Obviously the highlights of today`s festival were the Death covers performed by the various bands. All of these were recorded and at the moment Hammerheart is looking at the possibilities of releasing these versions on a limited bonus CD. 
Still I must admit that I think it`s a bit of a shame that none of the bands tonight opted for a Death cover from the more recent albums: "Individual Though Patterns", `Symbolic" or "The Sound of Perseverance".

These records certainly include some of the finest material ever written by the band and to hear a cover-version of `The Philosopher`, `Crystal Mountain` or `Spirit Crusher` would have been a welcome surprise as the songs played today have already been performed so many times before.

The Bands... (Together as One)
Flesh Made Sin kicked off with a enthusiast performance. 
Although being the opening act of the festival they visibly enjoyed playing the large venue and in contrast to other big metal events the audience had already found there way to the front of the stage. 
Their version of `Baptized in Blood`, equally tight as the rest of their gig, received an appreciative applause from the crowd. 

With their technical death/thrash metal including both grunts and high-pitched vocals, Outburst (www.outburstmetal.nl) was a bit of an `outcast` between all straightforward death metal acts. Nevertheless a welcome change. 
The audience required some time to adjust, but the Death cover `Born Dead`, which came quite close to the original especially the vocals, convinced many.

After only a bit of breathing space (15 minutes between every band) on it went with Shadowbreed (www.shadowbreed.nl). As can be expected from this band, they put down a solid show throughout which their live-experience was a visible asset. 
Gradually the crowd became more lively and it obvious that Shadowbreed can rely on a enthusiast fanbase. Death`s `Forgotten Past` fit their set aptly.

Although still early on this Sunday evening Mangled (listen.to/mangled) proved to be one of the highlights of this festival. 
Benefiting from an excellent sound their furious deathmetal outburst changed the up to then pretty laid-back crowd into a raging moshpit.
Consistent with their overall performance their version of `Zombie Ritual` was absolutely the most intense Death cover of this day. We will be hearing from this band!

Next up were legendary (ok I guess I have to admit it; I am over 25..) deathmetal act Thanatos (thanatos.wingsofdeath.nu). 
The straightforward and catchy deathmetal didn`t miss its and the general response was very good. Golden Oldies and new material from the Angelic Encounters album were received equally well. 
They were actually the only band today that didn`t pick a song from one of the first four Death album but opted for a demo song, `Corpsegrinder`. 
But this didn`t influence the crowd`s reaction and the 013 was fired up once again.

Severe Torture is like a steamroller crushing your brains and everything else on its path. 
The highly anticipated Severe Torture (www.hvlaar.nl/severe.htm) gig was everything the audience had hoped for: fast, aggressive, brutal. 
Especially during these short gigs the intensity of this internationally acclaimed band comes to its fullest right. 
Their choice of Death cover-song was a pleasantly surprising one: `Lack of Comprehension`. And Severe-style that resulted in probably one of the most brutal versions ever performed!

One of Callenish Circle`s (www.cuci.nl/~herbie/callenish) main attractions is singer Patrick`s stage presence. 
Whilst the band provided the musical foundation he fired up the crowd. Their melodic death metal (sharp edges included though!) could count on a enthusiast response. And having the privilege of performing the Death-song `Pull the Plug` success was of course guaranteed. 

I am not certain whether the show tonight was the first one without female singer Rachel (now leadsinger in Sinister) but it could very well be.
Nevertheless singer Maurice made sure that Occult sounded brutal as ever. 

The experienced band, although slimmed down to a foursome, put down a tight set in which they found a nice balance between old and newer material (e.g. Parasite). 
For this special occasion they had invited singer Wannes (Pentacle) to reinforce the band and judging from the crowd`s response their Death cover `Mutilation` formed one of the highlights of the gig and probably also of the rest of the festival.

As the festival is gradually moving towards the end it`s time for the first headliner of the evening. Flaming torches, chains and skulls change the 013 stage into a suitable setting for Goddess of Desire (www.goddess-of-desire.com), one of the very few Dutch metal acts that put as much emphasis on the music as on their show.
The straightforward metal, in which the glory days of early blackmetal are re-invoked, could count a enthusiast reaction. (Or did that have something to do with the provocatively dressed ladies the (male part of the) crowd had been waiting for..).
Despite all the imagery and gimmick GoD was unable to retain the audience`s full attention during the 45-minute set. 
The band lacked a certain conviction and willingness to fire-up the audience. The two covers (including Death`s `Living Monstrosity`) unfortunately only turned the tide for a moment.

The organization had found a worthy headliner for the Chuck Schuldiner-tribute festival and from the start onwards it was obvious that God Dethroned (www.goddethroned.com) was the band the people had been waiting for. 
Holland`s leading extreme metal act lived up to their promise and treated the crowd to sixty minutes of pure aggression and unholy fury. Whether it were the older songs like: `Coloseum Serenades`, `The Art of Immolation` (classic!!), `Boiling Blood` and `Firebreath` or new ones from the Ravenous album (`Villa Vampiria`,` Poison Apple` and the title-track itself) the response was quite overwhelming.

Frontman Henri and the rest of the band (including new killer drummer Arien) were visibly surprised by the reaction and it encouraged them to give the crowd that little extra they expected from the headlining act.
Although the Death-cover `Evil Dead` was not a surprising one, as it also features on their latest album, the 013 transformed into a raging pit of a fiercely moshing and headbanging mass of people for the final time this day.

And the well-deserved applause wasn`t just for God Dethroned but also for guest-bassplayer Kasper Ramaekers who made this excellent, and more important honest initiative possible.


Many apologies for the fact that there are no pics from the 013 gig, but I unfortunately am a really lousy photographer!
Pics come from the bands their own websites.

(Review & Pics: Maura Kampstra)