by Dimitris Zacharopoulos
photos by Iro Kalligeri (photography)
Day two (2)
Likewise, on the second day—rested at home and with our “batteries” fully recharged—we were already inside the concert grounds of Technopolis in Athens just before five o’clock. One thing was immediately clear: a crowd had already gathered that early, a sign that by nightfall Technopolis would be packed to the brim!
Battleroar: An historic band of the Greek epic/true metal scene, Battleroar were set to open the second day of the festival. And that’s exactly what happened! Right on schedule, Battleroar took the stage and immediately transported us into their epic world. They played for half an hour, but made their presence strongly felt—tight, well-rehearsed, focused, and determined, Battleroar delivered a stunning performance that left us satisfied and fired up for what was to come. Choosing to perform some of their finest compositions, the Greeks showed passion, strength, and vision, and we warmly applauded them when they bid us farewell. I must add that I really enjoyed the use of violin in their sound, as well as, of course, the excellent vocals of their singer!
The Crypt: And while the sun was still blazing, The Crypt took the stage. Painted and dressed in black, the Swedish band revealed themselves before us, performing their occult heavy rock songs. More specifically, The Crypt blend the classic rock of the ’70s with the archetypal heavy metal of the early ’80s, shaping a sound of their own—and when you add their horror- and occult-themed lyrics to that music, you immediately understand what The Crypt is all about! As for the live show, the Stockholm-based band delivered flawlessly and convincingly. With the help of a strong sound, they won many new fans that afternoon. They had a commanding personality behind the microphone (Pepper), an inventive guitarist (Dave McKenzie), and a keyboardist (Floke) who was a true keyboard wizard!
Masters of Ceremony/Heaven’s Gate: Immediately after came Masters of Ceremony, the current band of the unique musician and producer Sascha Paeth, who first became known as a founding member of Heaven’s Gate. Masters of Ceremony feature Adrienne Cowan on vocals and have a melodic/power metal style, presenting their own material that evening at dusk. However, first, Adrienne Cowan was barely audible due to a technical problem that lasted for two or three songs and was only partially resolved afterward, and second, the songs of Masters of Ceremony sounded a bit average to me, somewhat ordinary. Perhaps they need some time to grow on the listener! In any case, after five songs, the other members of the historic power metallers Heaven’s Gate—Bonny Bilski, Robert Hunecke-Rizzo, and Thorsten Müller (not Thomas Rettke)—joined Sascha Paeth on stage and played six classic Heaven’s Gate songs. It was a significant moment, a historic and moving reunion that transported us across space and time! On vocals for the Heaven’s Gate set was Herbie Langhans of Firewind, and Adrienne Cowan joined for the last two songs of the set. It was truly a unique experience for any power metal fan, whether familiar with Heaven’s Gate’s songs or not.
Gus G. and Friends: Equally fantastic was the live performance of Gus G. and his friends, which followed right after! The Greek axeman showcased his full guitar talent at Technopolis, playing the instrument like only he can. During Gus’s set, a lot happened on stage. First, Gus and his band played two of his own songs (“Force Majeure” and “Fearless”). Immediately after, Roy Khan and Tore Østby of Conception joined for a beautiful rendition of “Roll The Fire” (Conception). Then Ronnie Romero appeared for the following songs: “Kill The King” (Rainbow), “My Premonition” (a Gus G. and Ronnie Romero collaboration), and “I Am the Fire” (Gus G.). At that point, the renowned (and no less amazing) former Megadeth bassist David Ellefson joined on stage, and they played “Vengeance” (Gus G.). The show concluded with three covers: two Black Sabbath songs (“Mob Rules” and “War Pigs”) and one Ozzy Osbourne classic (“Bark at the Moon”). Both Romero and Ellefson participated in these covers—especially the “War Pigs” rendition, which was insanely good, with the crowd going wild and singing along at full volume! Overall, the performance of Gus G. and his friends was magnificent! We had an amazing time, were deeply moved, and lived a little metal dream!
Candlemass featuring Messiah Marcolin: If Gus G.’s show was a little metal dream, with Candlemass—who for this concert reunited with Messiah Marcolin—we ascended straight into doom metal heaven! All the Greek doom metal fans were there, and there were plenty of people who had traveled from abroad just to see this reunion—right next to me were three fans from the U.S.! You can imagine what happened the moment Messiah Marcolin and the rest of Candlemass took the stage—chaos, pandemonium! Everyone was screaming, roaring, headbanging, and cheering Messiah and the entire band. With incredible sound and perfect cohesion, as if they had been playing together for years and Messiah had never left, Candlemass delivered flawlessly, like the emperors of the doom metal world they truly are! Of course, they played all the classic Candlemass songs, literally driving us insane with joy. Messiah sang with regal authority and overwhelming passion, making it clear that Candlemass with Messiah on vocals is a completely different, ten times better band. There’s no need to elaborate further on the significance and importance of this concert. Seeing Candlemass with Messiah Marcolin behind the mic says it all! And when they played “Solitude”, Technopolis literally caught fire! These were truly peak moments in metal music. I didn’t notice a single flaw or mistake—everything went perfectly. It was an hour and a half of magical music, doom metal grandeur. I’ll just note that when the Candlemass set ended, the crowd was still demanding more. But… how much more could there possibly be!?
In this thrilling way, Rock Hard Festival Greece came to a spectacular end and went down in history. Let’s hope we get to experience more such monumental metal events in the future, and that this festival becomes an annual tradition! Personally, I would like to thank Sakis Fragos, who excellently organized everything that made this experience so wonderful. Here’s to many more events like this!
