Instead of celebrating midsummer in Germany as normal for the 'Bang Your Head' Festival the event had moved to the second half of July. I haven't really read the reason for the movement but I was concerned that the sun would be even hotter than normal. Luckily that wasn't the case, unfortunately though it did rain a bit during the weekend, yet again lucky though, not as much as it did 2005. THAT no one who's been paying the least interest in the Festival have missed though, the "Kampfschwimmer" shirts still appear regularly among the visitors. This Festival was very special in a completely different and very tragic way though, it was complete in honor of Ronnie James Dio.

Erika: The warm-up party was just as last year at the newly built Volksbank Arena which actually is located at the Messegelende area, convenient of course still the WOM Club shows was both hysteric and fun. The mission to get everyone started this year was ROXXCALIBUR. Of course, it will work to put a very decent band that plays cover versions of cool Heavy Metal tracks onstage in a place like this. I've had it a little hard with just cover bands, mainly because any shitty mess up could land gigs in my home town and get a lot of money for it while bands struggling, selling their souls for music were directed to youth centers or paying to play at a bar. But this time I found myself rocking out and really enjoying what was going on onstage. One thing's sure, they got me started! The fact is that ROXXCALIBUR sounds really great, they cam imitate most every band out there and that is really impressive. The thing though is that they got boring to watch quite fast, I don't know if that's because they're not the real deal or that they sound better than they look. No matter what, they did their job and that with grace.

ROXXCALIBUR setlist:

1. "Running for the Line"
2. "Gates Of Gehenna"
3. "Rainbow Warrior"
4. "Lady of Mars"
5. "Destiny"
6. "Seven Days Of Splendour"
7. "Witchfinder General"
8. "See You in Hell"
9. "Emergency"
10. "If I Were King"
11. "Neon Knights"

Erika: Second band out on the warm-up was old school British Heavy Metal heroes BLITZKRIEG. Brian Ross has always been a huge favorite of mine. His voice is really special, unmistakable and very unique. Just as ROXXCALIBUR and BLITZKRIEG sounded amazing but they left more to wish for when it came to the live show. The thing is, as much as I like Brian his way of singing is with quite little attack and when there's not enough energy on stage it tend to be a little dull. Sure, bass player Paul Brewis rocked enough for all but there must be a balance between all members to make a good show. That was the downside of BLITZKRIEG this evening but the things that were good sure weighed a lot heavier. Brian is an extremely cool character, he has almost the same pondus and coolness as Biff Byford (who just get cooler and more amazing for each year), really that aging with dignity thing.Of course, that the crowd went nuts helped a lot but the set was really good and it absolutely felt too short. Songs as "Dark City", "Theater Of The Damned" and "Unholy Trinity" and are amazing songs and at an event like 'Bang Your Head' they get the justice they deserve.

BLITZKRIEG setlist:

1. "The Phantom"
2. "Dark City"
3. "Theatre Of The Damned"
4. "Unholy Trinity"
5. "My Life Is My Own"
6. "Escape From The Village"
7. "Pull the Trigger"
8. "Tortured Souls"
9. "The Mob Rules"
10. "Blitzkrieg"

Maria: Unfortunately, I arrived late at the warm up show, and sadly missed BLITZKRIEG which I would love to see performing live. Even if you are not much into N.W.O.B.H.M, and by this I mean knowing and searching as many bands as possible this "genre" has to provide, you definitely have heard DEMON. The "Night Of The Demon" and "The Unexpected Guest" albums are well known. The band made a dynamic start with "Night Of The Demon", driving at least the people who were in the front row wild. Another classic followed, "Into The Nightmare", and kept our heads banging. The band was in excellent form and the sound was loud and clear. Honestly, it seemed that almost all of the people there, really were expecting to hear the classic DEMON tunes, hence between "Blackheath", "Sign Of The Madman", "Don't Break The Circle" there was not much going on to be honest. The band paid homage to Ronnie James Dio by doing the cover of "Lady Starstruck" from RAINBOW.

DEMON:

1. "Night Of The Demon"
2. "Into The Nightmare"
3. "Blue Skies In Red Square"
4. "Commercial Dynamite"
5. "Blackheath"
6. "Sign Of A Madman"
7. "Liar"
8. "Remembrance Day"
9. "Life On The Wire"
10. "Standing On The Edge"
11. "Don't Break The Circle"
12. "Lady Starstruck"

Maria: Before SAXON hit the stage I squeezed in the front line. It was hot as hell, and when I saw Biff coming on stage with his classic pirate-style coat I was about to faint. "Heavy Metal Thunder" made the start. "Dogs of War" followed. SAXON maybe is one of the bands that can still rock you. It is not only the music but also the energy this band is having, making you feel, that hell yeah, sometimes it is not all because of the money. The sound kept being excellent and Biff kept running everywhere on stage, proving that he is 100% into rocking. The crowd was more energetic and the heat in the venue was awful as the time was passing. A couple of people fainted and I was observing Biff with his coat, believing that he might be the next on the line. Lots of great anthems followed… "To Hell And Back Again", "The Eagle Has Landed", "747 Strangers In The Night". They finished their setlist with "Denim & Leather" and left us more than satisfied. As it was the first time I was attending the warm up party in the recently built venue, near the main stage of the festival, I would like to comment on the terrible heat in there. It was actually a hatchery…

SAXON setlist:

1. "Heavy Metal Thunder"
2. "Dogs Of War"
3. "To Hell And Back Again"
4. "Live To Rock"
5. "Dallas 1PM"
6. "Motorcycle Man"
7. "And The Bands Played On"
8. "Strong Arm Of The Law"
9. "The Eagle Has Landed"
10. "20,000 Ft"
11. "747 (Strangers In The Night)"
12. "Wheels Of Steel"
13. "Princess Of The Night"
14. "Crusader"
15. "Solid Ball Of Rock"
16. "Denim & Leather"

(photos by the princess of the live reports Erika)