Music festival goers: How much of the lineup typically appeals to you?

[johnfrank1970]

I always end up frustrated over metal festival lineups, as they usually consist of 10-20% bands I'd love to see and the remaining 80-90% is uninteresting to me. I'd love to see Cynic, Psycroptic, and Gorod at the Maryland Deathfest, but I can't justify wading through the 22 crappy goregrind bands to get to them. I'd love to see Atheist, but I could care less about the rest of the bands on the roster of the horribly named Los Angeles Murderfest Version 3.0.

I go to Chicago Powerfest every year because it's convenient, Rob and Chris usually book at least one band I'd like to see, and I have a lot of fun hanging out with fellow metal nerds. I am going to PPUSA this year for the same reasons, except, of course, for the convenience.

I am wondering if I am too picky for fests. Maybe I am not enough of a genre fan. Maybe I am not enough of a fan of live music in general.

Anyway, for the festivals you attend, how do the lineups stack up for you? It will be interesting to see how you approach them.

 

[Diabolik]

Usually about 20 percent at most is what I like. I usually like more than half the bands at ProgPower but never go. Heathen Crusade the same thing. THis years Powerfest I am batting almost zero. Sorry. I will go to check out some of the bands but there is no one I am really going to see as of yet.

As much as everyone goofs on Milwaukee Metalfest....I have seen some great bands play there....short sets yes...but they were bands that I would never get a chance to see otherwise.

 

[Jasonic]

I think most festivals I have been to have been in the 20 - 30% range as well.

For Powerfest this year, while I have an interest in seeing most of the bands, the ones that primarily appeal are Solitude Aeturnus and Novembers Doom. Now granted, the best things about festivals are to hopefully discover bands you were not too familiar with before.

Milwaukee Metalfest was always this way for me (well, I have only been to 3 of them). But with the number of bands you see there, I usually walked away becoming a fan of bands I wasn't too familiar with before (IE - Kataklysm, Naglfar, Macabre, etc).

I guess my point is that I don't think it is a bad thing if not all the bands are "home run" selections for you, because you never know when one of the bands may turn out to be someone you really like.

I am VERY interested this year in checking out lots of the bands I am currently not familiar with, such as Benedictum, Saturnus, etc.

 

[Heavenly Call]

Very interesting thread. I kind of think of it in two ways...

Bands I'm REALLY looking forward to seeing: I typically fall into the 20-30% range. However, what get's me to festivals is the next category:

Bands I'm interested to see: 50-70%. That's what justifies spending the money for me. For example, this year's powerfest (so far)

Bands I'm REALLY looking forward to: Benedictum, Mystic Prophecy
Bands I'm interested to see: Benedictum, Mystic Prophecy, Suspyre, Shatter Messiah, (hopefully headliner).

 

[johnfrank1970]

Now granted, the best things about festivals are to hopefully discover bands you were not too familiar with before.

I guess my point is that I don't think it is a bad thing if not all the bands are "home run" selections for you, because you never know when one of the bands may turn out to be someone you really like.

I am VERY interested this year in checking out lots of the bands I am currently not familiar with, such as Benedictum, Saturnus, etc.

It's very easy for me to check out a band through mp3s, and I obsessively do so such that I would never be unfamiliar with a band prior to the show. As far as getting more familiar with them through their performance, although I have appreciated aspects of performances by bands for whom I care little, I have never been won over or converted by live performance.

For example, I look forward to seeing Freak Kitchen at the PPUSA Showcase thia year because they went over so well last year. I might very well enjoy their show, but that's not going to make me like their music. I've listened to their CDs, and they don't do much for me.

 

[Dolamite S. Biffle]

Well out the 3 festivals I have ever been to I would say the numbers break down like this
PP VI - 90 %
PP VII - 75%
Powerfest 2006 - 50%

Though there all kinds of festivals in europe that I would jump of my dying mother's body for, so myabe someday I will get to add a bunch more to the list.

 

[Jasonic]

Yeah, I am not too big on the download and MP3 thing.
If I want to check out a band I will look to buy or trade for their album
(Already got 2 Solitude Aeturnus CDs in trades! woo hoo!)

Checking out bands live can be misleading. Some bands are better in the studio than live, and vice versa.

Anyhow, I agree with the poster above who said that a big appeal are those 50% of bands on a fest that you aren't familiar with yet, but you have an interest. That is definitely where I am at with Powerfest this year.

 

[Mountain King]

I don't really have a percentage but I can say that like Milwaukee metal feste I've gone usually for just one or two bands so their odds aren't too good considering how many they used to have in a weekend.

Progpower had years such as 3,4 and 5 where I liked every band on the bill but 1 or 2 and then say like last year where I only liked 3 bands on the bill.

Powerfest I'm usually into at least 2 or 3 of bands and always seem to find another 1 or 2 that I dig after checking out their music before or during their set.

 

[NvmbrsDoom5]

I think it depends on how open-minded you are to actually checking out bands that were previously uninteresting to you, or particularly just unfamiliar to you. It was always good to have a batch of bands on a fest bill that I knew I wanted to see, but I was always interested in checking out new bands too. I discovered alot of bands for myself over the years by doing just that. But it seems like more and more the tendency by people is to pay little to no attention to bands onstage if they're not familiar with them, or have decided beforehand that they wouldn't be interested in them. Even in genres that I generally don't care much for, like gore-grind or something, I've been turned onto bands by seeing them live at these fests, whereas I otherwise probably wouldn't have even checked them out before. I've run into quite a few people who've seen us at a fest and told us that normally they wouldn't have bothered listening to us, because they don't like our genre or they don't normally like our kind of vocals, etc.....but they actually bothered to watch our set and found that they did in fact enjoy us, which is a nice feeling.

With so many different styles of metal out there nowadays, it's almost impossible to please everyone, and I think that a good majority of the crowd will probably say that there's only 20-30% of bands on the bill that they truly are excited to see beforehand. Even with the fests that are more specific about what kind of metal bands they book, you still find alot of apathy amongst people towards certain bands because alot of people are just so damned narrow in their tastes nowadays. I'm glad to see that there are people here on this thread who are at least open and interested in checking out bands on the fest who they're not familiar with.

 

[Danimal]

...or they don't normally like our kind of vocals, etc.....

I can't imagine someone actually saying that to you guys... Paul is THE MAN!

Back to the topic, I've never actually traveled to go to a fest (unless, of course, we were playing). Mostly due to cash limitations, but I would probably have to be REALLY into at least 50% of the band to do so.

Regardless, the coolest thing about these fests is the atmosphere even more than the bands that are playing. It is awesome to stand shoulder to shoulder with fellow metalheads and be able to strike up conversations with people that you don't even know that have at least somewhat common interests in terms of music.

Plus the fact that Powerfest is local for me, it is a must attend event. Rob, Chris and John do a kick ass job of putting it together and it's pretty awesome that such a thing takes place in my home town.

Honestly, this year, the only band that I am "really into" would be Novembers Doom, but I have been following the announcements and I am becoming very interested in Solitude Aeturnus, Shatter Messiah and Bendictum.

 

[Jasonic]

Dan,
I agree with everything you said.
There are a lot of festivals (like Prog Power and Heathen Crusade especially) where every year there are like 2 or 3 bands I really want to see. It is not enough though for me to warrant coughing up the cash for gas or airfare, plus hotel and food expenses, etc.

Major kudos to the metal faithful who do travel for fests!!!!!

 

[The Invisible Guest]

The Prog Power rosters (been to all seven) usually bat around .700 or so with me. The BWBK, and Chicago Powerfest gigs I've attended (2 each) were closer to the .500 mark. Preferably I'd like to have interest in half of the bands, but I'd travel to see a fest if two or three were amongst my favorite bands at that time.

I've do though usually come away from these fests digging a couple of bands I didn't expect too. I'm pretty open to various genres. I usually give a band a chance to win me over with either their studio meterial, or their live performance.

Britt