver. To my defense, I had to sit there because the driver was going to tell me when I had to get off the bus. Makes sense, no? Anyway, after forty minutes, I joyfully walked over the parking lot to the venue. I quickly spotted Robrecht who showed me my spot for the day. It was a nice spot, until the lights went off and never on again, making me move to another spot, which was a nice spot as well. Everything was nice.

While setting up my market stand and during the cigarette break afterwards, I had the chance to listen to what Muddler came up with. In my preview (read) I was completely right about them. Their combination of modern heavy music and Dutch lyrics works quite well. I think people in Flanders should start paying attention to these guys, they might become one of the most interesting things in Flemish music. I think I'll soon get the chance to see them live again.

Kicking-off at the 'Into The Pit' stage was Antwerp quartet Dead End Path. Moving somewhere between death metal, deathcore and thrash, they came up with a technical and aggressive set, which was a perfect opener for this day of metallic brutality. They certainly got extra points for the song 'Death To The Selfie-Stick'. I know, it sounds funny but these dudes are pretty damn serious about it, so you better hide those things when Dead End Path crosses your path. After the show, they handed out free ep's, which gives them another extra point. You can find a little review about that in our upcoming edition of 'Brieviews'. Anyway, these guys did a tremendous job trying to get the audience moving. The audience itself was still waking up, something that took them quite a lot of time actually.

There is a highly interesting thrash revival going on in Belgium. It has been going on for a while now, lead by bands like Evil Invaderz, Bliksem and this trio from Antwerp. Frankly, I feel like Incinerate should have been higher on the bill because what they deliver is sheer energy and sheer speed. Besides, they have the necessary technical abilities to make captivating and raunchy thrash metal. I really enjoyed their set although it was a bit static and not really loud enough (compared to the bands that followed). Halfway through, they introduced the guys from Straathonden, a Flemish rap act. Both bands have been working together on a 'Walk This Way' / 'Judgement Night' tribute and performed together on several festivals. Together, both acts are unstoppable. This is pure fun, the nineties way. 

Another thing we Belgians are good at, is death metal, but audiences don't always seem to cooperate very well. I guess we're spoiled. Anyway, just like on their most recent album 'Man Made Hell', Fractured Insanity delivered a decent set of brutal death metal in front of a handful of people. Again, this was quite a static performance, but you can't run around and jump like a madman when you have to showcase those technical riffs, can you? I know I can't. Nonetheless, Fractured Insanity did their very best and they're very good at what they do as well. Keep an eye out for them if you're a death metal fan, and buy their album.

They're not from Antwerp, like I wrongfully mentioned in my preview, but from Ghent. Strangely, that also makes sense to me. Antwerp has a thrash & death metal scene like Ghent has a sludge/black/post metal scene and Witch Trail definitely fits in better with the second one. With a mix of black metal and post-metal, they were pretty much the outsiders on this stage. I like their stubbornness, their urge to make something unique. However, they do need a second chance because something was wrong on this gig. I still can't put my finger on it but it didn't feel right. Perhaps it was the somewhat tame audience reaction, or simply the fact that their music wasn't all about speed and brutality but I'll give them the benefit of the doubt. Witch Trail works better in another environment, I'm quite sure of that and I'm sure I'll get to see that pretty soon.

They may deny it, but Devastation sounded a lot louder than the previous bands. Accompanied with a dynamic and energetic live performance, this definitely resulted in a blast.  You could feel the music, which can only be explained by the volume of course. All gigs should have been like this. Nonetheless, kudos for Devastation for delivering the goods and being the first real highlight of the festival.

Dutch thrashers Distillator did even better, even if their music contained basically the same elements as their predecessor. With fierce, hyper speed thrash metal, some brilliant solos and one of the best vocals in today's thrash scene, these guys definitely convinced me. Their performance reminded me of some of the concerts I've seen on the bigger stages on metal festivals. Running from side to side, jumping, headbanging, inciting the audience... Everything was there to make this another absolute highlight. The audience itself seemed finally awake and in the mood for a night of heavy thrashing and heavy drinking.

Stoner metallers Deepshow had the unfortunate task to play between the fiercest and the most anticipated act on this festival. Of course, their stoner rock (sometimes with some growls and pig squeals) was another outsider on this festival but nonetheless, they delivered bigtime. I know these guys are from another part of Belgium (the one that speaks French) but they really deserve all the attention they can get. Why? Well, because of their tremendous groove-capacity. Someone take these guys on a European tour with King Hiss please?
(sorry, no photo because I relocated to the back of the venue and my phone can't handle that distance)

Then things started to get exciting, because the battle for complete domination on this festival would commence. Judging from the many fans suddenly turning up, we were about to see the two of the most liked female fronted bands in the Belgian and Dutch underground.

For me, it was the first time I got to see Bliksem live. I knew the songs since I think their latest album 'Gruesome Masterpiece' is a stunning piece of work, especially the title track. Needless to say that I was thrilled when they played it, also because it provided a little breather. I've been facing so much thrash this day that I really needed it. Besides, it's such a great song that it should be on every metalhead's playlist.
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Bliksem delivered an awesome performance, which shouldn't really be a surprise. They are excellent musicians, fronted by a woman who has a massive heavy metal charisma and a voice to match. Plus, for them it was a gig in front of friends, family and fans, what could possibly go wrong? Nothing, and nothing did.

Speaking about "excellent musicians, fronted by a woman who has a massive heavy metal charisma and a voice to match.", that description fits Izegrim as well. This Dutch quartet to delivered a solid set, loaded with thrash metal and often ra(n)ging into the realm of black and death metal. They too captured the audience and turned the event into one big, headbanging party. Ok, at one point Marloes had to enkindle the audience a bit but from then on, Izegrim conquered Lier. This was a metal gig like they should be: loud, fun, harsh and epic. I enjoyed every single second of it and I could easily see that I wasn't the only one. Peggy from Bliksem quickly joined the audience, firing it up even more. 

There seems to be a gap between the old generation of metalheads and the younger generation, and that gap was clearly visible when English combo Oceans Ate Alaska climbed on stage. The youngsters seemed to enjoy their progressive metalcore a lot but I (and some people I talked to) didn't really understand why these guys were headliners. I know, very few thirty-five plus year olds aren't into metalcore and feel like it's simply dubstep with guitars (hahaha) but hey, when we were sixteen, our parents didn't understand our lust for thrashy guitars, death growls and sheer musical evil either. Besides, by now I was developing a tremendous headache and Erik, my colleague from Snoozecontrol, offered me a ride home, which I could not refuse. Seventeen kilometers is walkable but not with a suitcase filled with Metal Decks and money, mostly change. 

Well, who won the battle for domination at Rocktoberfest? It's was a pretty even match between Bliksem and Izegrim. Both acts played towards absolute victory, as did some others, but I have to go with (drumroll....) Bliksem. And that has nothing to do with the fact that Peggy told me that her wrestler boyfriend can easily find my address to beat me up. It also wasn't the home advantage. It wasn't even the level of variation that gained Bliksem the victory. It were the goosebumps. The goosebumps that help me compose my best-gigs-of-the-year list. They appeared a few times already in 2016. At Rocktoberfest they made themselves known during the Distillator performance and rose massively when Bliksem and Izegrim played. After counting them, I could only go for the Belgians. How the goosebumps-counting works? I don't know, I'm a writer, not a scientist...

But in the end, I can only conclude that everybody won on this edition of Rocktoberfest. Everybody seemed to have a blast. The few times I looked into the Dungeon, where the hard- & metalcore bands played, I could see the audience having a great time, jumping up and down to the music. Like I said, I'm not a fan of those particular genres but that doesn't keep me from being happy for the people who are, happy that they had a smashing time as well.

Of course, there are a few people I'd like to thank. First off, I'd like to send my regards to Robrecht for inviting me and the entire Rocktoberfest team for making this thing happen. The organization seemed spotless, even though the food truck could have stayed a bit longer. Yes, that's the only remark I have, isn't that great? 
I also like to thank Erik, not only for the ride home but also for keeping an eye on my Metal Decks when I needed some food or nicotine or a urinal. He's a good guy, and all of you should buy him a drink when you see him. 
Of course, I'd like to thank the people who purchased the Metal Decks. Thank you for making sure Merchants Of Air will stay what it is, independent. I hope you have a great time playing games and listening to the two free downloads we included. 

My final remark is this: people, please, turn up early at shows. Give the young, beginning bands a chance. They work just as hard as your favorite ones and frankly, some of them deserve just as much success and attention. It's sad to see people giving it all on stage in front of eight people, including the sound engineer. You pay the same amount of money, so why not go see six bands instead of three? You don't need to go shopping before, you can purchase awesome band merch inside. There's no decent reason not to show up early, unless you have a shitty job.

Thank you and have a good weekend...



​Serge