Festival: Graspop Metal Meeting 2024
Place: Dessel, Belgium
Date: 20-23 June, 2024
Live Correspondent: Andreas Fytros

Prologue

The summer concert season has started for good, and the first stop this year for the big European festivals was GRASPOP Metal Meeting near Dessel, in Belgium. GRASPOP festival started back in 1996 and is meant to be in the top five of the biggest Metal festivals held on European soil today, along with Download, Wacken and Hellfest. It usually takes place on the last weekend of June. Five stages, namely the main North Stage and South Stage, the indoor/outdoor Marquee and Metal Dome as well as the Jupiler stage, hosts 130+ bands throughout this four-day festival.

The conditions for this year’s festival were not ideal, as the constant rainfall forced the organizers to close the car parks one day before the start, for those travelers who had decided to make the journey with a car, so the festival already got off to a rocky start. In fact, most of the parking lots, as I saw, had turned into swamps and couldn’t accommodate cars or caravans. We had chosen to take shuttle bus from Brussels airport directly to the festival. Indeed, our transportation was flawless and on time, with no delays either in our arrival or departure after the festival’s end, from Sunday midnight to Monday dawn.

We arrived at the festival on Wednesday afternoon and I was nervous about what we would encounter at the campground after reading all those updates about the rain and the mud. Moving towards the entrance of the Boneyard campsite, we saw the muddy ground and had to take the galoshes out of our bags. We pitched a winter living tent. Events that were scheduled for Wednesday afternoon and evening were postponed due to the weather conditions, so everybody who was already at the campsites was in their tents, having a little party there.

It’s worth noting that the organizers did everything they could to make it as easy as possible for us to get to the festival site, despite the difficult conditions. Whether by placing thick wood chips in the main festival’s corridors or by putting large iron plates and spreading straw on the ground, they proved that they really tried to do their best. Surely the Belgians had last year’s Wacken as an example to be avoided, where everything was left to chance and we ended up constantly walking through bogs. The lighting was also adequate, as there were dozens of signposted signs, indicating where each part of the campsite was.

Graspop 2024: Day 1 (Thursday, June 20th)

Let’s move on to the music part of GRASPOP 2024. On Thursday, we woke up with quite cold weather for my Greek standards. After we had our coffee and a good breakfast, we put on our raincoats and started to walk downhill to the stages, where the live performances would take place. The first stop was on the Marquee stage, where the Danish band ASINHELL was going to play. A band consisting of three musicians playing pure Death Metal. It was just what was needed to start the festival in the best way! Dynamic and tight, they got us well into the mood with songs like “Pyromantic Scryer”, “Wolfpack Laws” and “Fall of the Loyal Warrior”.

The next stop was on the North Stage, where DORO was playing with her solo band. Experienced and well-loved by European audiences for decades, DORO knows very well what to do to win the audience. Her performance was highly professional and the crowd seemed to enjoy it till the last second. With surefire songs in her setlist like “I Rule the Ruins”, “Burning the Witches”, “Raise Your Fist in the Air”, “Für immer” (anthem), her cover of JUDAS PRIEST’s “Breaking the Law” and the last song of her setlist, “All We Are”, she got the warm applause from the fans who were at the North Stage at that time. Of course, my mind was at the next stage, where KERRY KING would be performing in a few minutes!

It’s been several years since the last time we smelled that powdery, smoky smell that goes by the name of SLAYER. It was already afternoon and nothing could stand in our way anymore than to take at least a sniff of our favorite band. KERRY KING makes his appearance on the South Stage! “Where I Reign” to start and panic everywhere… Fourth track, “Repentless” and an earthquake takes place on the GRASPOP’s floor. The crowd enjoyed every second and the King is cheered!

The chant “Slayer-Slayer” is heard several times during the breaks between the songs, with the audience showing that it’s thirsty for SLAYER songs! “Disciple”, “Raining Blood” and “Black Magic” top the quite remarkable tracks “Crucifixion” and “Idle Hands” from King’s personal album also. Mark Osegueda performs their own songs and also SLAYER’s songs as well. It was a fantastic performance that reminded us of something from the old days. I rewrite and emphasize it: People are THRILLING for SLAYERRRRRRRRRRR!!!!

After we get a little SLAYER aura, it’s time for something really weird for my taste. BABYMETAL, on the North Stage. I sat down to see the band that ranks so high in GRASPOP’s billing, playing on one of the two main stages of the festival. Three Asian girls and something like Metalcore sounds in the background. Really not my cup of tea….  I wonder how bands like that have a place at such big festivals.

After that weird moments, it was time for some real Metal! MEGADETH and Dave Mustaine appeared on the South Stage. Several songs from “Rust in Peace” and “Countdown to Extinction” are on the setlist! Enjoyable, though not as interactive with the crowd, Dave made us love it till the end. The truth is that, compared to MEGADETH‘s performance in Athens just a few days ago, Mustaine sounded (and seemed) more nodding and more “tired” here, with his voice not coming out in many places, leaving the audience to sing along instead. “Take No Prisoners”, “Symphony of Destruction”, “Peace Sells”, “Tornado of Souls” and, for the end, “Holy Wars… The Punishment Due”. The setlist was quite satisfying for the hour and a quarter that MEGADETH‘s show lasted.

ALICE COOPER is next… we all know some of his songs, since we were little kids. “Welcome to the Show”, “No More Mr. Nice Guy” and “Bed of Nails” were all I got to hear, and they were really fun. Somewhere there though, I had to leave, as the CAVALERA brothers were about to appear on the Jupiler stage at that hour.

At exactly 11 p.m., the Brazilians came on stage in a highly belligerent style. They started with “Bestial Devastation” and continued with “Antichrist”, “Necromancer”, “Morbid Visions”, “Refuse/Resist/Territory” and all the goodies of the early SEPULTURA era. However, the sound was bad from the beginning of the set, with the bass being constantly clogged and the sound being interrupted at some point. Good show, certainly they could have done better if the sound didn’t have those issues.

The day closes with TOOL, who were one of the biggest bands at this year’s festival. Staying true to what they’ ve been doing since 1990 to this day, with their huge giant screens and some special effects, they offered alternative-progressive Metal to the tens of thousands of people that had packed the festival’s area.

It was a very strong start to this year’s GRASPOP, despite all the adversities due to the rainy weather! Thursday’s highlight…? Of course KERRY KING, without any opponent!

Graspop 2024: Day 2 (Friday, June 21st)

Second day of the festival. We woke up early in the morning, with clouds covering the entire Dessel district. Luckily, we had time to get ready, before the almost 3-hour-long storm broke out, which knocked our spirits through the roof! We are talking about so much rain! Luckily for us, we spent almost all the rainy hours under the tent of the breakfast area.

The festival day started for us late at the afternoon, in the Marquee stage, with DYING FETUS raising the temperature and our spirits considerably! Nice and well-played Death Metal from the Americans, got us well into the game for the rest of the day. With almost half of the setlist being consisted of songs from their latest album “Make Them Beg For Death” and some classics like “Grotesque Impalement” and “Intentional Manslaughter”, we can talk about another honest performance by the trio from Baltimore.

The next band on the south stage was the Californian FEAR FACTORY! A band that has existed since 1989 (as ULCERATION), and is considered as the pioneer in the modern sound of Metal music. With the charismatic and imposing Dino Cazares on guitars continuing to front the band and essentially being the only founding member since 1990, and the enthusiastic Milo Silvestro behind the mic since 2021, the Americans got the crowds going in Groove/Industrial Metal vibes. The top moment of course was “Replica” but also “Powershifter”, “Demanufacture” and “Zero Signal”, were enough to create a very powerful circle pit in the center, in front of the stage!

The next part belongs to BRUCE DICKINSON. This euphoric demon, despite the short time available to him (he expressed some complaints about it…) and realizing the bad weather conditions at that moment, did all he could to make us have a good a time. In his total 50-minute set on the North Stage, he preferred to take us on a journey through his older recordings rather than his very fresh-new album “The Mandrake Project”, which was appreciated by all of us! “Accident of Birth”, “Chemical Wedding”, “Laughing in the Hiding Bush”, the amazing “Tears of the Dragon” and the closing with “Road to Hell”. The only song heard from his new album was “Afterglow of Ragnarok”. I hope that in a few weeks in Athens, he will have much more time at his disposal and we will enjoy a full set as it is done in other live shows.

Next up was NILE at the Marquee stage, where once again crushed the place! Karl Sanders’ crew, with the Greek drummer George Kollias, unleashed their Technical/Brutal Death Metal with the oriental aura that characterizes them! The song with the short (…) title “Chapter for Not Being Hung Upside Down on a Stake in the Underworld and Made to Eat Feces by the Four Apes” was heard for the first time, coming from their upcoming new album “The Underworld Awaits Us All”. A guarantee band in extreme sound, they impressed again with the excellence of their arrangements!

With a beer in my hand, while the rain had stopped, I sat on the side of the North Stage, waiting for JUDAS PIEST to appear on stage. During my waiting, I managed to catch some songs by ELECTRIC CALLBOY and I really felt that this show was not appropriate for a Metal festival. They describe themselves as “Electronicore” or something like that… They are one of those bands that make you wonder if GRASPOP will continue to be a Metal Festival or turn it into more pop sounds..?

After this diverse and colorful mishmash of ELECTRIC CALLBOY was over, one more beer was all I needed to recover and enjoy a real Metal band! It was time for the legends, JUDAS PRIEST! The entire GRASPOP population had descended to the North Stage to enjoy them. Rob Halford is going through his fourth youth. The setlist included just two songs from the new album and all the rest from the previous albums! We are talking about a real “best of” from their discography! For an hour and a half, PRIEST gave a remarkable show. A real Heavy Metal show that a few bands can do at this moment on planet earth. Maybe I’m exaggerating, but apart from IRON MAIDEN and METALLICA, what other band right now can compete with PRIEST? None! All the rest are just substitutes. This trio has left. There is no need to mention all 15 tracks that the British played. Let’s just say “Painkiller” as a highlight.

Closing the night with the Americans FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH, also a very strong name at the festival, regardless of whether they touch me musically or not, I have to admit that their performance was of high levels! After the return of the singer Ivan Moody to the band, who through a personal struggle managed to overcome his addictions as well as the problems he had with the law, the band seems to be getting stronger all the time, now having a worldwide appeal. Thousands of people in front of the stage and a very good performance by the band, certainly pleased those who had come to Dessel to see them.

Do I need to mention the winner of the second day??? You already got it…. JUDAS PRIEST clearly, very far from the second one!

Graspop 2024: Day 3 (Saturday, June 22nd)

Saturday was the third day of the festival and the busiest in terms of bands to watch. Early on, we have just had our coffee and SUFFOCATION was waiting for a Death Metal morning wake-up call, at the Marquee stage which was unfolding as our favorite stage! What a great thing to wake up, drink coffee and enjoy SUFFOCATION!!! They split their setlist between their latest album, “Hymns of Apocrypha” and earlier works. SUFFOCATION proved why they are considered as one of the top Death Metal bands in the world right now. “Infecting the Crypts” and “Pierced From Within” are their highlights.

After the Americans finished their show, we took a quick step towards the exit to the North Stage to see FLOTSAM AND JETSAM, at least for a while. We managed to see at least half of their program and to listen to “No Place for Disgrace”.

Back to the beloved Marquee stage for PESTILENCE. A dream comes true… SUFFOCATION, FLOTSAM AND JETSAM and PESTILENCE!!! In their forty-five minutes, they were at their disposal and with a lot of energy, the Dutchmen got a warm applause from the audience playing old-school Death Metal. “Land of Tears” was their highlight.

The day had started idealy, but the pit stop for food and alcohol was obligatory, as the rest of the day was predicted to be even stronger! Due to that, I missed STEEL PANTHER and BATUSHKA, but of course I caught up with ROTTING CHRIST! Without wanting to exaggerate (I have already stated that I didn’t like their new album), ROTTING CHRIST IS A VERY BIG THING!!!! We are talking about a band that has fans from all over the world. Its the band that made the Marquee stage seem too small to accommodate all metalheads there. It was the first and last time at this festival, I saw this stage, not just packed with people, but packed with people outside of it. The CHRIST’s deserve it!!! Marquee was not “sold out” even with ABBATH or EMPEROR, just to give you an idea of what we are talking about. Their setlist had very well-known and classic songs like “Non Serviam”, “Societas Satanas” (where there was chaos in a huge circle pit!), and “Kata Ton Daimona Eaytoy”.

We go no since, as I said, Saturday was the busiest day musical wise! Unlucky for me, URIAH HEEP were playing at the same time with KAMPFAR, so I preferred the Black Metallers from Norway. They really surprised me with their performance. Well-played old school Black Metal from the Scandinavians. “Ophidian” and “Mylder” songs were the strongest moments.

Are you tired of Saturday??? No fatigue; we have a follow-up with I AM MORBID and David Vincent. “Blessed Are the Sick” and “Visions From the Dark Side” were their highlights.

Next, we go on with ABBATH playing IMMORTAL. When you hear songs like “Sons of Northern Darkness” and the quartet at the end, “The Sun No Longer Rises”, “At the Heart of Winter”, “Withstand the Fall of Time” and “Blashyrkh (Mighty Ravendark)” I think you have to be super satisfied. A flawless and highly professional performance for ABBATH and the rest of the band. Definitely in the top five performances of this year’s GRASPOP!

BRING ME THE HORIZON were the headliners who closed the night on the main stage, going out right at midnight until 1.30am. There was no reason to sit down and see them since I have no connection with their sound. And like that ended this very nice and full day, returning to our tents with a huge smile…..

The winners of the day were the Greeks ROTTING CHRIST, but actually the real winner is music and especially METAL music!!!

Graspop 2024: Day 4 (Sunday, June 23rd)

Sunday, the last and fourth day of the festival, took place under hot sun, with the temperature reaching 25 degrees Celsius. Our schedule started with a stroll through the GRASPOP’s market, researching CDs, vinyls, T-shirts and generally the abundant merchandise that was available. A good market with plenty of choices. In terms of bands, Ihsahn of EMPEROR and his personal band showed up early, so we didn’t catch them. Corey Taylor was also on the main stage, which was too commercial for my music taste.

Then I headed to the Marquee stage for a band, I wasn’t interested in the first place, but its modern Death Metal with grindcore touches made me pumped up… I’m talking about THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, of course! Their superb performance already got me looking through their discography…

The next band on the main stage was DEEP PURPLE. “Highway Star” was starting, but Gillan’s voice didn’t come out, no matter how hard he tried. He is 78 years old, you might say, of course. Sadly, he can’t even stand the basics anymore. In such cases, such great artists have to get retired at a good time so they can be remembered as they deserve and not as shadows of their former selves.

I left the North Stage, heading to the Marquee, where DARK FUNERAL was about to come out. Pure Swedish performance, but the whole angry and dark stylistic thing leaves me personally indifferent. Neither paint nor leather with nails make you a pure a Black Metaller, a thing that was proved by EMPEROR, who followed immediately afterward on the same stage!

Without corpse paint and nails, but with Lacoste t-shirts, they showed what real Black Metal means! Even though the Norwegians came out very late, with the crowd being tired from the four previous days, they managed getting the crowd to participate with the last of their strength. Flawless and professional, in every sense of the word, they put on a show with tracks like “Inno a Satana”, “The Loss and Curse of Reverence” and, above all, “I Am the Black Wizards”!

The festival and the night closed with MACHINE HEAD, a band that proved why is belongs to the superpowers of the Metal scene! Despite the departure from the great record releases of the past, Robb Flynn’s band occupied the main stage at midnight and made sure to remind everyone of the “heaviness” of their name! The Californians gave every power in 90 minutes of a crushing performance, with the crowd going wild in return with frantic circle pits and mosh pits! Lights, fireworks, video visuals, crowd interaction and pulse in one of the greatest performances of the festival! The best moments were “Locust”, “Darkness Within”, “Davidian” and “Halo”, followed by the spectacular fireworks of this year’s GRASPOP closing ceremony!

The winners of the day were the sun and MACHINE HEAD!!!

TOP 5 SHOWS of GRASPOP 2024

1. JUDAS PRIEST
2. KERRY KING
3. ROTTING CHRIST
4. ABBATH
5. MACHINE HEAD

Epilogue

Let’s now say a few words about some other issues of the festival and its collaborators. Let’s start with the unacceptably high prices! It is unthinkable that a burger, a plate with some pasta and generally a basic (better say “too small”) portion of food costs 15 euros! This is pure obscenity, based on the monopoly that exists and the ban on food from shops outside the festival. I mentioned at the beginning of the correspondence that the organizers have made a commendable effort to improve the conditions of the festival, despite the adverse weather conditions, but on the other hand, it is not reasonable to pay 50- 60 euros per day for food needs, including breakfast. Moreover, the beers cost 3.5 euros for 250 ml and 7 euros for 500 ml, prices that are too high for the average European!

So that was GRASPOP Metal Meeting 2024! An experience of a lifetime which I wish to every fan of this music to experience, even just once!

Live Correspondent: Andreas Fytros
Translation/Rendering in English language: Vasiliki Kalogera
Cover Artwork: Graspop Festival
Design, Editing & Text Correction: Alexandros Soultatos
Photos: Graspop Festival
Videos: Alexandros Soultatos
External Links: Graspop Festival – Official Page
Copyright © 2024 THEGALLERY.GR

Note from the address:

It’s the third year in a row that THE GALLERY‘s members are present at Graspop Festival in Belgium! This year the forecasts of the meteorologists were ominous from the beginning, with rain threatening the smooth running of the festival. Despite any restrictions of the organizers (mainly in the parking lot but also in our means of transportation) and as we were well organized, we did not hesitate and followed our program to the letter, with the final outcome of the events vindicating us!

Once more we stayed at Graspop’s Inferno campsite, one of the most organized campsites internationally. Clean toilets, organized showers and everything in order. Meteorologically, the first day had some rain, 18 degrees Celsius in the daylight and 12 degrees at night, with the thicker clothing being essential. The second day had more rain, and the difficulties were more in the muddy terrain and not in the rain itself. Waterproof is a must, as also are the wellies. The organizers did their best to keep all the land around the venue accessible, and they really succeeded. On the third day things were clearly better with little rain but with a lot of mud on the ground, while on the last day of the festival the sun did us a favor and appeared for good, so everything went back to normal!

Regarding the bands, the professionalism and quality integrity of all the bands was confirmed in the majority of them, with the highlights being the shows of MACHINE HEAD, ROTTING CHRIST, JUDAS PRIEST, KERRY KING and ABBATH. The Australians NE OBLIVISCARIS and the French IGORRR were pleasant surprises. Among the disappointments were the appearance of MEGADETH where Mustaine’s voice was forced (leaving the audience to take their place with a sing-along at many points) but also that of the CAVALERA brothers which had many technical problems in the sound.

For yet another year, the prices of drinks and food at the festival made a negative impression. A small (not even normal) portion of food costs 15 euros and a 500 ml beer reaches 7 euros. Expensive prices, even for a developed central European country like Belgium. Taking into account the ban on bringing food and drink bought outside the festival into the venue, those prices are truly outrageous! On the plus side, the taps with free drinking water. The chemical toilets are quite clean, but with a lot of people in the queues during peak hours.

All in all, once more this year we spent four very intense days, surrounded by the aura of our favorite Metal music! Greetings to Anda, Will, Maka, Iordani, Vasiliki, Ioannis, George, Efrem and all the friends who spent together with us their days, beautifully in this great celebration of Metal! See you next year!

Α.Σ.