I first took notice of Ripple Fest when I became a new Ripple writer. You could certainly say I was stoked to hear about Todd and his wife coming to Stockholmto be a part of the first Swedish Ripple Music Fest.
Three high class bands were going to enter
the stage of Copperfields. King Nomad the occult rocking, warm-fuzzed band with
it’s70’s inspired Uncle Acid
remembering record ”Mapping The Inner Void” released this year. Craneium, the
best Finnish Stoner Rock band, probably one of the best Scandinavian also.
Lastbut not least, probably one of the
best bands in my opinion right now, Vokonis. The bands latest release ”The
Sunken Djinn” has bewitched me and will place at the top of my doom/sludge chart at the
end of the year.
The weatherof the evening was pretty bad but me and some friends were hanging at another bar close to Copperfields. The rain was pouring outside the window butI couldn’t care less. After all it was the perfect doom-weather! The only thing missing was some thunder and lightning, but that came later when the bands got onto the stage. More on that later
As always it’s nice to hook up with some old friends to talk about the good music. Some friends were at the Sisters Of Mercy gigbefore they arrived at Copperfields. I had a really nice chat with them. Thanks boys!
The event was about to start when we arrived soaking wet around 10
PM. One of the bandmembers of Craneium bid us
welcome. A nice gesture and it was only the beginning of a very good evening.
The whole event was like a homecoming party for me and many well known faceslike Magnus from Into The Void Podcast, all the bands playing, and the many people from other bands also there. I took the opportunity to say hello to Todd but he was a busy man the whole evening so I didn’t speak that much with him. Maybe next year?
Some new people showedup andsaid hello and I enjoyed it a lot.
I missed a huge part of King Nomads performance. The part I heard I thought was good but nothing exceptional. I didn’t thinkthe heartbeat of the record, which I think is awesome, came out the way I wanted it to be live. But hey, that's only my humble opinion.Though I didn’t like it as much as I could have I’m thinking of seeing them perform again.
Next up Craneium delivered a super-mega
wonderful set. Wow! This was fricking good. Well played songs with nice
song structures, filled with some nice grooves and a brilliant vocal-handling. In
my opinion a delightful musical meal and a band that shows the good taste of Ripple Music. The highlight of the concert was when Mother Kasabian's
vocalist got onto the stage to help perform Ceasing To Exist. This song could be the national stoner
rock anthem of the year. Absolutely wonderful!
When Vokonis entered the stage well past midnight I was both excited and nervous at the same time. Would the live performance match the record? And what if it did not? All my worries were blown away as the band started to play. This is how music is supposed to be. Amazing vocals, excellent drumming and a fantastic bass player with an intensive way of playing who I admire very much. The riffs are like a thunderous storm, sometimes hammering down your ear canal and sometimes whispering. I rode a wave of emotion throughout the performance. This was one of the epic moments people are going to tell you about when Vokonis grows bigger. This band has the brightest future ahead of them and it’s so well-deserved! -Doomsdaysjesus
