For some people, the second last weekend of June meant relaxing with their families and friends celebrating Midsommar (or Sankt Hans for the Danes), whereas for others it was time to test once again how much can our bodies handle. Indeed, Copenhell 2024 is here, which means that it’s time to stack up with energy drinks and do some warming-up stretches to avoid the most severe injuries. Let’s go!
Unless you have lived under a rock, you know what Copenhell is - a humongous metal (or hard rock) festival happening in the beautiful city of Copenhagen. Throughout the years the whole city has started to participate in it more and more, now even offering a special 666 busses taking the travelers straight to Hell with their adorable devil-horned vehicles.
As the festival is one of the biggest of its kind in these parts of Europe, Copenhell offers much more than just gigs. For example, Copenhell Con is a cute nerdy getaway, full of panels, discussions, and possibilities to buy some nerdy merch and of course, play some games. Perfect to have fun while keeping it warm when the weather gets extra “Danish”. Boneyard on the other hand is a nice outside area with basically everything you could imagine (and maybe a bit more). Games to play with friends, a skate ramp, a panic room to scream in, a tiny stage for small bands, and one of the greatest food trucks I tried during these four days.
copenhell
2024
Indeed, the food and drink selection in Copenhell is fantastic and as a big fan of both, I took the most out of the opportunity to try out as much as possible. Almost everything I tasted was great, but I must especially highlight risotto balls with cricket mayo from Risotto Inferno, burgers from Planteslagterne, roasted aubergine AND a pulled pork sandwich from Holy Smokes BBQ, and last but certainly not least - the meatball sub from Great Balls of Fire. Now on Sunday, I am still dreaming of all of them (yes, at the same time).
If you would get tired of the food, but still wished for a break between the gigs, Biergarten was a great place to stop by. During the day, it had some events such as burlesque shows by Sweet Sensations (which made me want to start doing burlesque), open mic events, and in the evening you could join a good old rock party to dance until you can’t stand anymore.
I must say that because the main area offers so much, I wouldn’t recommend anyone purchasing the VIP Tickets. The only thing it basically offers extra is bathrooms, and well the queues in other areas move rather quickly anyway.
The festival itself has four different stages (plus the tiny one in Boneyard), making it possible to have artists and bands of all sizes. I must admit that I wasn’t as excited about the lineup as last year, but these are obviously taste questions. There were some great names, but mainly it felt like a dad rock metal festival.
Additionally, I was truly disappointed to see some bands on the list that use their platforms to spread disgusting hate and now did so during their gigs in Copenhell - leaving people feeling uncomfortable. It’s heartbreaking to hear a band shouting misogynistic and transphobic comments on one of the biggest stages at a festival, that has created a special event for young women and non-binary people to have a safe space to enjoy metal culture. I hope artists like these (and other creeps) won’t be booked in the future, otherwise, their other efforts for safe spaces simply seem performative.
Anywaaaaaayyyysssss… Now let’s have a short recap of each day in Hell!
The Hives @Copenhell / Photo: Joe Miller
The offspring / Photo: Joe Miller
Copenhell / Photo: Joe Miller
Day 1 - Dads gone wild
Dear diary, it’s Wednesday 19th of June of Devil’s year 2024, and the sun is finally embracing Copenhagen. The first day of Copenhell is finally here, and I am here for it.
The day kicked off for me with Corey Taylor, an absolute legend who has now focused on his solo career for the past couple of years. Obviously, the gig was great - I didn’t expect anything less, but it did seem that people were only slowly warming up. But at least this was a great way to defrost all your muscles and joints, while Corey Taylor was happily performing on stage.
I also got a short glimpse of DVNE, a nice sludge band from Scotland. The music is very stoner metal, which tells you everything about the energy in this gig. It was all fun, but certainly made me crave a little energy boost.
Thankfully the next band got me there. Palaye Royal finally turned the vibe to 100 through their cute pop metal songs combined with Duracell bunny energy. The crowd was screaming and dancing while the singer climbed on the structures holding the stage and crowd-surfed on an air-filled beach toy.
After this, it was time for the dad fest of 2024 - mother fcking Offspring. The gig was easily my favorite one of the day, the energy was so silly and fun, and I have never helped so many middle-aged men crowd-surf. Who needs a workout when you can lift a father of 3 on a Wednesday evening?! All jokes aside, the gig was excellent and everyone seemed to have the time of their lives. The band is very entertaining to watch and Dexter Holland clearly still enjoys being on stage.
The main artist of the night was Avenged Sevenfold. The band was really good, but that is all that I kind of have to say about that. If you like their music, I am sure you will love them live. Was it the best experience I have had (even during these 4 days)? No.
Palaye Royale / Photo: Joe Miller
Day 2 - Sand is turning my hair gray and my socks black
Another beautiful day for Copenhell, and I was pleased to see that we are still being blessed with sunshine. Even though, I am starting to wish a little rain to get the dust down after coughing sand the whole night.
The day started with The Hives, a delightful Swedish band, that absolutely has nothing to do with metal music. But to be fully honest here, I really don’t mind that Copenhell doesn’t only have hardcore, metal, and hard rock bands - it’s nice to have some variety. I liked The Hives’ music before and after seeing them live, I like the band even more.
And that is saying a lot because they did try to get us to sing the Swedish national anthem as a joke (which was followed by a bunch of booing). The singer kicks, jumps, and throws the mic while running around the stage causing chaos. I highly recommend checking out the Hives even if you don’t like harder rock, especially if you enjoy very energetic gigs.
Of course, after this, I needed to check out Tom Morello. After doing many fun collaborations throughout the years with his solo career, I really wanted to know how he is live. I am not sure what I was expecting, but this wasn’t necessarily it. Morello plays great, sure, but his rapping and singing? He should just stick to playing maybe. The crowd seemed to be having fun for sure, but I wished a bit more from this.
ZULU is a new acquaintance for me, but it was a delightful one! This fantastic hardcore punk band from Los Angeles deserves all the love possible - I mean they got a whole circle pit going on without any music - the band just asked for one and they got it!
From one great vibe to another, right after ZULU, I ran to see Cradle of Filth, a fantastic English extreme metal band with the best name possible. Amazing vibes in the crowd, beautiful makeup, great growling, and an opera singer? What else could you wish for?!
After a dramatic gig, it’s time to switch to a more silly vibe with Hammerfall - the ultimate nerd metal band. Just like their music, the gig was amazingly entertaining in the most stupid way possible. Hamerfall’s music is basically what you would imagine a bunch of wizard-looking men play while getting pumped up for their DnD journey - and I mean this as a big compliment. The band does this well, and how they perform on stage makes the whole experience even more amazing. I got so pumped up screaming “last man standing” that I was ready to start my own adventurous journey right after.
No time for journeys though, because it was the Thursday headliner’s turn to take over the stage. Yes, it was time for the one and only, Limp Bizkit, and goddamn I was excited. With gigs like these I'm always a bit nervous about expecting too much from the band, but thankfully this time, I wasn’t disappointed one bit!
On the contrary, Limp Bizkit was even better than I could have ever imagined. Fred Durst sounds still exactly the same as he always has and the energy was insane. The whole gig was incredibly fun, and the only wish I had was that it would have lasted so much longer.
The Baboon Show / Photo: Joe Miller
The Hives / Photo: Joe Miller
Day 3 - Starting to test my limits
The third day is starting to make me feel like I have been to hell and back but we push forward!
Starting the day with a band I was excited to see, Rival Sons. This American rock band has some great songs for anyone going through an angry breakup. I was especially excited to see whether they would sound as great live as they do recorded. Well, they do, but otherwise their energy is a bit low. I wished for more than them just walking around the stage, especially considering the power of their songs. In the end, I felt like I could just leave after my favorite song without missing out on anything mind-blowing.
After this experience, I really needed a kick, which was given to me by an American hardcore punk band, Harm’s Way. First things first, these gym daddies need to drop their routines - I need to get my hands on their upper body workouts. Other than looking like they live in the gym, this band finally got the energy for Friday as high as it should be. The moshpits were absolutely incredible, and I know I will be coughing dust for days afterward.
Now we get into my favorite gig of this day (and maybe of all four days) - Dropkick Murphys. I was quite surprised to see this American punk band on the lineup but in the most positive way possible. Dropkick Murphys is a Celtic punk band from Massachusetts, not from Ireland as one could think from their music (for an embarrassingly long time, I did). Nevertheless, I was incredibly excited to see them, hoping that the energy would be joyous and everyone would be dancing.
All my wishes were made true, and even so much more. Everybody from the stage and crowd just seemed to have the best time without any worries in their minds! We were dancing and screaming, people were crowd surfing, rowing, circle dancing with strangers, moshing and even losing shoes but still loving every moment of it. I was having the best time, and my cheeks were hurting from all that smiling.
I will be chasing the high, and thankfully I carry great news. The band will come to Copenhagen next January, so I will highly recommend getting the tickets and coming to see them - I certainly will!
Friday’s headliner was Machine Head, which is maybe not my cup of tea. I mean it’s very classic metal rock, and a good one of that. So, if one is in the mood for very no bs metal, this is a great choice. The gig was fun, with a lot of pyro, moshing, and so on, but yeah… that’s kind of it.
Copenhell / Photo: Joe Miller
Copenhell / Photo: Joe Miller
Day 4 - How am I still alive? Or am I?
On the fourth and last day, you can feel the drop in energy. That makes sense considering many have been partying many days in a row now and the weather has not been the best since last night. But strongly we go onwards and start to have fun.
I didn’t know before the first band I saw today, but I wish I would have. Maybe then I wouldn’t have missed the first 15 minutes of this Danish band’s performance. SIAMESE had a really fun energy, bringing violin and a huge fricking drum into the mix as well! I truly wish I had seen them from the very beginning, but at least now I know better for the future.
Another new acquaintance right after this - JJ and th3€ A’s. I listened to this fun punk band from the side, under birch trees away from the rain. Still, I could soak up the energy of the band and the crowd. Even in the rain, the vibe was absolutely fantastic, and I even enjoyed the singer’s silly jokes between the songs.
I caught the very last bits of Shadow of Intent, but you can’t really go wrong with them. A very classic metal band putting on a great gig with a lot of crowd surfing and headbanging - sometimes even at the same time!
An American thrash metal band, Enforced had some technical issues during their gig, but thankfully their beautiful locks were there to keep us distracted. The music was fun chaotic trash metal and the gig’s vibe suited this perfectly - leaving me with proper hair jealousy!
The headlining artist of Saturday - Tool is obviously a great band to listen to. The light show and animations they had on were also entertaining, for maybe 10 minutes. Then I wished I would have been drunker (or on something else) to stay entertained. I get that it’s just about the music, but for the very main artist of Copenhell 2024, I would have wished a bit more energy, or at least to be able to see the band.
Accept / Photo: Joe Miller
Mimi Barks / Photo: Joe Miller
and finally...
Besides some specific bands, I really enjoy the atmosphere in Copenhell both from the stage and in the crowd. A lot of the bigger bands bring smaller ones on stage with them, which always feels nice. In the crowd, people seem to just have the best time constantly.
There is a lot to do, a lot to eat, and a lot to shop, and you can find pretty much everything. Dark Market has a lot of independent artists you can buy stunning art from, and of course, you can find a bunch of merch. Now in retrospect, it’s a little confusing to hear the news about Copenhell and Danish artist Magnus Fuhr. For a festival that seems to support even smaller artists, it’s a little weird that they were being sketchy when it comes to one of the most noticeable art pieces in the whole festival…
Nevertheless, Copenhell still keeps its spot as one of the great festivals in Northern Europe as I am sure it will do in the future as well.
Photos by: Joe Miller
Words by: Hanna Koivunen
