For the 29th time nearly 10.000 fans of the more extreme metal genres gathered at the airport Obermehler near Schlotheim in Thuringia to enjoy - with only a handful of exceptions - mostly variants of Death, Black and Thrash Metal peacefully together while having fun and in-depth discussions about the bands. As you can find a more detailed description of the area in the articles from the last two years, this year’s focus will be more on the tight programme and the most important thing, the bands.
On the first of July, the time has come, I'm getting ready for the third festival in a row without an interruption. It means leaving Rock & Metal Day'z area for Ballenstedt after breakfast to attend the Rockharz Festival. This time, the journey there and back should be more relaxed and without major traffic jams and criss-crossing than in previous years. For the first time, different routes have been specified that lead to the various campgrounds.
Festival season has just begun, what we can see on the horizon looks promising. We will see mainstream festivals, small festivals, large festivals and extreme festivals. Party.San in Schlotheim is one of these extreme metal festivals. Party.San has around 10,000 spectators and presents a very interesting line-up, as you can see. Along with the audience and the great line-up comes a selection of merchandise, food and drink stalls that prioritises quality over quantity.
The festival season of 2025 has already begun, with the calendar filling up with events each weekend. I have three festivals scheduled in a row, so it is no different for me:
First is Ulmich om Braand, located between Frankfurt and Fulda on the 20th and 21st of June. From there I will be heading to Rock & Metal Day’z at Oschersleben near Magdeburg, just 50 km away from my last festival on this tour. The festival runs from the 26th to the 28th of June, but I am part of the crew, so I will be there to help with setting up and taking down the festival during the week before and after. Finally, I will be heading to the Rockharz Festival in Ballenstedt from 2nd to 5th July.