Dong Open Air
This year the writer of these lines completed his personal dozen of Dong-participations.
Each summer this unique Open Air on the tophill including awesome perspectives on the landscape all around this small as fine event takes place between the huge festivals without having less meaning. It rather sets a wonderful contrast to those ones by its incomparable location, the familiar atmosphere and the right mixture between popular (co-) headliners as mostly very promising underground acts.
So the 15th Dong Open Air which got set under this year’s slogan „Party All Night Dong“ presented by Carcass, Gamma Ray, Eluveitie, Die Apokalyptischen Reiter, The Black Dahlia Murder and Kissin’ Dynamite, etc. an attractive billing. The festival area got upvalued by a bigger tent similar to a big top offering much more space and including all the merchandise. Besides that the sound got improved as well. On the camping area the organizers were able to offer a shower camp for the first time after solving the logistic difficulties to realize this on the hill. We took this chance every morning. So during this pretty hot weekend our smell got limited per day! 🙂 The organisation ran well, the relaxed atmosphere was guaranteed as usual and the prices were fair as they had been all the years before. On the Dong hill 28 bands appeared in three days for about 2000 visitors.
Thursday
Red’s Cool For the very first time the Dong Open Air got opened by a non-german band which emphasized its raised status on the international level as well. The fivepiece from St. Petersburg set the first interested spectators in the right mood by their Hard Rock, switching between their debut „Bad Story“ („Bite“) and their forthcoming release „Press Hard“ („Brand New Start“).
But We Try It This Deathcore quintet from Wuppertal raised the heaviness factor enormously. In front of about 300 motivated fans they concentrated besides the debut track „Remember Me“ on material from their younger album „A Twisted Sanctuary“. The most jubilation the band earned by the Sepultura cover „Territory“.
Sunchair The local heroes from the neighbored city of Krefeld were supposed to have a home game, but somehow didn’t convince the crowd from the start, but that changed after a while. Over „War“, „I Am The Sheppard“ or „Pile Of Shards“ the support increased and ended in a circle-pit.
Crossplane The formation from Essen were able to consider themselves a few steps further. They took care about a pretty packed tent. The fans from the Ruhr region knew what they got. Heavy Rock ‘n’ Roll a bit comparable to Motörhead. To me their sound was much too monotonous, but the fans celebrated „Brave New World“, „Take It Or Leave It“ and „Rollin’“.
Words Of Farewell As their predecessors the quintet returned after they had played on the Dong hill two years ago. And they filled the tent as well, even reaching more support for their Melodic Death Metal. Besides the debut songs „Ever After“ and „Sorae“ they concentrated on their current album „The Black Wild Yonder“ by „Continuum Shift“, „Beauty In Passing“, „The Great Escape“, „Telltale Nation“, etc. which all took care about motion in the first rows.
Debauchery Five years after their first Dong-appearance the german answer to Six Feet Under returned, this time without natural bloodbabes. So band as fans could concentrate on the music. Fronter Thomas declared this gig to a release show of the just released „Fuck Humanity“ of which the fourpiece performed several tracks. But of course the best supported track became their hit „Blood For The Blood God“ for another time.
The Black Dahlia Murder The following show was supposed to become one of the definite highlights. From the opener „In Hell Is Where She Waits For Me“ the Detroit Deathsters left no option for the packed tent than to move. Lead by the agile as sympathic fronter Trevor Strnad the fivepiece rocked by a best of set containing „Statutory Ape“, „Everything Went Black“, „What A Horrible Night To Have A Curse“, „Miasma“ as also considering by „Vlad, Son Of The Dragon“ a song from the forthcoming album. „Funeral Thirst“ set the final accent after an awesome live experience.
Gamma Ray The German Melodic Metal institution of course mainly attracts other Metal fans than the much harder predeccors do. But the most spectators stayed in the tent. This changed after a few tracks when Kai Hansen & Co enlarged the Helloween classic „I Want Out“ unnecessarily including a superflous Reggae part while more and more metalheads left the tent. Well-deserved! Those ones who had waited were able to watch much better interpretations of Gamma Ray classics like „Heaven Can Wait“, „Dream Healer“, „Rebellion In Dreamland“ and „Man On A Mission“ as the encores „Somewhere Out In Space“ and „Send Me A Sign“.
Friday
Sapiency Lead by two vocalists the Melodic Metal sixpiece from Frankfurt enthused from the beginning in the early noon. One microphone got used by interim fronter Phil who fulfilled the main performance job on stage while the other one, Lars, seemed a bit too shy. The band played a well-balanced set between their two albums „Fate’s End“ and „Tomorrow“. Cool music, great atmosphere and the place behind the second microphone should be safe after this show.
Gilgamesh In contrast to the band before the fourpiece from Munich just attracted their supporters in front of the stage, the neutral community left the tent. Anyway, the fans celebrated the live transfer of their output „The Awakening“ in its track order minus „Evocating Enill“ and „To The Temple Of Nippur“.
Insanity The big live surprise of the weekend became the following fivepiece from Switzerland. With their leads they sounded different to all those other Hardcore bands. From the opener „My Life My Rules“ on the crowd raised. The stageaction of the quintet took over in front of the stage, so the debut album’s title track „No Limit“, „Time For Change“, „Ready To Row“ and „Never Gonna Quit“ caused more and more celebration leading into moshpits in which finally the very agile shouter Tobias took part in to „Part Of Us“.
Miseo Solid old school Death Metal got presented by a band which got formed by members of the well-known Lay Down Rotten, Milking The Goatmachine and others. Thjs kind of music worked as it always does, and so many heads got circling to the set dominating longplayer debut by „Skin Dress“, „Daddy’s Girl“ as its title track „Lunatic Confessions“ as to the older EP track „I Hate Humans“ and two newer songs.
War Kabinett The following act wasn’t just exotic because of coming from Mexico. Their style described as Symphonic Metal combined extreme heaviness as melodies. So did the voice of Dante Diaz shouting as singing Black and Power Metal vocals. The crowd applauded as headbanged to „Heroes Of War“ or the final „The Great Deceiver“ which lead into a succesful European live debut.
Vogelfrey The following Folk Metal formation performed that kind of music I definitely don’t prefer. Anyway, between all those harder appearances this kind of party music worked well. So the sixpack returned to the Dong Hill after 2011 to get celebrated for „Sturmgesang“, „Nur Der Met Ist Schuld“ and „Heldentod“ including a medley considering several Rock as Pop classics before returning with the encore „Der Tusch!“.
Beyond The Black The shooting stars from North Germany got much support from the beginning. The female fronted Melodic Metal convinced by their set consisting of material from their debut „Songs Of Love And Death“ and the Motörhead cover „Love Me Forever“. Of course several male metalheads also just got convinced by singer Jennifer herself after numerous beers over the whole day. Anyway, this appearance convinced.
Excrementory Grindfuckers The Comedy Grindcore ensemble participated for the third or fourth time at Dong Open Air. And as always the tent became packed independent to its size. Especially the cover interpretations „Looking For Grindcore“ (David Hasselhoff), „Vater Morgana“ (Erste Allgemeine Verunsicherung) and the finisher „Final Grinddown“ (Europe) guaranteed party atmophere.
Kissin’ Dynamite The quintet from Southwest Germany is the bigger act for sure, but on the top of the Dong hill it’s always hard to appear after the Excrementory Grindfuckers. Of course the Melodic Metal formation attracted their fans celebrating from the beginning marked by „DNA“ and „Running Free“ over „Money, Sex & Power“ as „Six Feet Under“ up to „I Will Be King“ and „Operation Supernova“.
Eluveitie The Folk Metal eightpiece from Switzerland populated the tent again. Their style combining several Folk elements including exotic instruments with heaviness resulted in the optimal Dong sound for this night. Lead by fronter Chrigel the group caused a few circle-pits, many crowdsurfers during the whole gig as much applause. And that found its jubilated end by the encores „Helvetios“ and „Inis Mona“.
Saturday
Torturized After two days of Dong party Death Metal probably was the right way to wake up the visitors as fast as possible. So smashers like „Coagulated Red“ found its first support in the pretty emtpy tent.
Crosshead The same scenery happened while the following Thrash Metal band. The local heroes from the close Krefeld played for their second time at Dong Open Air. Cool riffing as stage action, but due to the hot noon as the party nights before they could have deserved more support in front of the stage.
The Prosecution Who had thought Eluveitie would have been the only band with the most musicians at DOA 2015 should realize the Bavarian eightpiece had even as many. By their mixture between Punk Rock and Ska they took care about bringing the party factor back to the stage on that saturday. „The Last Shot“ as „At The Edge Of The End“ showed the typical rock instrumentation works with the more extraordinary saxophone and trombone.
Wulfpack The following fourpiece came from Bavaria as well, but played ordinary Thrash Metal. Entering the stage too late it became clear after „Pork“ and „W.A.O.!“ their sound was a bit too ordinary. So after the Pantera cover „Domination“ just a couple of Thrashers turned into a moshpit while „Lonesome Beerwalker“.
Acyl After their very successfull Dong performance two years ago the quintet returned from Paris to present their Metal / World Music monster. The tent was pretty much filled before they started with their EP classic „Obduracy“. The main accent was set on the „Algebra“ album, but by „Gibraltar“ and „Mercurial“ two new compositions from the forthcoming masterpiece found their way into the set which earned by far the biggest support on saturday so far.
Wizard Much less people seemed to be interested in the True Metal of the fivepiece from the close town of Bocholt. Their traditional True Metal reached a very limited number of metalheads as it generally does, so in comparison to the band before just a couple of fans celebrated their best of program of meanwhile ten outputs while the rest was standing in the back or outside. After „Defenders Of Metal“ the spuke was over.
Mantar Completely different sound as concept, same problem! The multiple praised duo from Bremen didn’t hold the expectations. Their Sludge Doom of course produced by the reduction on one guitar, drums and shouts some kind of intensity, but from the opener „The Berzerker’s Path“ to the final „White Nights“ it created more and more boredom, and the introverted live performance didn’t work against that.
Fiddler’s Green The Folk Rock sixpack usually works on every metal festival, and so it does on the Dong tophill. They could choose between material of their dozen releases, and didn’t seem to had been taken the wrong choice. The motivated crowd sang and danced to „Wall Of Folk“, „Rocky Road To Dublin“, „Folk’s Not Dead“, „Bugger Off“ and the Bon Jovi cover „Livin’ On A Prayer“ as the encore.
Die Apokalyptischen Reiter For the now third time the Metal commando from East Germany came up to the Dong hill. That they could count on a big fan community was easy to realize. Whatever fronter Fuchs animated to, the crowd followed applauding, jumping, etc.. The filled tent celebrated „Revolution“, „Es Wird Schlimmer“ and „Der Seemann (including the well-known rubber boat) as the encores „Smell Of Death“, „Reitermania“ and „Der Rausch“.
Carcass One band was left, but the best was still supposed to come! After interpreting six songs from the new album „Surgical Steel“ the Death Grind icon from Liverpool presented classics from all other masterpieces. „Exhume To Consume“, „Reek Of Putrefaction“, „Black Star“, „Keep On Rotting In A Free World“, „Corporal Jigsore Quandary“ and „Heartwork“ generated loss of headbanging action. Jeff Walker who did a few very cool comments between the songs, Bill Steer & Co played tight and the sound was clear as powerful. Great conditions to let this year’s Dong Open Air end with a real highlight which got finished by Carneous Cacoffiny. Amazing!
Conclusion:
Dong Open Air 2015 marked the 15th anniversary of this cult event which is incomparable to any other festival due to the location as the familiar atmosphere. The mentioned innovations all worked well as the whole organization did. The very fair prices for drinks and food are still remarkable. The weather was pretty hot, but okay. No cancelation happened, all announced bands played.
Thanks go out to Benjamin „Colamann“ Munsch and the DOA-team!!!!! At the Dong Open Air drank, rocked and partied Tobi Wan Kenobi, Dumbo & Sharon!!!!!