Time to make the trip across the water for the first ‘ summer ’ festival of 2017 . Late April is always a sketchy time weather-wise , but nonetheless , every year , the festival season kicks off in a small Belgian village . Groezrock brings together people from all over Europe with a collective love for Punk , Hardcore and Metal . Anything with heavy guitars basically . Last year ’ s event was plagued with cold weather , a bit of rain and a whole load of April nastiness , however this year was completely different . Beaming sunshine , ice cold beer and good times were had by all .
Saturday begun with a trek to the Monster main stage , to catch Canadian punk rockers The Flatliners . Flawlessly pulling out tracks from their new record Inviting Light , The Flatliners translate fantastically to the huge main stage of Groezrock .
Next up is global tech-metal collective Skyharbor . Rather an odd billing for the Back to Basics stage , as this is usually the home of hardcore for the festival . A huge amount of technical issues relating to click tracks , Skyharbor look nervous , and their usual ambience is coming across as awkwardness . It only takes two or three songs for the band to look comfortable again , and by the end of the set , singer Eric Emery puts out an elegant performance .
Black metallers Oathbreaker hit the Back to Basics stage . This is somewhat of a local show for them , and it ’ s safe to say it was an honour to experience . The tent was packed wall to wall and with recent release Rheia making many album of the year lists , we were keen to see what all the hype was about . Oathbreaker were haunting , explosive , crushing , and every ounce of Rheia ’ s pain is encapsulated live . We were left feeling uneasy and fragile but wholly satisfied .
Again at the Back to Basics stage , Brutality Will Prevail are back on the scene . They ’ ve taken a bit of time out since their last record Suspension of Consciousness in 2014 , which didn ’ t really hit the spot with us . This often happens when introducing a new singer to an established band .
Unfortunately , everything we struggled with on Suspension of Consciousness is present in their current live set . Even older songs off Scatter the Ashes sound tired and underpowered .
Brutality Will Prevail were certainly put into their place by hardcore veterans Cro-Mags . From the drop of the first power chord , the tent was alive with cartwheels , spin kicks and stage dives . It ’ s wonderful to see such power and energy from an aging band , and there ’ s literally no stopping these guys , we will probably see them again many times in the forthcoming years .
Politically motivated hardcore crew Wolf Down are next up on the tiny Watch Out stage . With the removal of the Impericon Stage this year , there are some casualties in the downwards shift that Groezrock have been forced into , and it seems that Wolf Down are one of these . Nevertheless , Wolf Down put on one hell of a show . The stage may be small , but with the audience stretching out into the vast open space , its obvious that Wolf Down are ticking a few boxes for people . If you ’ re into hardcore and haven ’ t checked these guys out , then don ’ t sleep on it .
Now for Saturday ’ s headliners Deftones . Currently out on their european tour promoting their album Gore , Deftones tear through a surprisingly varied set , drawing from each and every album in their 8 album back catalogue . All of the expected staples are there , Back to School , Rocket Skates , My Own Summer , but then deep cutslike Headup and Minus Blindfold keep the set fresh and unexpected .
Special attention needs to be taken to the amount of energy created by an aging band . After decades of being a band , they are now ( arguably ) putting their best live shows of their career .
A whole load of partying and a cold night in a tent later , the dawn breaks on the second day of Groezrock .
First up is Arcane Roots . This British alt / tech rock collective have had a buzz about them
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