Surviving Mayhem

Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival continues to fill the void that Ozzfest left by bringing heavy music acts across the country for a summer tour. The 2012 lineup in the OKC stop boasted a bit of the old, a bit of the new, and a lot of awesome. Slipknot, Slayer, Anthrax, Motorhead, and As I Lay Dying rocked the main stage this year in what turned out to be a “hot” show in several ways.

You know I wouldn’t miss it…so with my trusty cohort, Dr. Drewcifer, and media equipment in tow, we made the trek down I-44 to Oklahoma City’s Zoo Amphitheater; a fitting venue since most of us “Metalhead’s” are often referred to as animals. Water bottles and camera equipment in hand, Drew and I scored huge with a chance to see an awesome show, take some great pics and get a couple of killer interviews with members of Whitechapel and As I Lay Dying (check for the videos on my YouTube channel).

We knew the show was going to be good, but it turned out to be even better than expected. Slayer put on a show that I will literally never forget; yes, it was that phenomenal. As I Lay Dying and Anthrax both killed it. Slipknot put on the stage show that everyone was expecting; it was loud, lots of lights, fire, and tons of movement. I must admit, Slipknot was even better than the first time I saw them. The only semi-letdown was Motorhead. They were less active and exciting to watch live than expected, but hey, they’re pretty “up there” in age.

The only real downside to the day was the heat. It was hot; REALLY HOT; I mean fry-an-egg-on-your-head-ouch-my-skin-is-on-fire-hot; melt your face both figuratively and literally HOT!!! Attempts to apply sunscreen proved futile as it was sweated off in minutes. It was as true an endurance test that literally took two days to recover from. Of course, it was worth every minute of it.

Overall, we had a great time… got to see some killer performances, spoke with some true metal musicians, and lived to tell about it!!!