FESTIVAL REVIEW: Hellfest Open Air 2019 – Sunday
It’s the final day of Hellfest and the hottest so far, with temperatures reaching a scorching degrees. It’s warm enough for the stewards in front of the open air stages to get the fire hoses out, showering the front rows with water to keep everyone as cool as possible. The heat aside, another 52 bands are taking to the six stages today, including one very special return and one emotional farewell. But more on that later…
There are very few superlatives left to describe ALIEN WEAPONRY (9), but once again they kick off the Main Stage with a wonderful half hour of groove-laden metal that makes you love them for their talent and hate them for their tender years in equal measure. Forty five minutes before they hit the stage, MUNICIPAL WASTE (8) are apparently still on a plane. However, they not only arrive on time but rip off everyone’s faces with their jovial, crossover thrash that never fails to bring a party. On the Warzone stage, Belgian trio BRUTUS (9) are tight, loud and very, very impressive; there’s very little chat, just massive tunes and the response is wonderfully summed up by singer Stefanie Mannaerts when she says “Thank you for your attention” to a huge cheer. It’s stark contrast to the cold order of “Wake the fuck up, Hellfest“ that comes from Justine Jones of EMPLOYED TO SERVE (9), but she gets her wish – the pits open up immediately and, like ARCHITECTS the previous night, the set is testament to the superb crop of British talent coming through right now. The new material from Eternal Forward Motion makes up the bulk of the set, but it translates so brilliantly live that this doesn’t detract at all. Italian quartet MESSA (8) are a curious mix of progressive rock, jazz, doom and psychedelia, playing a set that bewilders and bemuses as much as it delights and delivers, but they’re tantalising enough and win over a good-sized audience. YOB (9) manage three songs in their forty minutes onstage, but when those three are Quantum Mystic, Unmask the Spectre and Our Raw Heart, it doesn’t really matter; they’re on crushing form. So are WIEGEDOOD (9) on the Temple – their blistering, dynamic black metal annihilates everything in its path and they immediately find themselves as a contender for band of the weekend.
TRIVIUM (7) don’t need to prove much anymore, but they definitely find it a little harder to gear the crowd up here than they do in other countries. The set’s good enough, mind, and In Waves is arguably the best set closer around. ACID KING (8) take over the Valley with consummate ease and captivate their audience into a euphoric, trancelike state as their set gradually slows to a surreal, blurry crawl, most noticeably during Electric Machine. CLUTCH (8) are so much better in the sunshine when their heavy blues can float across the arena with ease and so it proves here. The set leans heavily on the last two records of Book of Bad Decisions and Psychic Warfare with some choice cuts thrown in for good measure, but it’s the one-two of Electric Worry and X-Ray Visions that really hits the spot. ANTHRAX (7) are, well, ANTHRAX, but that’s never a bad things when you’re cranking out the likes of Efilnikcufesin (N.F.L), I Am the Law and Indians to a rabid audience. EMPEROR (8), in their position as Temple headliners, play the entirety of sophomore album Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk to a great reception, whilst over on the Valley, PHILIP H. ANSELMO AND THE ILLEGALS (8) play three songs from their back catalogue and then tear through seven PANTERA covers including Mouth for War, Fucking Hostile and the timeless Walk, bringing delight to those in attendance; say all you want, but the man is still an intimidating frontman. The second Main Stage is rammed for LAMB OF GOD (7), who put in a huge effort, Ruin and closer Redneck are simply brutal, but battle sound gremlins for the majority of their set. THE YOUNG GODS (8) have the unenviable task of following this but their 33 years of experience works a treat, blending a moody mix of GODFLESH with dark-synth to excellent effect. CARPATHIAN FOREST (4) have a half-full Altar thanks to their horrendous clash with SLAYER, but they play like they’re in front of no-one at all, with not an ounce of effort seemingly coming from them and little substance behind their corpsepaint and leather aesthetic.
As the sun disappears from the horizon and the clock ticks round to 11pm, emotions begin to rise – it’s time for SLAYER’s (9) last ever performance in France, something that feels strange to say even now. However, it’s a show to remember for all the right reasons. SLAYER have been infamously hit-and-miss in a live setting over the last decade or so, but they have been on truly devastating form since the beginning of this run and this is no exception. Across the space of 90 minutes and twenty songs, messrs Araya, King, Holt and Bostaph give a send-off fitting of the band’s legendary status, from War Ensemble to Chemical Warfare via a rare cut in Gemini and the wonderful home stretch beginning with Seasons in the Abyss and finishing with Angel of Death. A world without them gets nearer every day, but at least they left on their own terms. Most bands would have struggled to match this, but most bands aren’t TOOL (9), who take a little to get going but once they do it’s the best way to finish Hellfest possible. Their material, although now older than some of the crowd, hasn’t aged at all and the visuals that go with them are outstanding. This isn’t a set about playing the hits, crowd interaction or massive sing-a-longs, it’s about appreciating some of the finest progressive metal ever written and, when TOOL sound like this, that’s exactly what happens. As they close out with a mesmeric Stinkfist, it’s another successful Hellfest done and dusted. C’est magnifique!
Words: Elliot Leaver & Abi Coulson
And that concludes our coverage of Hellfest Open Air Festival 2019! If you haven’t already, check out our review roundup of Knotfest Meets Hellfest, Friday and Saturday‘s action! Until next year France!