It's been two years since Ozzfest was really around and even longer since anybody cared. Here's the thing, all giant stadium rock "events" are only as good as the music they were built around. For instance, Lollapalooza was built off the Seattle alternative scene that kicked off with Nirvana. Once that whole scene died out Lollapalooza became cliche and boring.
Way back in 1997 when Ozzfest started the run, the entire Nu-Metal world was starting to get bigger as was the Pantera rip off band scene. Those bands needed a place to thrive and Ozzfest caught that fire instantly. From 1998 through 2003 the Ozzfest was the place to hear metal live.
But the Nu-Metal phase (thank god) has passed and with things like the Rockstar Energy Drink Tour and all these other big events the Ozzfest has become passe. Last week the rundown for Ozzfest was announced and it was just a glaring Who Gives A Shit Moment. This year's Ozzfest will be headlined by Ozzy, Rob Halford of Judas Priest and Motley Crue. The other headliners are the suckfest Devildriver and Nonpoint, who are the luckiest band ever. Nobody gives a shit about them and yet they are everywhere.
The second stage is riddled with Black Label Society as well as Kingdom Of Sorrow, Drowning Pool, Skeletonwitch, Goatwhore Saviours and Kataklysm. Black Label has to be on there because if not then Zakk Wylde can't pay his rent and Kingdom Of Sorrow is a definite attendance boost because it features Jamey Jasta of the beloved Hatedbreed and one of the guys from Down.
The current crop of metal heads have, for some reason, adopted Phil Enselmo as their God so anybody who has been in the same room with him during Down gets their attention. Drowning Pool is the sympathy vote because post the death of their original singer that band can't even get arrested. The rest of the bands are wild attempts to seem relevant with only Skeletonwitch and Goatwhore actually fulfilling that idea.
What interested me most was the frontline of Ozzy, Motley Crue and Rob Halford. Is it me or is this an oddly old-man roster for a show trying to hook in young ticket buyers? I mean Motley Crue is a joke and this is Halford not even a full Judas Priest tour. At first I thought maybe the promoters were smartening up and realizing that Ozzy is as out of touch with the metal audience as any one artist could be and that maybe it would be smart gearing the show towards the old school metal fan.
But then the addition of bands nobody cares about like Devildriver and Nonpoint proved they may be trying to walk both sides of the coin and, as obvious from this line up, have failed. Ozzfest should become where old metal legends go to die, that would assure both the nostalgia ticket buyers and those who want to see their heroes once last time.
Either way who really gives a shit?
I don't understand the fixation on Phil Anselmo or Pantera. They were an ok Groove Metal band. Don't get me wrong, Dimebag was a great guitar solo player but Phil's ego overshadowed that.
ReplyDeleteI remember once watching "That Metal Show" (don't ask why)& the host asked the audience who they thought were more evil, Slayer or Pantera & the crowd picked the latter. I nearly died of both laughter & built in rage.
That's the problem with metalheads today is that they were raised on Pantera, Nu metal & metal/deathcore & so that's why Ozzfest is lame & that's why it still exist.