Gates Of Metal (2/8 – 03) in Hultsfred, Sweden

I was in my good mood in the car and before, what an event this should be. When we got to the festival there weren't that many people in the line and that was a positive thing. But then we got in… First of all the area where the festival was held wasn't that big, and then we saw the stages, one big and the other two were in two small buildings and I wonder where the info on that was!? Had I known about that I might not have gone.

Then I saw the beer tent, a beer tent on a festival?? And if that wasn't enough, there were guards checking the age of everyone entering. Let us think a little now. Say that you are 32 (or any other age from 18 and up) and don´t want to take important stuff with you such as an ID or driver's license, then you can't enter and grab a beer. Sick? Yes, I think so… After all it´s a festival.

And of course you couldn't take the beer with you outside the beer tent! So all these ”small” things made my mood go down a little. But after all I managed to stay in a relative good mood, after all it was many cheerful hardrockers in the beer tent and all over singing and laughing.

Then just a little before six o'clock we advanced to stage two for the awaiting of Arch Enemy, and from that stage you could see the big stage where Freedom Call was playing, and I most say that they were funny. In one of their songs they had a melody that was very alike Europe's "The Final Countdown", then they changed song and there was another band's melody (can´t remember which band's). But enough with that.

After a while we went in to see Arch Enemy, we stood there for a while before they entered the stage and begun. And I say goddamn! What a group! And what a voice and charisma Angela Gossow has. Before I have heard about it but never gave it any bigger thought, but now when I have seen it with my own eyes I´m very impressed. And all I have to say is Angela, welcome to the throne of growlers!!!! But in one of their breaks I think there was an Entombed riff, but I´m not sure. After that appearance my mood was at it´s peak.

While Gamma Ray, Lost Horizon and Merciless were playing we sat in the beer tent again and drank and discussed Arch Enemy among many other things and of course sang along with the other hardrockers (they had a big stereo in the tent). Then after a while Blind Guardian began to play and it was like Blind Guardian should be: good.

But I most say that I feel a little sorry for Kreator that had to wait for Blind Guardian to finish before they could enter the stage, because Blind Guardian were playing on the big stage and very loud. But after two extra songs Blind Guardian gave up and lucky for them because the people, including me, were very irritated and wanted to see Kreator some time this year, so that's why I left after one song, but its was good.

Then the awaiting of Nightwish begun, and its seemed that many people were only there for Nightwish. They were supposed to enter the stage twelve o'clock but the soundcheck or whatever made the clock about 00.40 (the few bands I saw were late on stage but this took the price). The opening number was all good until Tarja Turunen began to sing, just because the sound on the vocals was not so good but that became better after a while. The show was ok and the songs to.

But in the middle of their appearance Tarja left the stage for some odd reason and Marco Hietala took over the vocals for a cover with W.A.S.P – Wildchild, and I must say that was a side of Nightwish that I want to see more of. But then they kept on with Tarja Turunen again. And after all it was good.

Even though the little thing that I was irritated over this festival was pretty good. And to all of you who are reading this and feel that I have insulted you or your favorite band in anyway:

This is only my personly judgement of the bands and festival. And I´m sorry if you feel that way, but if you wanna say what you think and feel. Write for your own Webzine or paper or homepage or whatever! After all it's a free world isn't it? And I hope that just because of this that I don't have to flee the country or even the world :-)

Thanks for understanding!