Refshaleøen, Copenhagen
15. – 18. juni 2022
Similar to most other festivals, Copenhell has also experienced its share of postponements and reschedulings in the past couple of years. Yes, just a week before the festival was set to start, there had to be some reshuffling in the lineup, as Spiritbox and Denial Of God canceled, and Witchcraft and Crypt Sermon also threw in the towel just weeks earlier. But it seems to have only made the management more determined, and Copenhell has grown into a four-day festival with even bigger artists and a capacity for 35,000 spectators. There are now four stages, and also the opportunity for non-musical activities like car smashing and Copenhell Con for the more pop-cultural enthusiasts. When it comes to food, there was little to complain about; here you could find everything from burgers and bacon to Thai, Vietnamese, and vegetarian options, and everything in between, including whole pig heads – true Mayhem for you, though cooked. There was also a genuine Oktoberfest-style Biergarten with karaoke and the full package. The festival area is located on an old, dusty shipyard/industrial site with a grassy hill to sit on and some surrounding forest. So pretty nice varied surroundings with the exception of all the dust swirling around.
WEDNESDAY:
Red Fang performs on one of the festival’s smaller stages. But it’s packed and it’s difficult to make your way through. Good for the Americans. The band’s style of sludge metal seems to appeal to the audience. However, the sun is a bit too scorching, and it doesn’t help that it’s directly facing the stage. So it doesn’t turn out to be the most pleasant experience. But the band shouldn’t be blamed for that. They deliver the goods.
Gloryhammer is a band that I struggle to understand. The band’s power metal and image are of the parodic kind. But the humor falls a bit flat. It just isn’t funny. They simply aren’t very good comedians. The music isn’t anything to write home about either. But the audience is really into it, so I’m impressed by how well the fans receive the band. Singing along and headbanging throughout the entire concert.
Considering that one of Metallica’s founders, Lars Ulrich, comes from Gentofte, just outside Copenhagen, it feels a bit like seeing Metallica on home turf when they take the stage at Copenhell. The concert doesn’t start off on the best note when the band enters the stage 18 minutes behind schedule. After the legendary intro with Ennio Morricone’s “The Ecstasy of Gold” and scenes from “The Good, The Bad And The Ugly,” the band kicks into “Whiplash” – which is initially a perfect start. But the problem is that you can’t hear the guitars – you just see the guys thrashing away at the strings without sound. The sound comes on fairly quickly – but not a lucky start. Another problem is that the band has extended the stage, bringing them far out into the audience – initially very cool – but they’ve placed the whole band at the far end of these ramps, making them impossible to see unless you’re very close. Another unlucky start that eighty percent of the audience can’t see the band at the beginning of the concert. It’s not until the fourth song of the concert – “Harvester Of Sorrow” – that the band is on the main stage and the concert starts to pick up. On the positive side, the song selection has been mostly golden all the way through, and it’s a bit of a letdown when “Bleeding Me” comes as the sixth song. Good enough song – but much weaker than previous ones. The real downturn comes with “Dirty Window,” and James Hetfield is very aware of it as he stands there shouting “St. Anger” while giving thumbs up and thumbs down to check if people like the album or not. The response is rather tepid. But with that, the downturns are also over and when the subsequent songs “Welcome Home (Sanitarium)” and “For Whom the Bell Tolls” come, the sound has also become rock solid. Thus, it’s smooth sailing for the thrash veterans from here on out. The band has also started using pyrotechnics, and it elevates the show to the top. The fancy blocks of screens that cover the entire stage come off a bit better now as it starts to get dark, but it mostly looks like a weird multimedia show that doesn’t have much to do at a metal concert. “Moth Into Flame” is the only song from the latest album, and it sits well and is a good live song. The concert ends like a string of pearls with “Fade to Black,” “Seek & Destroy,” “Damage, Inc.,” “One,” and “Master Of Puppets.” It’s good to see Lars Ulrich speak to his audience in Danish with tearful eyes and a clearly moved voice, and an equal amount of respect from the audience responding with chants of “Lars! Lars! Lars!” repeatedly. So despite a slightly sluggish start, the concert ends with a memorable experience.
THURSDAY:
American Blood Incantation has become big in just a few years, and their cosmic style of death metal seems to resonate with many death metal fans. They recently released an album consisting solely of ambient music, but fortunately, they don’t play any songs from there. They don’t do much on stage, so it doesn’t become the greatest experience. Shoegazing for death metal. But the audience enjoys themselves, and there’s a vigorous mosh pit throughout the concert. The neck muscles really get a workout up front, and one could say that Blood Incantation delivered with flying colors and then some.
If we go back ten years in time, we find ourselves just after Judas Priest concluded their “Epitaph World Tour,” which was the band’s farewell tour. Before that tour started, guitarist K.K. Downing had already left, and the then 31-year-old Richie Faulkner had taken over his role. Much has happened since then, which certainly wasn’t the band’s last tour. Judas Priest is now on a fifty-year anniversary tour; Glen Tipton has left the band due to Parkinson’s, and 70-year-old Rob Halford has taken a big nose ring. But despite the feeling that the band lacks original members and some turbulence over the last decade, the band at least sounds rock solid. Much of this is thanks to Rob Halford’s voice, which can still crush stone and make glass crack. Already on the opening song “One Shot at Glory,” Halford shows that he still sings like a metal god, and no one can challenge his position on that podium. The subsequent “Lightning Strike” is the only new song in the set, which otherwise consists of classics from 1990 and earlier. We get three songs from the “Painkiller” album, which is delightful because Rob Halford is truly in his element when he gets down on his knees and screams as only he can on these songs. Halford also shines on “Victim Of Changes,” as expected. It’s also expected that Rob Halford rides out on a motorcycle before the band launches into “Hell Bent for Leather.” Rob Halford changes stage clothes at least six times during the show—although I’m a bit unsure of the exact number as I lose count. However, I have a bone to pick with Judas Priest’s stage show, which mainly consists of cheap video sequences and somewhat incomprehensible inflatable stage props, such as a large water tank and a huge bull. This bull appears during the final song “Living After Midnight,” and I can’t understand the connection between the song and this bull. The fact that they come from Birmingham is probably the explanation since they use the bull as a mascot for the city. But it still looks a bit strange on stage with Judas Priest, as if they just got some stuff from the Red Bull surplus warehouse and threw it up on stage just to have something there. Apart from that, Judas Priest still delivers rock solid when it comes to the musical aspect, and it’s good to hear that Halford’s voice is still going strong.
American Down with Phil Anselmo from Pantera at the forefront is a band that doesn’t play too often in Northern Europe, so it’s great to see them make the trip. Some might have hoped for Pantera songs, as they have done before, but not this time. The explanation for that is that they focused on the album “Nola,” which turned 25 in 2020. However, they open with “Lysergik Funeral Procession” from Down II. Then comes “Hail the Leaf,” which is an obvious reference to illegal substances, followed by Anselmo’s declaration: “Smoke! I’m stoned!” It grooves well throughout the entire concert, and it’s very American. A favorite is of course the classic “Stone the Crow” that came near the end, and made some good sing-along. It was cool to see Down live, but overall, one might have hoped for a bit more intensity.
Kiss continues their farewell tour, and it seems like they mean it this time too. Paul’s voice has long passed its prime; for example, “Tears Are Falling” has been lowered an octave. Kiss is, and has always been, based on the combination of spectacular showmanship and rock ‘n’ roll, and if you want to enjoy it, you have to take it for what it is. The guys seem to have become a bit less serious than in the old days, with several less serious moments. Gene has fun and touches everything from microphone stands to Tommy Thayer’s nose, and even the blood scene before “God Of Thunder” becomes voluntarily comical when the “scary” intro is suddenly interrupted. They play from a wide range of albums, so even “Sonic Boom” and “Psycho Circus” are represented. The latter actually works quite well in the context, which is primarily based on the 70s classics. Otherwise, you get what you expect from a Kiss show with rockets, members being lifted up and down, and Paul taking a zip line from the stage a hundred meters away to the roof of the beer tent, so they deserve credit for their effort and endurance considering their age. Towards the end of the concert, Eric Singer also lives up to his last name when he takes the lead vocals on “Black Diamond” and shows who the best vocalist in the band is. During “Do You Love Me,” they release dozens of giant beach balls, and during “Rock ‘n’ Roll All Nite,” tons of confetti are shot out, eventually covering the entire venue. That’s how it should end when Kiss says goodbye!
Devin Townsend closed Thursday focusing primarily on the more hardcore songs, and the occasional SYL song as well. If there’s anyone with a bad sense of humor, it’s Devin Townsend. But his dry-witted comments throughout the concert are so entertaining and make the concert very enjoyable. As he put it “welcome to the band with a hundred percent less pyrotechnics than Kiss”. But musically, one can’t complain much, and although songs like “Kingdom” and the Ziltoid material probably shine even brighter when the packaging is maximally monumental, the musical package overall is strong, and the performance is just max tight.
FRIDAY
Notodden’s great sons in Emperor took the stage with a bang. As it has been in recent years, there wasn’t much scenery to see — so that time is probably over for good. The focus was on the music, and from the start with “In The Wordless Chamber,” it was full throttle. This was, somewhat incredibly, Emperor’s first concert on Danish soil ever, and it was clear that there were several Danes in attendance who had never seen the guys live before, as they stood there with their jaws hanging open, impressed by the tempo and precision. The setlist was heavy on “Anthems..” with about half of the songs in the set taken from that album. Since it’s one of the band’s strongest, that’s perfectly fine too, although they could have included a couple more from “In the Nightside Eclipse” as well. The crowd sings along to “Thus Spake The Nightspirit,” “With Strength I Burn,” and especially “Inno A Sathana.” “Ye Entrancemperium” was saved for last – just to make sure Refshaleøen was properly demolished.
Vreid released one of the band’s best albums in 2021 with “Wild North West.” It’s therefore pleasing that the main focus of this concert is taken from that album. Especially “Into the Mountains” is a fantastic song that can already be considered a modern classic. But it’s not just “Wild North West” that this concert is about. The Rolling Stones song “Paint It Black,” is also on the agenda, and Vreid does a good version of the song. But it doesn’t stop there. Vreid has some good guests when the band brings in Righ from Windir on keyboards and Vegard Bakken, brother of the late Terje Bakken, better known as Valfar from Windir. It’s time for some goodies from Windir. Vreid has run special sets where they’ve performed Windir’s classic album “1184” at Karmøygeddon and Hellfest. At Copenhell, we get a little taste of this show. Something incredibly cool, as this is one of Windir’s best albums. The band ends with the song “Pitch Black,” still with Righ and Vegard, and thus, Vreid has delivered a wonderfully solid concert.
Friday’s headliner D-A-D was so much at home this evening, and before the festival, a list had been posted where people could vote for what should be played. Thus, there was a lot from the band’s first five albums—15 out of 18 songs, actually. They started with “Isn’t That Wild,” and the golden nuggets came one after the other. “Marlboro Man,” “Call Of The Wild,” “Grow Or Pay,” “Reconstrucdead,” “Bad Craziness,” “I Won’t Cut My Hair,” and the sing-along ballad “Laugh ‘n’ a ½.” Jesper Binzer has hardly changed since the eighties, drummer Laus sat inside a carousel that the others frequently used, and Stig, as usual, had his entire arsenal of two-string basses, which he exchanged approximately between each song. It’s always just as fun each time to see if he’s got any new ones since last time. The encore was “Sleeping My Day Away” and “It’s After Dark,” thus a pure hit parade for the Danes.
SATURDAY
The Death tribute band Death To All consists of the old Death alumni Steve Di Giorgio, Gene Hoglan, and Bobby Koelble, along with Max Phelps (Cynic) as “Chuck.” It was like hearing Chuck himself, and it’s impossible to get closer to Death itself when the main person has been missing in action for over 20 years now. Steve was as usual the one doing the talking between songs, and he took the opportunity to honor both the man himself and “Human” drummer Sean Reinert who died a few years ago. A nice gesture. The setlist was a good mix from all albums, so we got everything from “Zombie Ritual” up to “Spirit Crusher,” but with a majority of material from “Symbolic” and “Individual Thought Patterns.” Sound-wise, they leaned towards the later years, so it was almost like being at The Whiskey in 1998, and the only stupid thing was that they didn’t have time for a few more songs. I would have gladly taken both “Lack Of Comprehension,” “Scavenger Of Human Sorrow,” and “Together As One” in addition. But, there was no deadwood – we were served both “The Philosopher,” “Crystal Mountain,” “Zero Tolerance,” “Suicide Machine,” “Symbolic,” and the always-ending “Pull The Plug,” so one does not complain about the meal.
Back on May 26, 2018, Iron Maiden started the “Legacy Of The Beast” tour, which was by no means sparing on gunpowder. A gigantic stage show with a Spitfire, flamethrower, Icarus, and not least; Eddie himself. The tour was so successful that they continued it in 2019, and the plan was to do a third round in 2020. We all know how that went, and we fast forward to 2022. Much has happened in those years, and most importantly, Iron Maiden delivered a new album in 2021. Therefore, it’s natural that Maiden makes room in the setlist for some new songs, and considering Russia’s war against Ukraine, it’s not so surprising that it’s the war part of the show that’s being removed. Thus, the concert opens with “Senjutsu” from the band’s new album of the same name. A heavy and slow song that gives a solid start to the concert, and the fact that Samurai-Eddie appears during the first song makes it even better. It is followed by the faster “Stratego” and the sing-along friendly “The Writing On The Wall.” The Japanese-inspired decorated stage can then be cleared away and turned into a cathedral; it’s time for the fantastic “Revelations.” “Blood Brothers” follows after an angry little speech from Bruce Dickinson about not being able to hear anything on stage. There are sound problems on stage, and Dickinson goes so far as to call those who have arranged the stage sound “cunts.” He continues to complain about what’s happening in the world—including Russia’s war—before turning it all around positively by saying that tonight there are flags from all over the world, and Iron Maiden fans stand united; “If you’re a fan of Iron Maiden – you are our blood brothers!” Thus, the mood is set for real, and the band continues with “Sign of the Cross,” where Dickinson shines a cross on the audience, and “Flight Of Icarus,” where he brings out his flamethrower while Icarus himself flies in the background. The rest of the concert is pure hit parade with “Fear of the Dark,” “Hallowed be thy Name,” “The Number of the Beast,” “Iron Maiden,” “The Trooper,” and “The Clansman” before Bruce Dickinson blows up the stage after “Run to the Hills.” But unlike the tours in 2018 and 2019, it’s not over with that; “Churchill’s Speech” roars out of the speakers, and a Spitfire comes out; the band ends with the former opening song “Aces High.” Thus, the concert is over, and it’s incredible how Iron Maiden has managed to make an already seemingly perfect tour even better. The way Iron Maiden has made theater out of their concerts means that there’s not a boring second during the shows, and it’s gratifying to see that Iron Maiden is still at the top after so many years.
Finally, we got the old Danish heroes in Mercyful Fate, and they have had to wait as long as the rest of the world for the comeback. However, when you’ve been waiting since the nineties, you can probably wait a couple of years extra, eh? But anyway, what a festival ending it was! The King, Sherman, and their comrades were on fire, and they had put together a new song that they are playing this summer, “The Jackal Of Salzburg.” It’s a slightly longer song, and it fits in nicely with the rest. Otherwise, they only played songs from the EP, “Melissa,” and “Don’t Break The Oath,” which was probably to everyone’s nostalgic delight. Some song were missed like “Desecration Of Souls” and “Gypsy,” but everything else was a treat, from “The Oath” to “Evil,” “Curse Of The Pharaohs,” “A Dangerous Meeting,” “Black Funeral,” “Come To The Sabbath,” “Melissa,” and the encore “Satan’s Fall.” King’s voice was on point, and he has added some cool costume changes. He started with a mask reminiscent of the horned devil from “Melissa,” but changed to both a charred crown, and the obligatory top hat eventually. It’s also fun to see a hard worker like Joey Vera in place; he seems like a good replacement for Timi “Grabber” Hansen on bass. Otherwise, Mike Wead is also in today’s version of the band, after Michael Denner was in and out during the first attempts to get the band back on its feet a few years back. Anyway, it was a fantastic ending to a fantastic festival!
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