How Wacken became a metal mecca

[@theknowerandtheknown]

Metal fans are probably the most peaceful and tolerant of them all. Its all love

[@koensuykerbuyk7063]

It's kindda sad as a dude from the Eindhoven, Netherlands region. If the local government was more open minded Dynamo Open Air could have been there as we speak. They then P.V.D.A. major of Eindhoven hated metal. The locals loved it. They tore down the old Dynamo building. The same folks made sure that Dynamo Open Air had no place to go. And Wacken was free to jump in the void. Good for them! If only......oh well. Wacken is cool.

[@DWHistoryandCulture]

Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us and our community.

[@murielbaroni2669]

I went to D.O.A in 99. An epic edition !

[@sharoncleopatra3174]

Same, was at D.O.A 99... Good Times.,,

[@KeremcanBuyuktaskin]

I always wondered what happened to Dynamo, along with Monsters of Rock it was THE metal festival when I was a teenager.

[@andreidoanca4262]

it's a shame what happened to Dynamo Open Air. It used to be the biggest metal festival at a time when Wacken wasn't even making money. I've wondered why did they stopped organising it. Didn't know it was PvdA who put and end to it. Jammer

[@ejl1000]

I made my first visit from England this year and I can say without a doubt it is the greatest festival I have ever been to. Watching this video brought tears to my eyes. I would sell everything I own to go there again.

[@DWHistoryandCulture]

Wow, that is dedication!

[@Vinylrebel72]

Metal fans, were the best fans….we love everyone!

[@dorientjewoller113]

Never went to Wacken, but to the 2 biggest Goth/New Wave festivals of the world in Germany: Wave Gothic Treffen in Leipzig and M'Era Luna in Hildesheim. And I have to agree, German locals tend to embrace festivals and the festivalgoers. I rather go to German festivals than to any other festival in Belgium. It's more relaxed, well organized and safer.

[@DWHistoryandCulture]

Thank you very much for sharing your personal experience with us. Sending you all the best

[@MaxPower2004]

Love your videos about Wacken, great quality as always! ❤

[@DWHistoryandCulture]

Thanks for your feedback! :) Are you going to Wacken this year?

[@MaxPower2004]

Unfortunately not but your videos are a good compensation 😅

[@Suruj-lf2bg]

I am from a very poor part of india and I want to attend WOA one day. One day surely.

[@DWHistoryandCulture]

We keep our fingers crossed that it will happen one day for you.

[@patriciaurzua5255]

Si quieres, puedes...!, ahorra dinero sagradamente , no gastes en cosas sin sentido, inútiles..., te lo digo porque lo he hecho, y créeme que resulta, una vez que llegas por primera vez a la tierra sagrada (he ido cuatro veces), querrás ir todos los años, es adictivo...!, saludos desde Chile...🤘

[@Vangienator]

Wacken has changed quite a bit. I first got to know it in 2004, when it was still affordable and reasonably sized. It's grown out of proportion and I think it has become more about money than about the music. Fun story though: In 2007, I met Uwe Trede and we were even on TV together. I let him drink my beer and he invited me in order to repay me. I spent a whole evening with the locals in the beer garden and had a great time. Uwe was really nice to me and gladly paid his debt and some more. Happier times...

[@DWHistoryandCulture]

Thanks for sharing your story with us. It's true that festivals tend to change as they grow.

[@Saiwanngo]

can't wait Wednesday I'll be there too

[@DWHistoryandCulture]

Who are you looking forward to seeing play the most?

[@Saiwanngo]

​@@DWHistoryandCulturethat's a tough question there are a lot of good bands this year but iron maiden, halloween, and doro the most. But there are a few more I don't want to miss

[@METALHEAD550]

@@Saiwanngo Iron Maiden, never disappoints one live! \m/

[@ImionLordred]

I realy enjoyed your clip. Been there many times and it is true that the commercial side has more and more taken over. But you can still feel this special Wacken feeling when you are there, when you walk through the village and when see all these people. It realy adjusts my attitude towards people each year and makes it better. I realy hope that this special Connection between fans, promoter and village will never end completely though the bond got thinner over the last decade - at least it felt like that. So hopefully this Special spirit which is real and makes it such a special experience will be preserved 🤘

[@DWHistoryandCulture]

Thank your for sharing your thoughts with us! Wacken truly is a special experience.

[@davidfitcher2953]

We're the biggest family in the world, indeed.

[@mikelthemechanic9025]

Asking about other Festivals with a kind of the same feel I would propose the "Rockharz-Festival" and the Roadburn in Tillburg both great stuff

[@DWHistoryandCulture]

Thanks for sharing!

[@skaistusia]

Czechia also have good metal festivals like Masters of rock or Metalfest. Of course Wacken is king of metal festivals, but orders Europe countries also have many good metal festivals to offer. As Lithuanian we also have small but good festival "Kilkim Žaibu" you will surprise what Sepultura , Korpiklaani, Hellhammer, Amon Amarth have played in "Kilkim Žaibu"

[@DWHistoryandCulture]

Thanks for watching and your recommendations. They are definitely worth taking a closer look at.

[@Metalton95]

Or better yet, Brutal Assault near Jaromer :)

[@rogmorts1]

A festival ypu might find interesting which is often referred to as the friendliest festival going is M'era Luna Festival in Hildesheim Germany. It is a Goth Alternative festival where everyone is welcome and the music and people cover all genres in the Alternative music community. Wacken, is on my bucket list, I'll get there one day.

[@DWHistoryandCulture]

Thank you for the suggestion! We'll make sure to check it out.

[@dorientjewoller113]

Just mentioned M'Era Luna too, without reading your comment.

[@billcastle1987]

Awesome, I'm sharing this to my Facebook feed.

[@DWHistoryandCulture]

Thanks a lot for watching and for sharing. We are glad you like our content!

[@PeterOsterbart-fq3qn]

Nice summary of the whole marvelous thing. Everything is said. 🤘😃 Of course there are a very few people (which tend to write a lot of comments) who don't like Wacken, but it doesn't matter, everybody is different in the end and there are even a lot of people who don't like Heavy Metal at all. 🤷‍♂️

[@Karasaph]

Wacken ground still gets muddy. It's the consistency of wet concrete. At least that was my experience in 2023. But that doesn't really matter once the music starts.

[@Garondahl]

Well done.

[@sobolanul82]

Been there and it was epic even if it was a rainy muddy one \m/

[@adrienpiette6746]

🤘🏻

[@jamesw4895]

Donnington 1980 started it all for metal festival.

[@rittimatte25]

As a Holsteiner from wackens neighboring village, I'm sorry to say that the woa is good at one thing above all: marketing itself. Because holding your open air at a place where it rains most of the time, the ground is full of layers of cow dung, and there is always a very very stiff breeze coming off is not the best idea. Rather go to the hellfest in France: there the lineup is similarly good, the prices a bit cheaper but the weather always great!

[@DWHistoryandCulture]

Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us and our community.

[@marcuswacken8178]

Das hilft alles nix Peter. Wir kommen trotzdem wieder😘 Jedes Jahr! Full of Love and happiness🥰

[@rittimatte25]

:-) @@marcuswacken8178 (ich doch auch)

[@TrIs1493]

As if Hellfest doesn't have a well oiled marketing department. I mean: the entrance looks like you're entering the Efteling 👀 You really think that's not part of their marketing? Atleast Wacken does effords to support the metal scene 🤔

[@Abdul-RehmanMalik-om7vt]

Intro song name please

[@eugenetkachev]

Fun fact - over 30.000 people with ticket were not allowed to attend this year, although many came from overseas. The terrain destroyed by decades of metalhead hordes could not handle the usual heavy rains of northern Germany and the roads became impossible to go through. And this will happen again and again. Overhyped, overpriced and over-commercialised event, relying on the weak lineup of same ancient bands every year, Wacken is far from the best metal fests in Europe.

[@DWHistoryandCulture]

Thank you for sharing your opinion. We're always grateful for comments that move the discussion along.

[@koensuykerbuyk7063]

Ja dat was Rein Welschen. Die zag niks in het potentieel. Hij zei; Eindhoven zit niet op zo iets te wachten. Legt een te grote druk op de politie. Lang leve de kortzichtigheid.

[@colinleat8309]

🤘😁🤘🇨🇦

[@alaaaldafrawy6837]

❤❤ greetings from Cairo Egypt ❤❤ I prefer symphonic metal

[@js70371]

🤘🔥🇨🇦🔥🤘🍻

[@robertsjostrom7212]

Almost as nice as Sweden Rock Festival.

[@DWHistoryandCulture]

😉

[@Kammoflars]

SRF suck in comparison on every level, even more so owned by Livenation.

[@bobbithbrown]

my biggest takeaway from this is that a neo-nazi band helped get Wacken back on track

[@ObeySilence]

So?

[@mht525]

One under black flag 🏴✌️🤘☠️🇦🇺

[@MAHAMADAMAHAMADA-wb2ep]

THRASHING MECCA

[@METALHEAD550]

Meanwhile her in America, its all about Rap or mainstream shit.

[@METALHEAD550]

I meant here.

[@isuckatguitar6252]

You do have 70,000 tons of Metal cruise though!

[@michaelschmidt9708]

Been a metal head for decades but have absolutely no desire to attend Wacken. Total overkill event. Having said that: Enjoy y'all!

[@beheritser]

Once you experience the festival you will understand (no matter the line up)

[@ChristophS]

@@beheritser Yep. I was there in 2018 and 2019. Incredible experience

[@beheritser]

@@ChristophS I was at the 2019 edition too, the last pre pandemic festival 🤘

[@JamesSmith-oi4is]

You better Hellfest: there is no mud, and atmosphere far far better than on wacken

[@beheritser]

@@JamesSmith-oi4is I remember checking the 2008 line up I think and I was really impressed by it because all of the extreme metal bands Hellfest had billed but this year I saw pop artists and other stuff which make me wonder if I would enjoy it, Obscene Extreme I was told it's really crazy good

[@fingerdreck2328]

Hellfest is better!

[@Snork086]

the worst thing about musik is its fans

[@juanpabloabondanosantos5473]

Metal Rules🤘

[@JamesSmith-oi4is]

I visited a lot of festivals, and actually wacken is the worst festival in Europe I ever visited: conditions and lineups on other big festivals like Graspop, Hellfest, Sweden Rock and others far better than on wacken. Wacken has problems with the dirt everywhere for many years, and promoters do nothing with it. wacken is just overvalued brand, and that’s it. There is no special “atmosphere” but just stinky swamp everywhere on wacken under you boots. If you like to drown in mud you should come to wacken (or to russia), otherwise better not visit this stinky swamp

[@DWHistoryandCulture]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts and experiences.

[@gaymohammed3137]

Sounds like you're a little princess lol. Or as we Germans say, du bist doch nicht aus Zucker!

[@Schulzffw]

@@gaymohammed3137 scheinbar schon, das kleine Püppchen.

[@BanjoSick]

Man how cynical can one get. Not with the direction of the festival either, but there is a special atmosphere that you get nowhere else, a feeling of home and relation. Those other events (Graspop, Hellfest, Sweden Rock) don't offer that for me.