Monday, July 16, 2012

A Look Back at Mayhem Festivals Past


     The Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival is still young, but it has taken the American Metal Scene by storm. If you have forty bucks and like heavy metal, then most of the time, Mayhem Fest is your choice (But then again, for thirty bucks you can go see Summer Slaughter, and in a more intimate setting). A great thing that Mayhem Festival does is it always brings on a local band in each state.

     Mayhem Festival started in 2008 and was assembled by Kevin Lyman (of Vans Warped Tour fame) and John Reese (who had been Lyman's partner on the short-lived Taste of Chaos tour). It happens annually every summer across the U.S. and Canada. It's most prominent sponsor (as its namesake suggests) is Rockstar Energy Company. Other sponsors include, or have included Revolver Magazine, Hot Topic and Jagermeister. Along with these different sponsors, the festival also always brings on the freestyle motorcross team Metal Mulisha.

     There have to date always been three stages at Mayhem Festival: The Main Stage, The Jagermeister Stage and a third stage, which has had a different sponsor almost every year. 2008-2009 was Hot Topic, 2010 was Silver Star, 2011 was Revolver and 2012 is Sumerian Records.

     Mayhem Festival also has not shied away from social activism. From bringing Keep-A-Breat on tour, to boycotting BP oil in 2010, to this year recruiting volunteers to clean up the festival grounds, Mayhem Festival brings a bit of activism and awareness to town with it.

For current Mayhem Festival new, for tickets, and to weigh in on what bands should play in 2013, please visit the Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival website at: http://www.rockstarmayhemfest.com

Below are the line-ups from each year as well as the local bands from each date:



2008 Lineup

Main Stage

Slipknot
Disturbed
DragonForce
Mastodon

Jägermeister Stage

Machine Head
Airbourne
Five Finger Death Punch
Walls of Jericho
Jägermeister Opening Band

Hot Topic Stage

Underoath
Black Tide
Suicide Silence
36 Crazyfists
The Red Chord

2008 Local Bands:

Drown Mary
Vengince
Stigmurder
Sixx
V engince
Six Ounce Gloves
Mower
Psychostick
Switchpin
Continent Ash
Conquest
Powderburn
The Destro
The Autumn Offering
Epoxy
Hemlock
Kingdom of Sorrow
Ray Street Park
Soil
Colossick
Dead Broke
Beyond the Scar
Unbroken
Stuck in Kaos
Stemm



2009 Lineup

Main Stage

Marilyn Manson
Slayer
Killswitch Engage
Bullet for My Valentine
Mushroomhead (filling in for Bullet for My Valentine on 7/31, 8/1 and 8/2)

Jägermeister Stage

Trivium
All That Remains
God Forbid
Jägermeister Battle of the Bands winner (one per location)

Hot Topic Stage

Cannibal Corpse
Behemoth
Job for a Cowboy
The Black Dahlia Murder
Whitechapel

2009 Local Bands

Skinlab
Corrupt Absolute
Madlife
Northwest Royale
Hemlock
Switchpin
Continent Ash
Seasons After
Swingshot
Ascend Through the Depths
Dirge Within
XFactor1
Mobile Deathcamp
Lost Chapter
Know Lyfe
STEMM
Property
Beyond the Star
Soul Made Visible
Saint Diablo
Must Not Kill
Gollum
Negative 263
Adakain



2010

Main stage

Five Finger Death Punch
Lamb of God
Avenged Sevenfold (July 25 and 27 only)
Rob Zombie
Korn

Silver Star Stage

Atreyu
Norma Jean
In This Moment
3 Inches of Blood

Jägermeister stage

Hatebreed
Chimaira
Shadows Fall
Winds of Plague*
Jägermeister Battle of the Bands winner

Note: Despite being announced as performing on the Jägermeister stage on press releases, Winds of Plague performed on the Silver Star stage on most of the tour dates.

2010 Local Bands:

Sangre
Vengince
Drown Mary
A Balance of Power
Hostility
Switchpin
Psychostick
Ascend Through the Depths
Hemlock
Stemm
His Name Was Yesterday
Soil
Xfactor1
Mobile Death Camp
Gollum
Saint Diablo
Tension Head
Waiting for Never
Art of Destruction
Must Not Kill
Catalysis
Brotherhood
Upon a Burning Body



2011 Lineup (2011 brought about the advent of the rotating Main Stage)

Main Stage

Disturbed
Godsmack
Megadeth
Dethklok (replaced Megadeth on 7/09

Rotating Main Stage openers

Machine Head
Trivium

Revolver Stage

In Flames
Testament (headlined 7/09-7/10, replacing In Flames)
Suicide Silence
All Shall Perish (cancelled July 24, replaced by The Athiarchists for that date)
Straight Line Stitch

Jägermeister Mobile Stage

The Athiarchists (headlining in place of In Flames after 7/30)
Trivium (headlining 7/09-7/20)
Unearth
Kingdom of Sorrow
Red Fang
Jägermeister Battle of the Bands winner

Nihilist
Valdur
Drown Mary
A Balance of Power
Back from Ashes
Until Chaos
Switchpin
Psychostick
Mobile Deathcamp
Dead Season
Hell Within
Dr. Acula
Lost Chapter
Silvertung
Beyond the Scar
Saint Diablo
Gollum
Seven Year Existence
The Surface
Texas Hippie Coalition
Powderburn
Uncrowned
Catalysis
Must Not Kill



"If history is violence and sex, I'd rather not pay my respects. If I've caused offense, I'm just trying to talk sense. Forgive me if I'm too direct or politically incorrect." Jon Foreman

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