Montag, 5. Nov 2012, 7:47

Sat 3 Nov – Damnation Festival 2012

I've been interested in going to this festival before, but this was the first time I've been.

The journey from Ipswich to Leeds was relatively straight forward, and booked in advance didn't cost too much. It is a bit of a killer having to travel for 3/4 hours before going to a big gig like this though, so I'd like to stay up the night before next time. Still, we got there in plenty of time and without any major disasters.

There's plenty of hotels in Leeds, and tons near the train station, but we stayed in the Jurys Inn. I've stayed with them in London before and they're good quality at an affordable price. It's not even a 5 minute walk from the station, and a cab from there to the Leed Union was under 4 quid. The only snag was that we were there at about noon, which is 2 hours before the official check-in time. So while I was able to get my room, my friends couldn't until later on so we ended up hanging around the lobby for a while.

Damnation takes place in the university/union and it is an impressive set up. The 2 main stages are impressive in their size, while the 3rd is maybe a bit small for the demand at time but intimate when you can find a space. I think we may just be idiots, but it took us a while to figure out where the main stage was. The festival makes good use of the university facilities; toilets, supermarket, hot food, etc. and 2 large halls for merchandise. It was a bit wierd to get used to, and there were some cruhes in the corridors, but it was all very cool.

The first band we all wanted to check out was Witchsorrow. We got there just after they started playing on the 3rd stage, unfortunately the stage was packed and so we ended up wandering to the 2nd stage where we caught our first band of the day; Hang the Bastard. I'd not heard them before but thought they were bloody awesome. A great hardcore sound with a bit of metal influence. I sure would have liked to have picked up their CD, but funds were limited. They had a slight technical problem with one of the guitars but handled it well. A great way to start the day!

After a bit of a wander, we returned to the 2nd stage for Winterfylleth. Their brand of black metal is awesome on record and I was gutted to have to miss them at Bloodstock, so I was really looking forward to seeing them here. They weren't a let down! They played a fantastic set and I can't wait to see them again sometime.

After getting a bit lost, we ended up back at the 3rd stage where we saw Blacklisters. None of us had heard of them before, but we all left impressed. I really liked their spazzy hardcore sound and can't wait to pick up their album. I will say that whoever was responsible for the fart in the crowd during their set is wrong, very very wrong!

We stayed at the 3rd stage for Bossk, who I think we were all looking forward to. We grabbed a nice spot to blown away from! I'd been recommended them by a friend, but not listened to them properly before going and so this was to make a fantastic introduction to the band. They play a heavy brand of post-rock that was just mesmerizing live. I can't desrcibe just how much I fell in love with the band while watching them play. I really liked the minimalist use of the vocalist. I grabbed a copy of their CD .2 which I just finished listening to, amazing!

As ever the smaller stage at an event like this proved to be a great place to be, as we stayed to watch 40 Watt Sun. I'd not listened to them before, so this was another new one to me and another band I've come away loving. They had a sort of doomy sound, with some amazing drumming, where the star seemed to me to be the vocalist Patrick Walker.

Finally we headed to, and found, the main stage for the awesome My Dying Bride. I don't listen to them much at all, yet I should. This wan't my first time seeing them, and it wasn't my first time being blown away by them. So so so good live!

Finally it was time to see Electric Wizard. I love this band so much, and so I was very excited to see them live finally. It was hard missing Pig Destroyer, and I heard Amenra were great, but I couldn't miss this. I was very excited about this set and I was not let down! I think they played almost everything I wanted to hear, I had a nice spot near the front, and everyone around me seemed to know the words to their songs as well. EW managed to recreate their sound perfectly on stage and it was a mind blowing show.

After the bands had finished, we headed to the 3rd stage where the bar was open and there was music until late. Had a lot of fun, got way too drunk, fell over, and woke up feeling awful. Was it worth it? HELL YES! I look forward to making next year my second Damnation Festival as it was everything I could have hoped for.