Metal View –
By Mike Vanek
It’s that time again folks… X Fest season!!
And once again it features a metal stage. This year, like the past 2 years it will be hosted by the band Eroszion and the bands were hand picked by them. It includes bands from all over the area fully representing the Central Valley. This year the bands are Nothing but Losers, Eroszion, Stigmurder, HARD of HEART, Sworn To The Black, Sektor 209, Scorptrio, Eyes Bleed Hatred HQ, and 17Ten. This year has a solid local lineup that I’m sure will all be battling to sell those coveted $20 X Fest Pre Sales tickets.
The draw back is this is pretty much the only hard rock or metal at the giant festival and the bigger the stage gets it remains pretty much the same every year, with local bands all fighting to sell those valuable tickets which they all get a split of and all pretty much promoting to what looks to be the same crowd and the selling point being the local bands that all play pretty much the Yosemite Strip or around the Area if not for free for $5-$10 on a super regular basis and in a lot of cases within weeks or days of X-Fest.
I believe that if they brought in a few out of town bands with a buzz like Jill Ferris did at last years Luckyfest or a smaller touring band to headline I think it would improve the selling point of the $20 tickets and bring a new life to the metal stage at the year’s biggest music festival. But it is what it is and for what it’s worth it is a solid lineup including a great mix of styles and genre’s most likely headlined by Nothing But Losers who has played every X fest that has allowed a metal stage in recent years and Stigmurder who are one the longest playing bands in our area. But the band I’m looking forward to is Sworn to the Black. They are a heavy metal masterpiece in every sense of the word!! I will be in attendance to cover the metal stage so look for a full review of my X Fest Experience in next month’s issue of the View!!
That is all for me this month until next time KEEP ONE FOOT IN THE GUTTER AND ONE FIST IN THE GOLD!!
