< PreviousBy Andrea Leim 019, 2020, 2022, 2023, Full Metal Cruise – the festival wristbands on Luke Grolmes’ arm leave no doubt that the 33–year–old has been not only a metal fan but also a true W:O:A fan for many years. This summer he will celebrate on the Holy Ground for the ninth time, with great bands and certainly some beers. Interesting enough, he helped to check that the beer is just as good as the music, since Grolmes works in quality assurance at the Krombacher brewery, a W:O:A partner since 2022. Luke is prac- tically the sheriff of our favorite hop drops. And who better to en- trust with the control of the fes- tival beer than a true metalhead? “When I was five years old, my dad introduced me to Ju- das Priest for the first time,” says Luke Grolmes, “We later went on with Iron Maiden, In Flames and many others. I’ve been a metal fan for ages.” Not quite as long but still for a third of his life, the metalhead living in Krombach has been working at the Krom- bacher brewery: “I’ve been with the company for eleven years. I spent the first ten years in bot- tling, and for the past year, since Luke Grolmes has been a metal fan since childhood. Today he works in quality assurance at the Krombacher brewery and is going to attend the Wacken Open Air for the ninth time this year after completing an important assignment … The Beer Sheriff His wrist proves it: metalhead Luke Grolmes is a big W:O:A fan! He also works in quality assurance at Krombacher brewery, the Wacken Open Air partner since 2022Festival boss Holger Hübner travelled to Kreuztal (which Krombach is a part of) for the start of the bottling of the Wacken special edition and took a look at the new can design Luke was happy to meet Holger Hübner in personI finished my master’s train- ing, I’ve been in microbiology.” There, Luke examines samples taken directly from production, ensuring that the beer meets all quality standards and tastes great. One could say: The sheriff ensures that Krombacher Pils is perfectly suited for one of the world’s largest metal festivals. It takes about four weeks to brew Krombacher Pils, ex- plains Grolmes’ colleague, brewmaster Fabian Aßmann. It all begins with the raw materi- als like water, hops, malt and yeast coming together in the brew- house and being cooked for eight to nine hours. “After that it goes into fermentation for a week,”- says Aßmann, “and then about three weeks into storage. Finally, everything is filtered, which only takes a few more hours.” Then the beer can be bottled. This was exactly what hap- pened at the end of April, al- though under slightly differ- ent conditions than usual at the traditional brewery: Heavy metal was booming from large speakers set up especially in the huge production hall. The cans also featured a unique design: Wacken skull and lettering adorn the black half–litre can for the 33rd edition of the festival. And already during bottling, these cans were being filled to the sounds of the Growling Crea- tures, the joint music project of Krombacher and W:O:A, where endangered animal species make their voices heard for spe- cies protection. Even Wacken co–founder Holger Hübner had traveled to Kreuztal (which Krombach is a part of) for this event and was able to see the new Wacken edition of the festival beer on site. And of course, there was time for a brief meeting with W:O:A fan Luke: “I was really happy to meet Holger Hübner,” he said afterward. After all, Hübner and his partner Thomas Jen- sen are responsible for the best vacation week of the year in Grolmes’ life. “The festival time is the first thing I put on my vacation calendar to make sure nothing goes wrong,” he reveals. Canned beer is not sold at Wacken Open Air itself, at least not mainly. The visitors manage to drink several hundred thou- sand liters of beer during the days on the Holy Ground. Not feasible with cans. “We can’t handle such quantities with normal keg beer either,” clari- fies brewmaster Aßmann. But thanks to the festival’s unique beer pipeline, which was first put into operation in 2017, and thanks to the more than 470 taps on and around the festival grounds, it is possible Electric Callboy played a DJ set at the Krombacher Stammtisch last year and clinked glasses with the guests The new 0.5–litre special edition from Krombacher for the 33rd Wacken Open Air Credits: Andrea Leim, Krombacher, W:O:Ato bring the large amounts of hop drink to the metal crowd. About 25,000 liters fit into one of the special beer trucks that head from Krombach to the far north. And even the seem- ingly large amounts of pilsner that the metalheads enjoy ev- ery year are actually a piece of cake for the German company. The brewery can produce about five million litres daily! So no fan has to go dry. “However, in 2022, our first year partnering with W:O:A, we actually had to deliver more beer on the first or second day of the festival,” Fabi- an Aßmann recalls. “We weren’t quite sure how many litres to deliver and wanted to start with caution. But we were able to re- act very quickly and ensured that no metal fan had to cele- brate in Wacken without beer,” the brewmaster says, laughing. His colleague Luke – like so many others – relies on this still valid promise. Last year, he went to W:O:A for the first time with his father only; he usually trav- els with a group of colleagues and friends. “We usually go with about ten to twelve peo- ple, including my best friend, whom I’ve known practically since birth,” Luke says. And every time Luke ar- rives at the Holy Ground, he feels a certain sense of home thanks to the many flags from his hometown. “I’m from the region and grew up with Krombacher. I think it’s really great that my employer cooperates so closely with my favorite festival. Before the W:O:A starts, I already experi- ence the bottling process and know that I will enjoy a good product at the festival. And honestly, I’m also proud that all the metalheads drink the beer that I help produce. That’s really cool!” Of course Luke was at the Stammtisch as well The Krombacher Stammtisch on the infield of the W:O:AStanding still? Won , t happen! Sebastian Bach is looking forward to finally be on stage at the W:O:A after a career spanning 35 years Sebastian Bach promises his biggest songs and “straight up fucking metal, hard rock” for his first show at W:O:Aby Andrea Leim e gave his voice to rock anthems such as “18 and Life”, “Slave to the Grind” and “Youth Gone Wild”. He was the first heavy metal singer on Broadway. And he has been a successful solo artist for many years: Sebastian Bach, the man who stormed on to the scene in 1989 with the multiplatinum debut by Skid Row. Now his new album „Child Within The Men“ has been re- leased, and this summer he will play at the Wacken Open Air for the first time. A long–awaited premiere, as the 56-year-old Ca- nadianborn singer reveals in the interview. Does being an artist mean staying a child in your heart and mind forever? Sebastian Bach: I don’t consciously try to do that. I think it’s the other way around where rock’n’roll does that to us. The feeling of rock’n’roll is why we all are willing to stand in the mud up to our knees to watch our favorite bands in the rain. If that didn’t make us feel like kids, we wouldn’t be doing it. It’s the whole spirit of music. Fans of the Wacken Open Air definitely know what you are talking about… Sebastian Bach: My whole career I’ve always wondered why I never played there, and now I’m finally playing at Wacken. I’m really excited about the show! You did uncountable live gigs with Skid Row and as a solo artist. You did Broadway and TV shows. Does playing in front of 85.000 metalheads still challenge you or even make you nervous? Sebastian Bach: Yeah, it does! There’s a saying: When you make a record, you’re playing for the audience. And when you’re doing a gig, the audience is playing you. That’s my challenge because sometimes I get so excited that I forget what the fuck I’m doing. But I think that’s also a good thing. In this day and age, real excitement, real energy, real fun is rare. And I will bring all of those things! You will be playing a “35th anniversary show”, since the Skid Row debut came out in 1989. Does that mean you will only play songs form the first record or from your last 35 years as an artist? Sebastian Bach: No, we’re not doing the first record in its entirety at Wacken. When we play at a festival, we do the biggest songs we can do. Wacken is just going to be straight up fucking metal! Hard rock, heavy metal, “Slave to the Grind” – that’s what the show is going to be. When you started your new album, what did you want it to sound like? Sebastian Bach: I am a very passionate vinyl record collector. My favorite records are from the 70s. I set the album out as a project to see if I could make a record in 2024 that felt like it came out in ’78. I know that’s impossible but I tried to make an album that I would like to have. Are you satisfied with the result? Sebastian Bach: My album feels totally different to music that comes out now. I can’t even think of any album that was released nowadays that I listen to because of the way the production and the mastering is. It’s so brickwalled and loud. I went out of my way to not do that. What did you do differently? Sebastian Bach: The producer, Michael ‘Elvis’ Baskette, who produces Wolfgang Van Halen, Slash, Alter Bridge and Myles Kennedy, recorded the album on an old Neve studio console from the year 1974, which Queen recorded on. Then it was mastered by Bob Ludwig, who has recently retired, but he mastered Led Zeppelin, He just knows how to strike a pose: Sebastian Bach at a show this June in DetroitJimi Hendrix, Steely Dan and the Eagles. It’s insane. This is the only album in the world that has the combination of Elvis Baskette and Bob Ludwig. Any vinyl collector knows that that’s something to collect right there. That’s why it has that sound. Those albums will last forever, and I don’t think that the same can be said about albums that come out now. Once again you chose art from your dad for the cover. Can you explain what the painting shows and what it means to you? Sebastian Bach: It’s very emotional for me to have that album cover because my dad passed away in 2002 at the age of 57. When he died, we all, his kids, inherited some of his artwork. I had a roll of his paintings in my storage that said “Paintings for Sebastian, Skid Row, Subhuman Race” because my dad did the cover of “Slave to the Grind”, “Subhuman Race” and “Angel Down”. When I took the painting out of my storage to make sure it’s okay, I unrolled it for the first time since the ’90s. Underneath the “Subhuman Race” painting was one that my dad had done of me in 1978 when I was 10, running in a field next to a beat–up old Cadillac. There I am as a kid. I had forgotten about this painting because I hadn’t seen it since ’79. It was the last painting my dad did of me before he divorced my mom and got remarried. So that painting got rolled up and put away. In the video for „Everybody Bleeds“ you recount your own experience with forces of nature… Sebastian Bach: We did the video in the style of the Maxell tape commercial from the 80ies (editor’s note: where a man sitting in armchair is listening to music that is so loud that it almost blows his hair off). I always wanted to be that dude, and I always thought I could look like him. But instead of listening to music, it’s me watching the news about me losing my house in a hurricane. That ist real footage of my house underwater. Wow. Insane… Sebastian Bach: I’m haunted by the question what this planet is going to be like in 50 years from now when my child is a man. How can that not haunt a parent? So when I lose my home in a hurricane, don’t fucking talk to me about climate change and say: “Oh, that’s just some bullshit.” Shut the fuck up! I lived in that house for 19 years, before I lost it in a hurricane. We then moved to California and got evacuated two years out of three fires. So when some idiot says that climate change is not real, I get extremely angry. How can anyone deny it? How can anybody look the other way? So that’s what that video is about. That’s what that song is about. And if that pisses off some people… Well, sometimes it’s good to piss off people! After all this time being a musician, what does touring and being on stage mean to you? Sebastian Bach: Well, that is a very, very, very tricky question. Probably the trickiest one… Obviously, in 1989, there were no cell phones, no cameras at the gig, there was no internet. We went on stage, we looked each other in the eye, put our hands and fists together and went crazy up there. But do you know what I tell myself today before I go on stage? Do not move up there! Just sing and stand there. I never succeed of course, but now with everybody posting everything, I don’t approach going on stage the same way I used to. Jump off a 30–foot–PA–stack? I’m not going to be doing that shit, while being filmed. In 1989, me and my buddies would go get a case of beer, get drunk and jam all night long because it was fun. There’s no such thing as jamming anymore. If I go to a wedding of my cousin, and I have a couple too many drinks, and then I get up there to do a Led Zeppelin song, it’s on the fucking internet the next day. So when you ask, if I still love going on stage: It’s not the same. It’s different... Nobody wants to wake up in the morning, turn on their phone and read: “You suck!” Nobody wants to read that. So there’s no jamming, there’s no going crazy. That’s really fucking sad if you ask me. You have artists like Myles Kennedy, Orianthi and John 5 on your new album. Are people that you work with friends? And how hard is it to keep a real friendship in the music business? Sebastian Bach: Everybody’s traveling all the time, so nobody’s around. This is my third record in a row with John 5 on it. He is a great friend and also a Kiss freak. You are, too, right? Sebastian Bach: Yeah. John owns everything of Kiss, but I own Genes Gargoyles from the year 1980 that he posed with in the pictures. Those are in my living room. John has tried to buy them from me. I almost did sell them once, but I couldn’t do it. I had to keep them. Our wives say that my and John’s love for Kiss is a sickness. Gene will be at Wacken, too. So maybe it’ll be a cool get-together for you guys. Sebastian Bach: Right on. I’m so honored to play Wacken. I can’t wait! Credits: Jim Louvau, Brandon Nagy Photography The cover is a collage of images drawn by Bach’s father, showing the singer during his time with Skid Row and as a ten–year–old boyCredits: Jim Louvau, Brandon Nagy PhotographyWacken’s travel partners make sure that countless fans get to the Holy Ground on time – and in a sustainable manner. Additionally, these companies are often a Metalhead’s last chance at W:O:A tickets … At home on the road: steering the Wackenbus: Holy Driver Jürg Beyerleby Victoria Schaffrath sually, he drives his passengers to business conferences or vacation des- tinations. Meaning: The seats in his bus are either taken by ties or board shorts. But once a year, Jürg Bayer’s vehicle turns fifty shades of black: For twelve years now, the level–headed nav- igator has been driving heavy metal fans from Switzerland to Schleswig–Holstein. A trip as cheerful as they come, Jürg re- ports: “The vibes are always really good, they’re all decent people!” Up to 78 metalheads can fit into his bus, their luggage stowed away in a sizeable trailer, their favorite music already queued up into a cus- tom playlist: “We get a mix of all age groups in our buses, and everyone can add to the play- lists. That really ramps up the anticipation,” Wackenbus CEO Robert Skiba tells us. His com- pany Rockfahrzentrale is a true passion project, fueled by fans for fans. It all started in 2008 when Robert had the idea to or- ganize a shared bus for Wacken fans traveling from the Rhine region. “The following year, we had to add another bus, and by 2014, we had a fleet of 17 bus- es heading to the Holy Ground from Germany, Austria, Swit- zerland and Benelux. All of our tour guides are fans themselves and couldn’t be kept away from the shows if we tried,” he assures us. Driver Jürg has been convert- ed as well. Together with other drivers and guides, he catches most of the concerts W:O:A has to offer each year. “I’m already looking forward to my next trip to Wacken!” Much like Jürg’s charges, each year a host of Metalheads travels to Wacken via one of the travel What: bus tour from Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Benelux For: relaxed travels and community Wacken partner since: 2008 Lodging: World Metal Camp Soundtrack: Wacken Radio by Radio Bob!, communal playlists Fans from Mexico and various other countries will once more set up shop at World Metal Camp Jürg samples Wacken’s delights Switzerland goes Wacken Horns up and pedal to the metal: Wacken fans on the road to the Holy GroundNext >