The perfect festival weather continues on the final day of this year’s Nova Rock. With 27°C and a slight breeze, Wendis Böhmische Volksmusik traditionally rings in the last day, shortly before noon. Like the day before, the artists were well mixed. As the starting times on the different stages were put very close together, one had to have a coordinated plan of who to watch when. Especially the way to the smaller Red Bull Stage takes several minutes to walk to, coming from the main stages. But along the route, one could always stop at the food trucks, merch, piercing, and tattoo stands. Other entertainment pieces were a DJ pop and techno stage, a roller skate arena, a carousel and a Ferris wheel, from which one could overlook the flat fields.
On the Red Bull Stage, Halflives put out an energising performance. The singer jumped around with her band, got up on the speakers and animated the crowd to shake their hips.
In the meantime, Landmvrks started their concert on the Red Stage. They drew in a big crowd, activating the stage divers from the beginning on and getting the mosh pits hot. For other songs, the mass celebrated the band with a huge wall of death. Fans had the time of their lives, and other watchers were turned into fans due to the phenomenal performance. And to top it all, they brought out the singer of Paleface Swiss for ‘Say No Word‘. Landmvrks gave their all for this festival show.
Idles then played on the Blue Stage. For the second song, the guitarist had already got down in the pit and got the fans crazy while somehow still managing to play the melodic riffs. Later, the crowd started a huge running pit for them. They reflected the niceness of the band, because when someone fell instantly, everyone around that person gathered and helped them up. In between songs, the singer used the stage as a platform to advocate for human rights and put out messages of peace. While that got big cheers from the crowd, they also lightened up the mood with the guitarist/keyboard player escaping from the stage. He made his way through the first wave breaker, then climbed over the second and eventually ran so far away, the cameras had a hard time following him. The security then chased him, while the singer was searching for him in the open field. With that run around the area, he got his workout in, until finally, for the following song, he reappeared on stage to big applause.
Now it was time for an act that most German-speaking people were probably wondering what he was doing at Nova Rock. 20 years in the music scene, most people knew Alligatoah for a mixture of hip-hop and rap. But with time comes changes, and apparently, Alligatoah now makes metal music. He stated that it has happened since he got a singing teacher a year ago. While playing his new heavier music, he reimagined his old hits in the new style, which worked surprisingly well. But his new music was not the only surprise. Alligatoah entered the stage in a non-traditional way – with a bang, he fell from the rooftop onto a desk. The whole stage was designed like an office, with computers and file folders making up most of the space. Supporting the bureau stage design, each of his band members wore a black and white suit. Alligatoah took the time to introduce them all individually. He was dressed in a fake fur coat with a red tracksuit beneath it. As the concert continued on he took out a baseball bat and destroyed item after item on stage. But next to the raging parts, he also showed his soulful side when standing alone on stage with an acoustic guitar for ‘Musik ist keine Lösung‘ (free translation: ‘music is no solution‘). Every song was sung back by the crowd. All in all, that Alligatoah concert felt like a musical performance. He is a born entertainer. It is imaginable that he will soon headline festivals.
While the sun set, the three-headed band Danko Jones closed the Red Bull Stage. They came from Canada and were worth checking out. They entered the stage, and the sweat started to flow immediately. Constantly interacting with the crowd, the people loved them. The band got them to clap their hands and to headbang for the final time on that stage.
Next, one of Austria’s biggest bands played on the main stage. It was worth being on time for them, as Wanda started with one of their biggest hits, ‘Bologna‘. Being local played in their favour, as the crowd could sing along to each of their songs. The set was flowing so smoothly, the end came way too fast. But they had to end, because the headliner and festival closer were still about to play. While the metalheads gathered on the Red Stage to listen to Heaven Shall Burn and then Dream Theatre, the rest of the crowd waited for Electric Callboy. A video introduction started their set, getting the fans hyped up. The first walking out on stage was the drummer, who was a new cast member for this year’s show run. And the drummer is a very well-known man in the Nova Rock community, having played here the last two years already for another band that amicably broke up this year. The name is Frank Zummo, ex-drummer of Sum 41.
Electric Callboy brought out all the gimmicks the music industry has to offer. Fog sprayers, pyro techniques and sparkles supported the music show. The two singers made the crowd scream their voices off, starting with ‘Elevator Operator‘. But it would not be an Electric Callboy concert without a mixture of different covers. In honour of their drummer, they played ‘Still Waiting‘ from Sum 41. And as Linkin Park played here just two days ago, they performed a cover of ‘Crawling‘.
After four days, the festival then came to an end with a big fireworks display. Nova Rock showed again that it not only caters to Rock fans, but it offers music for nearly everybody, from songs to dance to over heavy screaming music, every visitor finds something entertaining. For next year’s edition of the festival, the Early Bird Tickets are already online. With Bring Me the Horizon and The Offspring, it sounds like it is going to be another promising Nova Rock year. Until then, rock on! You can find the full photo gallery here!
