31 July 2013 and it was time again for this year’s edition of Freakstock a festival organized by the German JesusFreaks and held in Borgentreich Germany. Freakstock started in 1995 and was held in Wiesbaden but since 2009 in some old barracks in Borgentreich. The festival presents many varieties of music, workshops and seminars. But the festival has more activities to offer including a soccer competition, tattoo artist, different shops, art exhibition and more. When we arrived I saw a sign with the text ‘Welcome Home’ and I have to agree Freakstock always feels like home.
Wednesday
Wednesday when we arrived we set up our tent and explored the site a bit. The festival started with a service from Jesus Freaks Holland. The music was done by DJ Joost Dekker with spoken word from Skinfiltr8r. It was a mix of different electronic genres like dupstep and house. No ordinary music for a service but it was a great and different experience. The lyrics were provided on the beamer so we could ‘sing’ along. With a small sermon about not being afraid of change (the theme of this year ‘Change(d)’) and communion afterwards it was great way to start the festival.
Thursday
The Thursday we started with a workshop from Preson Phillips called ‘Work in Humanity’. In short was it about that we as humanity are made to create of being creative. This is because we are made in the image of a creating God.
In the afternoon we went to the Koptic service with Bishop Damian from the nearby monastery. He told and showed allot about the difference in liturgy. He also held a sermon about that we got a spirit of hope and not of fear. It was really cool to hear seeing the circumstances in Egypt.
First band we saw was Salvation Pioneer a double fronted German hardcore band. The band was fronted by a male and a female. It was fun but nothing special in my opinnion.
Next band was Scars of a Lifetime. Their vocalist was pretty good switching between screams and singing, the music was kind of standard metalcore. But it was played well and as I said the vocalist was pretty good. So overall it was a fun band to watch.
Preson Phillips the guy from the workshop that morning played with his band next on the mainstage outside. He had some great up tempo folk songs for us. The guitarist he brought with him also plays in a more known band called The Almost. They played a great set and the songs from Preson Phillips definitely deserve more attention.
Emily Still Reminds was next. Last year’s performance was pretty good and they have a pretty big following in Germany so i was looking forward to see them again. It was again a nice show this year. I think it was a little bit busier than last year and band was having a lot of fun on stage. At the end a kid that was sitting in front of the stage sang along with one the song which was really cute and nice to see.
Next The Algorithm a project from the Frenchman Rémi Gallego. He mixes different electronic music with djent and other different metal elements. It really experimental but man what a great performance was this. The addition of a drummer made it really feel like a live experience. At one time everybody was dancing seconds later a big wall of death was set it. One of the most memorable shows I ever went to.
Doyle had no luck this year. Allot of technical difficulties were bothering them during their set. I wasn’t really impressed by them last year and all the problems made even weaker this year. This is really a bummer because I can hear they have more potential. At the end they asked the people on stage which was fun to watch.
Friday
We started the day with a coffee at the JFI there we heard a flard of Alan Nord workshop about the community he lives in.
Massive Scar Era started the day at the Turinnehalle. This female fronted metal band with violin brought something fresh. They mixed metal and Egyptian folk music with a variation between melodic vocal lines and screaming. They sounded great and it was well received by the people. They also made a remark about the suppression of woman in Egypt and an organization you could donate to for the cause. Unfortunately they didn’t sold any music at their show cause it was a great!
At mainstage was Sean Michel doing his thing. The man with the long beard and the bandana played his rock&roll gospel with allot of passion. Sitting on a stool and only accompanied by his electric guitar. But still he made a great impact on me. There was so much soul in his voice and so much passion was coming from the guy that I didn’t miss the band at all.
Originally Zeal was scheduled to play in the “Tubinehalle” but they had cancelled. Instead the old-school hardcore band Killing Goliath from the Netherlands was playing. If people didn’t know they were playing or weren’t interested I don’t know but there weren’t a lot people in the “Turbinehalle”. But the band wasn’t holding back. You could really see the band enjoyed playing. The band had a lot of passion for their lyrics. Some songs sounded a little bit familiar but it didn’t bother me. The band played also a cover from Stretch Arm Strong which sounded great. Overall it was a really fun performance.
With the next band it was a lot of busier but also a bit younger audience this time. And another band from the Netherlands; Startled By Silence. They make music in the vein of ‘Eyes Set To Kill’ post-hardcore with a female clean vocalist and the grunt done by one of the guitarist. They made a great party. The music was a bit heavier than on cd which was a good thing. The band really had a lot of fun in playing. Again a nice show from one of the Dutch bands this year.
Next was a Belgian named Bear. I had never heard from them but they played mathcore. And what to expect from a mathcore band their show was kind of a chaos. The vocalist had some funny kind of arrogance over him demanding the people what to do. It didn´t really annoy me but somehow it was really funny. At the end of the show they tore the whole drumkit down with their guitars. Overall was it a nice first encounter with this band.
Today Forever is popular in Germany. The room was packed when they started. Released one of their albums on an American label and playing with a lot of passion and conviction it no wonder they became one of the most popular European spirit-filled hardcore bands. This show was no exception. A great performance with a lot of passion!
Afterwards we had an after party with some drum & bass from the UK with the DJs Bcee and Kubiks.
Saturday
From a distance we heard some of the short performance of Jesus was a Riot Grrrrl. It sounded really happy. Too bad we missed almost the entire set.
Next we saw some songs from the hardcore band Visions. After half of their set we left. Their music wasn’t really interesting in my opinion and we went to see Kim Janssen a singer-songwriter from the Netherlands. He started a bit late because of some technical issues. But it was a fun performance overall although I like his songs better in a smaller environment.
Next a band from a unusual place namely Brazil. I talk about Antidemon. It wasn’t very busy when they started but further in the set more people came. They played their grinding Death Metal pretty tight. The translated talks between the songs where sometimes pretty long. This took the momentum and speed out of their set. They played songs from different records and the songs sounded really heavy. Overall it was a nice performance.
Aliens Ate My Setlist was next. A band that is pretty popular mostly with the younger audience. The audience was pretty enthusiastic and the band was playing with a lot of energy. But for me it was the third time I saw them and I can’t get rid of the feeling it’s all been done before in a better way. But for the people who love this kind of music it was fun I guess and overall it was a decent performance.
Not a many people showed up for the Death metal from Sacrificium. The show felt kind of like a try-out for new material from their new album Prey for your gods. A lot of new songs were played and they sounded really great. Some songs could be played a little bit tighter. But overall it was really a heavy and fast show. I am looking forward to see them again.
One of the bands I was most looking forward to Betraying the Martyrs was next. I was eager to see how they would do. On cd the music can be a bit overwhelming because a lot of happens at the same time. And I must say it really works out live. The sound was good and the band was playing high energy. The music was heavy, the room was filled with people and the pit was pretty big. Overall it was a great performance.
The Death&roll from the Finnish Deuteronomium was next. Again it wasn’t very busy (maybe it was already too late or because it wasn’t printed on the time-table). It was a fun show singer Miika always looks really happy on stage. The singer from Sacrificium Claudio was filling in on bass guitar and did a great job filling in. The band played songs from their newest album and more from their 20 yearlong band career.
We ended the festival with an after party with Snoeiharde Shit. The end of again a great festival with nice people, some great seminars and a line-up with some great bands. Thanks again for the great festival see you the next edition!
Weblinks:
Freakstock
Jesus Freaks
More pictures can be found here:
Wednesday/Thursday
Friday
Saturday