Various Artists - Live at Wacken 2007
Wacken Records – Out Now
By Dan Fisher
It is always the problem with live festival DVDs that they can’t quite replicate the live experience of the actual event. Subsequently, they are always going to appeal more to the fan who has been to the gig and wants a copy as a record of that memory, as opposed to the average metal fan.
However, this release documenting
Wacken 2007 does go some way to bridging the gap between a mere curiosity and a must-have DVD.
The first disk documents all the esoterica that surrounds
Wacken; the 8km long queues, the friendly German families who open their arms to the metal community with food and shelter, the free swimming pool-cum-washing facilities, the bales of straw rolled over the huge muddy patches on the fields, the various nationalities that find common ground with a bunch of beers and much, much more.
This is all interspersed with choice cuts from the music of the first day. My personal favourites included
Rage’s orchestral version of
‘From the Cradle to the Grave’ and misery merchant’s
Type O Negative playing
‘We Hate Everyone’. There were some quite weird (crap) choices here as well like
Lacuna Coil’s frankly shite version of
‘Enjoy The Silence’. Oh well. You can’t have it all.
The second DVD is a more typical affair with shed loads of bands shoehorned onto one disk. There were quite a few brilliant moments.
Therion seem amazing live with their brand of symphonic prog. metal and it’s always great to see a reunion by true metal pioneers such as
Immortal. I was also impressed by
Napalm Death’s cover of
‘Nazi Punks Fuck Off’. I could go on but there’s really not much point:
Wacken is the mecca of metal. A DVD is no where near the same experience as the real thing. But if you can’t afford to trek halfway across Europe, then shelling out 10 quid on a DVD that is obviously a labour of love is worth the money.
Official Wacken Website
Official Wacken Records Website
