Nummirock 2018: Sisu and heroes without capes

LINK TO PHOTO GALLERY

Can you festival? In Finland this is an important question especially at  Juhannus (20. – 23. June). OK, Nummirock is worth the trip, offering one of the most beautiful festival locations near Kauhajoki and always a great program – and a beach right at a concert stage… Unfortunately this time it was only the Friday and Sunday to attend for me. (Sander Burmeister took photos of Wednesday and Thursday events)  And I expected something similar to May, the hottest ever for decades, always around 20-25 Celsius plus, no rain for weeks… Hence in many places BBQ is not allowed, just like at the camping area of this festival, well, at least until Wednesday.

Unfortunately the weather gods decided to change the situation, delivering the missing rain, and all at once. “Vertical Bathtub” feeling. I felt sorry for all those volunteers at the festival who had to be outside. And also for Silver Bullet who still played their full set, in front of a handful of dedicated fans. That’s what I call sisu – a kind of stoic stubborn resistance in Finnish culture. Well, I rather decided to check out the side shows, e.g.  StereoTerror DJs, the murder mystery and Krapula-Bingo (hangover-bingo) …

The heavy rain created a huge lake in front of Inferno- and Kaaos stage and almost washed away the fences too. But as unimpressed as bands and fans were the organizers: Quickly a bridge was built, so I could get to the BarbeQBarbies show. Some people grabbed shovels, then big machinery arrived with sand, and only one hour later the lake was gone. And no longer vertical baths, only a persistent drizzle – annoying but at least no big obstacle. Vixen delivered heartwarming Hardrock ear candy and a fantastic version of Deep Purples Perfect Strangers. Trash Metal by Maniac Abductor warmed up nicely too, just like Rytmihäiriö, Sodom and Beast in Black, who attracted big and enthusiastic crowds. The latter seem to play at every single festival in Finland… Then finally the band I had been waiting for – Saxon. And yes, towards the end and then for the encores (Crusader, Princess of The Night, Denim And Leather) I did not care that I got soaking wet for the third time on this day… sorry, Barren Earth, but I preferred to watch those British legends…

Theoretically the sun should not have gone down that night at all. Well, not much of sunshine, rather icy winds, rain and grim atmosphere – in other words, perfect for Abbath. His fans proved a lot of sisu as well, for me it was way too cold… And unfortunately he started 15min late, which meant that I could not watch the full special-reunion show of Before The Dawn. But I bet I was not the only one feeling grateful for some warmth from fiery pyro effects …

(Please note how rain drops on the lens create some extra visual effects… )

On Saturday I was rescued by several heroes without capes once again, yes YOU were the reason I could attend the festival and got safely back to Seinäjoki – many thanks to you all!! And a huge thank you to the tireless festival staff & crew, especially those cooking this great lihakeittö (meat soup) – a life-saver indeed! 🙂 Well, holidays mean less public traffic options, and also the festival shuttle was cancelled due to lack of interest (so I heard). Maybe a driver pool/group taxi social media site or something to organise fan transports next time?

By a little help of new friends I made it in time to Hevisaurus – and this show is not to be missed. Hell yeah! First those great catchy songs, then hilarious Dinosaurs on stage playing Metal – the adult audience enjoyed it even more than the kids. And a huge audience, just look at the start photo – all smiles, singing along (as those songs are easy to sing along) and having a great time. Party feeling, dance-moshpit, and costumes – just like at a carnival. Hence it seems Hevisaurus were the major attraction of the whole festival!

This carnival thing confused Danko Jones – delicious and kicking ass as always – a little bit. Well, he spotted Dinosaurs,  Darth Vader and Stormtroopers, people in Slapshot-costumes, Hawaii shirts or Borat-speedos… and this day the weather was perfect for festival fun. Before that  Timo Rautiainen & Trio Niskalaukaus, Oceanhoarse and newcomers named Chronoform (playing NuMetal/Thrash) gathered the crowds and inspired moshpits. Another new band for me was The Agonist – wow, great voice, great show. BRHG (Bloodred Hourglass) were adorable once again – so when can we see them on a festival main stage? AAAAAwkward… I tried to tease Lauri a bit, shouted “EERO!” and who popped out of the backstage trailer, confused – yeah, it WAS Eero… (HERE the explanation what it is all about)… ooops…. But maybe we should establish another “tradition”, shouting “Lauri” when Eero is playing?

Herra Rautiainen paid tribute to Vinnie Paul (RIP) with 5 sec of silence, the Lost Society flea circus played some Pantera and created an extra-insane mosh pit instead. Headliner of this day were Turmion Kätilöt, delivering a mega-fire-light-dance party. This one was cut short for me once again as I had to catch the last bus to Seinäjoki… still better than staying and camping at the area at this weekend, as the footage by media colleague Sander Burmeister illustrates: