Heavy Metal Heaven

Ozzfest was incredible. I arrived at 9 AM, and received a wristband entitling me to hang out in an exclusive mosh pit right in front of the stage. I’m just darn lucky that headbangers aren’t early birds, because only the first 1,000 rockers were honored with the wristband. With the 90-degree sun roasting my black T-shirt and my hair sticky with sunscreen, I stood in the front of the mosh pit, gazing at the members of the band Unearth. This was my second time watching Unearth. I saw them open for Slipknot last fall, and being in the dark cavern of Roy Wilkins auditorium in St. Paul was a bit different than the bright July sun of East Troy, Wisconsin. So many times I’ve tried to get to an outside concert, but for years work and school constraints prevented it. This summer I got to see Alice Cooper outdoors and a ton of awesome bands at Ozzfest. I finally lived a dream.
Unearth was brutal and incredible. They are just a bunch of nice guys from Boston, who thanked us for attending their concert. Their music is incredibly heavy.
After the Unearth stint, I chilled out at the Monster energy drink VIP lounge. Unbelievably, this company markets a drink without sugar. I’ve tried a couple of energy drinks in the past, and there was so much sugar in them I felt they were probably not a healthy choice. But the Monster drink hit the spot.
After guzzling several Monster drinks and slurping up as much water from the water fountain as I could hold, it was time to venture back into the pit to see Zakk Wylde and Ozzy. I shoved and elbowed my way through the throngs to get to the special VIP entrance gate. A security guard saw me struggling and grabbed my arm to pull me through. I have to say that the staff at Alpine Valley is incredible. From the helpful security guy, to the dozens of parking lot attendants, I felt taken care of from the time I arrived until I pulled out into the darkness to leave the empty lot behind.
As I stood in the enclosed pit, hordes of angry metalheads outside the fence began chanting, “This bullshoot, this is bullshoot.” Well, they used a little different wording, but you get the picture. Luckily, I was standing around three dads with their small sons and daughters on their shoulders, so I was well protected as the mob began storming the fence. Of course, all of the people with young children were amongst the first to arrive, so they made up the bulk of the VIP crowd. Ozzy played early, at 4 PM, giving people with youngsters the chance to get them home well before bedtime.
Zakk Wylde is a pretty cool guy. The logo for his band, Black Label Society, is a complex montage of everything that is cool. Revolvers, skulls, pit bulls, motorcycles, an ace of spades, a bottle of Jack Daniels, you name it, it’s in there. The highlight of the performance was Zakk Wylde’s guitar solo played with his tongue and nose. He must really practice that a lot at home. It was akin to a circus act, but a hell of a lot cooler than Cirque du Soleil.
Zakk finished up, and people began chanting “Ozzy! Ozzy!” A sea of upraised fists surrounded me. Then there he was, sauntering onto the stage in a pair of baggy jeans and a black button-down shirt.
Seeing Ozzy, up front in the special pit, was beyond description. The guys next to me with their little ones were singing along and their kids were pumping their fists just like the big people. That was a big part of what made this so incredible, seeing the next generation introduced to Ozzy.
About midway through the performance, the sky began to darken. Pewter-colored clouds roiled above us. As Ozzy sang the poignant ballad, “Mama, I’m Coming Home”, the sky opened and drenched everyone with a chilly downpour. Yet no one left the pit. All eyes were riveted on Ozzy, and when he sang the line, “I don’t care about the sunshine or the rain”, the crowd cheered. At the end of the show, a damp Ozzy bowed and thanked us all for coming, and said “God bless you all.” This benediction from “the price of darkness” is ironic and truly moving.
As we slowly filtered towards the main arena stage for the headlining acts, I realized my stomach was rumbling. It was time for some beer and pizza. In Wisconsin, (or ‘Sconny as I affectionately refer to it), they don’t mess around with beer. There were dozens of beer stands, all selling real beer, like Leinie’s and Steven’s Point. Of course, there were brat stands, featuring several flavors of brats, each named after a Wisconsin region. I ordered a cheese pizza and a beer, and settled down in my reserved center seat, only 25 rows from the stage.
I settled down during the middle of Lacuna Coil’s performance. Their music is precise, and features chilly, beautiful vocals from their lead singer, accompanied by taut outbursts of heavy drumming and roaring guitars. They are from Milan. Imagine, traveling all the way from Italy, to the land of beer, brats and cheddar, just to play to a giant, crazy group of headbangers. The arena at Alpine Valley is built into a natural steep valley, and the green mountains left behind by the edge of receding glaciers, tower behind the stage. How wonderful to listen to this beautiful, haunting music, as the sun turned golden between the green far-away mountain peaks.
The next band was Disturbed. I’ve wanted to see them on stage for a long time. I deeply admire their choice of clothing. They always wear black shirts and black jeans. I once confessed to a friend of mine that I wished I could wear a black T-shirt and jeans every single day. He admitted he wished the same thing, and the only reason he didn’t is because the people at work might think it was weird. I have to agree. It seems all the other girls at work have an enormous variety of cute tops and fashionable slacks. They even have different pairs of shoes to match different slacks. (Other than my brown shoes I bought at ShopKo last summer, I mainly wear the same pair of black Mary Janes every day to work. I just don’t have the energy to tackle shoe shopping for no reason.)
Disturbed’s lead singer is a very sexy bald man. Of course, he strutted onto stage in his signature look, and belted out the heaviest harmonies of the night. Disturbed was exactly on cue. As the drummer slammed his sticks, thwack, the lead singer jumped atop a speaker stand. Movingly, they dedicated a song to remembering soldiers currently serving overseas. At one point during the show, I turned around, and as far as I could see were metalheads, an ocean of pumping fists and waving hair. The sheer magnitude of the crowd seemed dizzying.
Later, the Disturbed singer introduced a song written about child abuse, and he exhorted the crowd to report any suspicion of abuse. Metalheads might be tough, but we’re not heartless. I was touched when the members of Disturbed thanked the crowd.
System of the Down played next. Their set was a little wild, and rough. After their performance, the crowds moved towards the parking lot, the whistling and fist pumping subdued. Many people were still cheering randomly, and as we exited the gate, the security guard wished us a good night and asked us to come back soon. I hope I will be able to. I spent one day in heavy metal heaven, and I wonder if fate will align to allow me another.