Ozzfest 2007 Review (photo gallery included)

by Erin Rice , Kenneth Smith of 2K7 Photography

One of these days I will regain my hearing. Hopefully by next year's tour.

Rake me over the coals for this one, but this was my first ever Ozzfest. I have wanted to go for years, but I didn't have a house to mortgage to pay for tickets. This year was different, however, as the Prince of Darkness decided to try something wholly unprecedented. Throughout the past couple months fans have been getting ticket codes and then later actual tickets to be a part of the largest free U.S. tour of all time. Ozzfest rocks, sure, but free Ozzfest is possibly the coolest thing in the history of ever.

Boasting a lineup of fourteen of the hardest bands playing today, Ozzfest 2007 was an event not to miss. The unfortunate thing was that the tour hit Dallas on a Thursday. Some of us had to work, as it were, so I missed the majority of the second stage bands.

Luckily, however, I managed to catch most of Hatebreed. Hitting the stage around 5pm, Hatebreed's pit made more people puke than I saw all day (there is apparently a lot of puking at Ozzfest). The heat of the day and the intensity of Hatebreed's dirty, vengeful, everyman metal got the intestinal juices a flowin' for this crowd. Jamey Jasta further stirred up Hatebreed fans by continually asking questions that would get an answer of "F*ck No!" with fists pumping into the air, such as "Does anyone represent harder than Dallas?" Uh, duh, f*uck no.

Being the final second stage band, we all headed over to the main pavilion after Hatebreed and waited for the first band there to take the stage. That band was Lordi. Eh. They're just awful. Shameful, even. Their music is wildly uninspired and not played all that well. Their gimmick is GWAR-esque, but Finnish, and may have been cool in the mid-90's with a small spot on Beavis and Butthead. I saw GWAR a few weeks ago, so I guess my standards for space alien/monster metal are a bit higher now. Maybe it's just me. The crowd seemed to like them. I will say that I did appreciate the lady monster on the keys. She was cool.

The next two bands to hit the main stage, however, were far from disappointing.

Static X immediately followed Lordi. Opening with the title track from their recent release Cannibal, Static X is full on frenetic energy from start to finish. They play at a fast pace, just shy of speed metal, with more of an industrial influence. Wayne Static, whose vocals sound as if he's in a constant state of nearly losing his voice, is able to rile up any audience and plays the coolest line-up of guitars I've seen. The award for sweetest instrument, however, goes to bassist Tony Campos and his matte black bass with all metallic parts in shiny red. For the male contingent in the crowd, the band did a variety of on-stage shots (as in liquor), delivered by the scantily clad Hustler ladies. That's for show. The real meat of this band's set was that every song could be differentiated from the next and they were all received with rabid applause, cheers, and devil horns. I would see Static X again in a heartbeat. When the hell are they coming back to town?

Then came Lamb of God. There is no other band in the United States right now that rocks as insanely as Lamb of God. Playing for over an hour, at no point in any song is there a break in sound and absolutely no attempts to sing a ballad or bring down the pace. At one point I feared they were going to play something slow, as the lighters came out, but then the song busted forth with their signature speed. Their set was aggressive, pounding, and ferocious the entire time.

Throughout the show they played favorites such as "Blacken the Cursed Sun," "Black Label," and "Now You've Got Something To Die For." Lamb of God also tributed Dallas legend, "Dimebag" Darrell. Despite a lengthy set, the crowd never once lost its enthusiasm, gaining momentum in fact throughout. The feat of creating huge circle pits not only in the designated pit area but in the lawn as well belonged solely to Lamb of God for the evening. The lawn is sloped, mind you. That's not an easy thing to accomplish. Of metal today, Lamb of God the band above all others you must see live.

Finally, the night belonged to the Ozzman himself. In his right he's a legend and reportedly puts on legendary shows. I didn't stay, however, and everyone can berate me for it. I blame it on the foul Bud Ice served towards the end of the evening. Meh.

Review by Erin Rice; Photography by Kenneth Smith

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