Over the Halloween weekend, I was privileged enough to be going to Firefest, the annual celebration of melodic rock here in the UK. I was covering the festival for Powerplay (along with several of my PP colleagues), and had an absolute blast over the three days of music and mayhem. Something that I want to mention is the feeling of community that went along with the whole shebang.It hit me on the Friday night, during the opening night festivities. It was during H.E.A.T's set, when new vocalist Eric Gronwall (one of the most gifted frontmen I've witnessed in years) gave a shout-out to the many nations represented in the crowd there that night. As each country was called out, a good chunk of the audience shouted out for their homelands. It really brought it home just how much of a community the melodic rock scene can be when it puts its mind to it.
These are fans that are very dedicated indeed to the continued enjoyment of these artists, their songs and this particular brand of rock music. Several generations of rock fans were represented in the audience, and hearing that hugely varied mish-mash of languages and dialects made me proud to be a part of promoting the scene and the music it offers.
There were some superb moments for me, such as meeting a group of our readers who had made the journey from Australia to get to Firefest, or being hugged by several Swedish people whilst singing along to the action onstage. That feeling of community was further bolstered by a hugely positive atmosphere, both from audience and entertainers.
My share of the reviews from Firefest, along with my much enjoyed interview with the legendary Nelson twins Gunnar and Matthew will be in the next issue of Powerplay, but I wanted to take a moment to thank you, sincerely, for one of the most entertaining weekends I have ever had. To the audience, the incredible and bands, the promoters, the production crew and the guys from Fireworks- Thank you for the memories. See you again next year!
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