#4 AUGUST 2024 bring Metallica to the Ackertalk friendship 25th anniversary at W:O:A 2025 Post-W:O:A is pre-W:O:A. Review and preview of the world’s best festivalnd if you want to bridge the waiting time with memories of the Acker, community mo- ments and exclusive inter- views with the scene’s big- gest artists, take a look at The Bullhead archive. Our magazine supplies Wacken news all year round. In addition to the two festival issues 03/2024 and 04/2024, which ac- companied you live on the Holy Ground, you will also find the first two maga- zines from 2024. The Bull- head section on wacken. com also contains all oth- er issues that will be pub- lished during the course of the year. Of course, as al- ways, bilingual in German and English and complete- ly free of charge. Have fun reading us! Your Bullhead-team IMPRINT The Bullhead is a product of WOA Festival GmbH, Schenefelder Straße 17, 25596 Wacken, Germany Management board: Thomas Jensen, Holger Hübner / Project coordination: Peter Klapproth / Editor: Andrea Leim / Design: arne__creates / Contributors: Katharina Metag, Celia Woitas, Timon Menge, Susanne Müller / Copy editor: Victoria Schaffrath, Timon Menge / Translations: Victoria Schaffrath, Celia Woitas Editorial deadline: 3.8.2024 22:00 Uhr #1 FEB 2024 Der Morgen nach Kiss Beim Vorentscheid in Bogotá, Kolumbien Drei Schwestern und ihr Familienleben auf Tour Die Macht der schwarzen Shirts Frontmann Johan Hegg spielte mit Amon Amarth erstmals vor 25 Jahren auf dem W:O:A #2 JUN 2024 The most scandalous band shirt in the world A puppy for a Grammy How old metal shirts turn into brand new ones Nights Scorpions return to Wacken Open Air after 12 years Interview with Rudolf Schenker #3 JULY 2024 Kicking things off with the bosses Headbanging with a perm A battle to remember Heavy metal time travel with Blind Guardian Powered by ear metalheads, what a week! What a party! The vibes were awesome, and Wacken looked incred- ible, whether on stage or in the crowds. People coming together to celebrate and do so with the right kind of music – that’s what we want! The weather was just per- fect for an Open Air. There was enough beer, rad shows and everyone was happy to be part of it. The two of us couldn’t feel more pleased. Especially with the fact that the Access Passes worked so well: If you can believe it, there were zero traffic jams during arrival! Thank you to our community for embracing this new con- cept and the additional arrival day. In 2025, we want to build on this. We’re glad all the cogs of the wheel – the many trades, features and people – worked together so flawlessly, and not least about the fact that W:O:A 2024 was such a peace- ful and smooth event. Just like the Olympic games, we hosted the peaceful games, a welcome contrast to the rest of the world. We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: We’ve got the best fans in the world! We’re proud and grateful, time and time again. We’re aware of the responsibility we bear as “mayors“ of this fes- tival. There’s always room to grow. We want to continue to improve and optimise. W:O:A never stops moving forward – and that’s precisely why it’s still around. For us, that means: Dust- ing ourselves off, breathing, maybe sleeping in, and getting back to planning. Already, we’re so excited for the 34th edition of Wacken Open Air next summer, not least be- cause of the 34 fantastic bands we were able to announce. One more thing: The ticket prices are staying the same! Thank you, metalheads. You’re our favourite party guests. See you in Wacken, rain or shine, Holger Hübner & Thomas JensenFotos: Riki Murto, W:O:A, Harri Lindfors Over three decades worth of cello metal: Apocalyptica will play W:O:A 2025! Celloheads Apocalyptica will return to the Holy Ground in 2025! In this interview for The Bullhead, Eicca Toppinen talks about the band’s previous Wacken appearances and their friendship with Metallica. In addition, he gives a preview of Apocalyptica’s appearance at W:O:A 2025!by Timon Menge he story of Apocalyp- tica starts at Helsinki University. In 1993, that’s where music students Eicca Toppinen, Paavo Lötjönen, Max Lilja and Antero Manni- nen met and soon pursued a common goal: They wanted to play metal – on their cellos. They took on songs by Metal- lica and in 1996 the four mu- sicians released their debut “Apocalyptica Plays Metallica By Four Cellos”. The band hit a nerve; no one had ever done cello metal before. Their sec- ond album “Inquisition Sym- phony” followed in 1998, this time including covers of other bands’ songs, such as Sepultu- ra and Faith No More. And in 2000, their third album “Cult” was released, featuring many original compositions. Cello metal works – and it didn‘t take long for the Finns to make an appearance in Wacken. Eicca, you first played Wacken in 2005. How did you feel about the gig back then? Eicca Toppinen: Playing Wacken is a dream for any musician, so the show felt very special. The whole experience, the festival itself, the metal community and the good organisation – everything was very impressive. You’ve since returned four more times. Which show do you remember in particular? Eicca Toppinen: In 2014, we performed with Avanti Orchestra. That felt more like our own concert than a festival gig. Your debut “Apocalyptica Plays Metallica By Four Cellos” is almost 30 years old. You‘ve now released “Vol. 2”. Was that in the works for a while? Eicca Toppinen: Yes, for 20 years! We’ve known for a long time that we’d one day record another album like this. With the first record, we had no idea what we were doing. (laughs) We still had to figure out how everything works and then things happened very quickly. There were still so many songs we wanted to play, so we knew that there would be a second album with Metallica songs. Now felt like the right time to do it. A video recently circulated on the internet in which you gifted Metallica singer James Hetfield a pair of skis. You were also at Tons Of Rock Festival in Oslo together. What is your relationship with Metallica like? Eicca Toppinen: We’re very good friends. I’ve been in contact with them over the years for many different reasons. I played at Lars Ulrich’s wedding, for example. We’ve always had a special relationship characterised by mutual respect, and that has developed into a friendship over the years. Will you be playing a lot of Metallica songs at Wacken Open Air 2025? Eicca Toppinen: As of right now, I think we’ll probably play Metallica songs exclusively. In any case, Wacken deserves something very special, so we’ll see! Will you ask James Hetfield to join you on stage? After all, he is a guest on “Apocalyptica Plays Metallica Vol. 2”. Eicca Toppinen: You never know what happens! The world’s loudest cello Apocalyptica are a live-force — coming to Wacken in 2025!hile this request made by the festival’s or- ganisers probably sounded odd at first, it ended up be- ing the answer to any traffic woes. Thousands of metalheads took advantage of the early ar- rival option using the Sunday Access Pass and made it to their campsite more relaxed than ever before. Campers were guided to the Holy Ground on three dif- ferent routes. No traffic jams, no stress. On top of a full week of festival goodness, the weather was at its best. Shade or shine! Campground, Camping Only, Camper Park, Bauer Uwe’s Gar- den, Wheels of Steel Area and World Metal Camp had already been open since Sunday. Hard- core glampers were able to check in at TE.N.T. and Residenz Evil starting Monday morning. On the Camping Plaza, at Metal Markt and Farmers Mar- ket, the early birds were able to stock up on all essentials in ad- vance and do some stress-free shopping. The neighbouring Welcome to the Jungle stage, the Ballroom DJ team and DJ Hüby drew fans out of their tents and onto the stage and beer tables throughout the evening. From midday on Sunday, the LGH Club Stage provided entertainment until late into the night – with Skyline as the evening’s headliner, of course. The arrivals on Tuesday and Wednesday also went off with- out a hitch. And without a GPS! And so the population of the small Northern village grew to 85,000 once again. The Bullhead checked out some of its temporary citizens. How do 85,000 people and their cars, luggage, provisions, whirlpools and upholstery get to a tiny Nothern village in less than four days? It’s simple, really: Turn off your GPS and go! All roads lead to Wacken, after all. Sonja and Arne from Dithmarschen, Matthias from Essen, Johanna from Duisburg and Lukas from Busenwurth (L-R) met in Wacken 15 years ago. Since then, the group has met up on the Acker every year, usually buying equipment from local listings last minute – including this hot tub complete with a waterfall Franz from Reichertsheim in Bavaria works as a mason, so it didn’t take long to convince his friends from Saxony and Saxony- Anhalt of the merits of his festival set-up. The front door provides ventilation, the rooftop terrace acts as a sunscreen and viewing platform in one Renaldo (39), a craftsman from the Emsland region, has been coming to Wacken for 20 years, keeping count of the festival visits on his calf. On Sunday evening, he took to the table by the Welcome To The Jungle StageAt the age of nine, Freyja from Wewelsfleth, located roughly 30 kilometres from Wacken, has already had more W:O:A experiences than many of her campsite neighbours: She has been to exactly seven editions of the festival in her life, including one spent in her mum’s belly. Primarily on the campsite, of course, as she was only allowed to visit the festival grounds once she turned six. During the pandemic-related break and last year’s mud fest, Svenja stayed home at mum Svenja’s request. This year, she got to stay overnight for the first time and Freyja was also allowed to watch a show: the Wacken Firefighters! Why does the young girl love W:O:A so much? “Because here, you can be exactly who you are.“ Which band would she like to see next year? She answers almost instantly: “Heavysaurus.“ The dinosaur metal band’s t-shirt and a stuffed animal have already made it to the Holy Ground. Mum Svenja has been attending the festival since 1998, hasn’t missed a single edition so far – and even met Freyja’s dad on the Acker. More Wacken in a single family will be hard to find ... Dad Matze (right) and his son Moritz (left) from Heidelberg are attending their fifth Wacken. Their buddy Sebastian from Cologne (centre) and Matz’s apprentice Luis from Schwäbisch-Hall are attending for the first time. And for good reason: Luis has just completed his training as a winemaker Sophie (28) and Samuel (28) travelled from the Ruhr area to the Holy Ground on Sunday evening. The friends are pleased with the new travel concept. Sophie: “We are relaxed, had no problems and can now enjoy our time here.” Hans-Peter (blue helmet) professionally grows Christmas trees in Seeth – naturally, a few of them had to join him on the Acker. From Wednesday on, he celebrated “Wacken Christmas” with his mates, the trees decorated and punch for all. Do you reckon they’re also singing “Last Wacken I gave you my heart”? Antje (2nd from left), Jule (3rd from left) and Katharina (right) from Wilhelmshaven were at Wacken for the second time. Always along for the ride: their converted wheelie bin, which is first used to transport their luggage and later as a mobile bar. Mate Jan-Ole (left) was in Wacken for the first time, Miriam and Eike (centre) snuck into the picture Credits: Susanne Müller, Katharina Metagby Timon Menge rom South America to Scandinavia, from Aus- tralia to Canada: Metalheads from all over the world are coming together at W:O:A World Metal Camp. Every- one plays their part in making the camp an exciting place for cultural exchange – and, above all, fun. “You can clearly see that metal is a global language here,” Daniel from Mexico tells us. Leonardo from Colombia re- ports: “It’s great to meet so many people from different nations!” And Robban from Sweden says: “The Colombians are great to party with!” Credits: Timon Menge At World Metal Camp, fans and musicians spend the week in Wacken living and partying together Community with heart and soul: the Wacken Latinos A sea of flags at World Metal Camp Metalheads from Mexico celebrate being on the Holy Ground This is Leonardo’s (Colombia) first time at W:O:A L-R: Wacken Latinos co-founder Andrés (Colombia), guide Hannah (Germany) and founder Raúl (Colombia) One of Raúl’s many W:O:A tattoos Robban from Sweden (far right) has returned to Wacken for the 17th timeWWW.METAL-HAMMER.DE/AWARDS SAMSTAG, 31. AUGUST 2024 • THE HEAVYEST EUROPEAN AWARD-SHOW IS BACK! •Next >