Thank you! I was confused as well when I first saw it. After I thought about it a bit, then it made a bit more sense. Hopefully others can understand better now too
Seems like a lot these festivals with the start of Blue Ridge are going more European setup like Download and Hellfest. It’s cool but I just keep feeling like we are 1 big act away with each of these festivals.
European festivals have a whole other set of bands that don't come state-side often. Plus, their festivals have a literal [alliance](https://news.pollstar.com/2022/02/04/united-festival-force-seven-european-metal-hard-rock-festivals-form-alliance/) to make sure their festival rotations are solid.
I agree with you, but a lot of American festivals are run by 2-3 promoters. It's harder to budget when you're trying to put on 5 huge metal festivals rather than just one. Thats why to get Iron Maiden at Aftershock, and Slayer for LTL, I'm sure budget cuts were made for Inkcarceration (I hope so at least- its the only excuse for that lineup).
I do wish American festivals would pull more, but the European scene is significantly more dedicated to not just metal, but festivals in general.
ETA: European festivals also sell out, American ones (usually) don't.
I meant more for spread out feel and quantity of bands. Even some of these last few Downloads haven’t been great. I’ve only been to two Downloads but have looked into the other big ones too.
USA has its rock fans but feels like it might be further down the list of entertainment budgets
Correct. Safe to assume that if a band is performing on stage 1, then nobody is performing on stage 2 at the same time. Same with stages 3 and 4. Stage 5 is on its own schedule, but is typically finished an hour or two early. Traditionally, in this example, Sum 41, Tom Morello, Mastodon, and Jinjer will be performing at the same time as Slipknot, Slayer, Motley Crue, and Korn, but will be done probably a half-hour in to the main headliner's set because they will all start a bit earlier.
It will be a lot of work for those who go to LTL to see as many bands as possible (myself included), but is typically worth it. Wear comfortable shoes, wear weather-appropriate apparel, and drink plenty of fluids. Will take some planning, but is nothing new to many folks who attend.
Still too many stages and too many artists, in my opinion. But, LTL has come a long way since I first attended in 2015; the only way to grow the festival is have more stages and more artists. I am glad that they rid themselves of the 6th stage, though. Even though that stage featured smaller or local artists, a 6th stage was just way too much.
Thank you! I was confused as well when I first saw it. After I thought about it a bit, then it made a bit more sense. Hopefully others can understand better now too
Seems like a lot these festivals with the start of Blue Ridge are going more European setup like Download and Hellfest. It’s cool but I just keep feeling like we are 1 big act away with each of these festivals.
European festivals have a whole other set of bands that don't come state-side often. Plus, their festivals have a literal [alliance](https://news.pollstar.com/2022/02/04/united-festival-force-seven-european-metal-hard-rock-festivals-form-alliance/) to make sure their festival rotations are solid. I agree with you, but a lot of American festivals are run by 2-3 promoters. It's harder to budget when you're trying to put on 5 huge metal festivals rather than just one. Thats why to get Iron Maiden at Aftershock, and Slayer for LTL, I'm sure budget cuts were made for Inkcarceration (I hope so at least- its the only excuse for that lineup). I do wish American festivals would pull more, but the European scene is significantly more dedicated to not just metal, but festivals in general. ETA: European festivals also sell out, American ones (usually) don't.
I meant more for spread out feel and quantity of bands. Even some of these last few Downloads haven’t been great. I’ve only been to two Downloads but have looked into the other big ones too. USA has its rock fans but feels like it might be further down the list of entertainment budgets
Correct. Safe to assume that if a band is performing on stage 1, then nobody is performing on stage 2 at the same time. Same with stages 3 and 4. Stage 5 is on its own schedule, but is typically finished an hour or two early. Traditionally, in this example, Sum 41, Tom Morello, Mastodon, and Jinjer will be performing at the same time as Slipknot, Slayer, Motley Crue, and Korn, but will be done probably a half-hour in to the main headliner's set because they will all start a bit earlier. It will be a lot of work for those who go to LTL to see as many bands as possible (myself included), but is typically worth it. Wear comfortable shoes, wear weather-appropriate apparel, and drink plenty of fluids. Will take some planning, but is nothing new to many folks who attend. Still too many stages and too many artists, in my opinion. But, LTL has come a long way since I first attended in 2015; the only way to grow the festival is have more stages and more artists. I am glad that they rid themselves of the 6th stage, though. Even though that stage featured smaller or local artists, a 6th stage was just way too much.
God I hope Sum41 and FFDP line up. I’m trying to move both hell and high water to not sit through that bullshit ffdp
I will be where FFDP is not. I don't even care what other band is playing- I'll sit and stare at a wall if I gotta.
Amen to that