09,10,11,12-08-2012 Open Flair Festival

Location: Eschwege (Germany)
By: Nina Mende

It’s the time of the year again for the best festival of the year to take place. Open Flair in Eschwege, the twenty-eighth of its kind. Four days, three stages, one hundred amazing bands. No wonder it was sold out way in advance.

Thursday, opening day at Seebühne. Camping locations more than crowded. First people have had too much alcohol already, but everyone is having a blast and that’s all that matters. The Hammocks were opening up. Followed by Benjrose. A singer-/songwriter that has been making music from a young age. Catchy tunes and absolutely friendly he and his band convinced the audience of their musical qualities. For about an hour the guys entertained the audience before it was time to clear the stage for the next great band.

P.O. Box is a punk band coming from the UK and tonight rocking the stage at Open Flair. Forty-five minutes to wake and shake the masses. And they did. Fast and thriving tunes turned the peaceful audience into a mosh. A great start for a festival and it would only get better.

Russkaja, a Russian ska band took over the stage and control of the audience. Making them do as they were told was definitely one of Russkaja’s strengths. Even though the band was singing in Russian, the audience moved along as if they understood each word. Even some of the talking the band did was in Russian. It so didn’t matter. The music was catchy and thriving. You had no choice but to move along and have a good time. Russkaja, music for the people. Fun band and a great show.

Emil Bulls kept the good mood coming. The guys from Bavaria showed the audience what good metal is supposed to sound like. Energetic and powerful as ever the guys rocked through their songs as if there was no tomorrow. Old and new songs, everyone could sing along to them. No one was standing still. What a great opening day. Last band of the night was KIZ before Open Flair called it a day. But there were still three more days to come.

Friday:
Another day full of great bands and people. Skindred for example. The UK band mixes reggae, metal, punk, hip hop and a few more genres. Even though it was still early many people had gathered to see Skindred perform. Skindred is always amazing to see live as their music is absolutely thriving and the guys are fun. A must see whenever you have the chance to.

A German metal band was also taking over main stage a little later. Heaven Shall Burn was shaking the audience awake. Pushing through their performance Heaven Shall Burn dragged them all along. No one was supposed to stand still during their performance. Powerful, energetic and loud. Heaven Shall Burn rocked Open Flair big time.

On it went with the German punk rock band Betontod. Reminding of old Toten Hosen they have a rough style. But the fans are loving it. German lyrics about life itself with all the shit happening out there, every one can relate to. The music animates you to rock along and forget how much life can kick ones ass at times. A thriving and energetic performance of the guys. Wonderful and so authentic.

Madsen, Germany’s most emotional rock band. Four guys with danceable music about love and life. The audience was full of girls in the first couple rows. Everyone moving along to the indie music of the guys. And singing along. It seemed as if the audience knew each and every single word of Madsen. Impressive, to say the least. Madsen is not a rock band that kicks ass, but an indie rock band that heals a broken heart.

Time for some fun: Finland’s Leningrad Cowboys were up now. Dressed in the usual outfits with the uniforms, the hair and the shoes, with the drumming tractor, and the two female dancers Leningrad Cowboys are complete and ready to entertain the masses. And so they did. Singing all the hits, animating the audience to dance and sing along, Leningrad Cowboys knew what to do and how to do it. An hour performance. Infecting the audience with a good mood. Leningrad Cowboys, always fun to see!

The live comeback of the year: Bush. It has been a while since Bush had been a name to people. Since then it seemed as if grunge had died and the bands of this era were forgotten. Only a few remember the days and the bands. It was interesting to watch the audience. The difference between simple curiosity because they don’t know anything about Bush and the ones who where excited to see Bush again. It’s been ages since I saw the last video of Bush on MTV. And now they were back. And performed on this huge stage. Four guys playing old and new songs. And Gavin, singing, playing guitar and performing. A lot to do. But he wasn’t out of shape. Unfortunately they suffered severe technical difficulties, sound-wise. You could not hear Gavin sing. Only see him jumping around. Which looked quite funny. Halfway through the show the sound was back and it sounded – and looked – just the way it should What a great comeback.

Saturday:
A new day full of artist. Beginning with the German newcomer band The Jerks. Well, not really a newcomer band but you will surely hear of them a whole lot more in the near future. The Jerks play wonderful indie rock music somewhere between Anberlin and White Lies. Even though it was still early, quite some people gathered to see The Jerks. The guys played a wonderful show and I am looking forward to hear more about them soon.

A little more punk in the morning was coming from Radio Havanna. The German boys have gotten a lot more confident on stage since last year. Their live performance was really good, their songs catchy and their ability to get the audience along was brilliant. It was great to see how they have improved so much in such a short time. Wow. They have still ways to go.

A little fun for the day was brought to us by the American freaks of Zebrahead. They knew how to entertain the masses and make them do whatever they want. Whether it was moshing, wall of death, taking of the shirts or shouting “Muschi”. Zebrahead, like little boys on the big stage seeing the audience as toys and play with them. Hilarious but brilliant. They played old and new songs to which the audience could sing along.

Down at Seebühne electro music was drawing the people from the camping places in to the area: Captain Capa. A German duo that simply took melodies of hits and sang or rapped to them. The kids loved it and danced to the music. Definitely a fun act.

The Brew from England was a family band, father and son plus a drummer. They played old school rock from the 70s and 80s. You could see that the father was the main influence for the style as he was also the one enjoying playing this style the most of the three. The audience was split. Some liked it, some didn’t.

Hamburg’s rock piece 4Lyn was back in town. Thank God. I was already missing them. New album, new show but still rocking like no other they entertained the masses and made them move their butts. Energetic and passionate the four guys performed on stage. Can’t wait for the club shows they will be playing this fall. Also make sure to get their new album.

My personal highlight of the festival was playing today at the main stage of the festival: Beatsteaks! The band from Berlin had a huge “TV” – as the singer Arnim called it – as backdrop. A video wall where they played videos or funky effects. Two drummers on stage and tons of people standing in front of the stage ready to see the best show of the festival. Beatsteaks played old and new songs, most of them they had changed a bit to fit into the whole picture of their performance. Always up for a joke the guys are a pleasure to see live. I personally could see them over and over without getting tired of them. Every one was dancing and singing along, with a smile on their faces. That’s how it should be. So amazing.

Sunday:
Another early morning with yet another wonderful band. Yellowcard from the US. A wonderful rock band with a violin. Catchy music that so sounds like sun, beach and a wonderful time. And so was their show. Tons of fun, sun and good vibes. Thriving music and quite some stories to tell the guys played their music as if they were born to do so. You could tell how passionate they were about it. They released their new album “Southern Air” shortly after the festival. But some fans knew the lyrics to those new songs they played already. Such a fun and positive band.

The Computers is a new band. Hard to describe their music. But they definitely catch your ear. Interesting electronic music with guitars, the vocals are not always sung. And the outfits are classic. An interesting band that will soon hit the road. So check them out and make up your own mind about these guys. I will not spoil the first impression.

Fun, crazy and catchy. The Wombats, an UK band that definitely has fun on stage and shares that with their audience. More mainstream pop and yet their music still includes a spark of strangeness. So they will not get boring throughout they show. And so no one was bored. People were dancing, singing along or just sitting there and watch the guys go on on stage. Interesting but definitely good.

Punk was back. The UK band Templeton Pek did not play at Open Flair for the first time. So it happened that they drew quite a lot of people to their performance. Energetic and thriving they went through their show. Not much talking, more singing and music. And the people seemed to like that strategy.

Another surprise return was Boysetsfire. The US band dismembered a few years back with no one really expecting them to reunite. And here they were. Back together and ready to rock. A dream come true for all fans. Definitely. They went on stage as if they had never split. Playing their songs and the people going along this was a wonderful live performance of Boysetsfire. What an amazing Open Flair. Can’t wait for next year’s.

Links:
Open Flair Official