Sonisphere Day One // The Hunt for Tommy Lee

When most people think Sonisphere they think Metal (Heavy, Nu, etc), home of Goths, moshpits, and the flying V, and while Noize has its finger permanently pressed to the pulse of the gods of all music, we, like most, know less of the Dark Arts. So, like Moses in the wilderness, we searched out king of Metal Tommy Lee, discovering on our journey answers to our questions, and, no doubt, yours, at this very particular festival. An early pint settled any pre-arrival traffic jam/getting lost woes, and our odyssey began with the pleasant early surprise in the notably eclectic, friendly crowds, drawn from all over Europe, dressed in all manner of outfits, not the dark eye liner moody Goth-fest that our early expectations were awash with with. Pondering and people watching was cut short by the infamous electric keyboard intro from Europe’s epic, The Final Countdown (yes, that 80s Europe), and with it all associated manner of nostalgic flashbacks. 

Notably, despite the collection of bands on show, and perhaps more deserving of later day crowds, the day felt like a warm up, the starter before the main fare, the lull before the storm. Nevertheless Lower Than Atlantis were energetic on the Red Bull stage – one of many small stages named after drinks, we noted, in a clear marketing/promo tactic to make smaller stages more appealing – before the search continued on to the main stage (no drinks name necessary) where Alice Cooper flounced around with a variety of different props, including being pushed around in a wheelchair (we hoped it was a prop). His voice, gravelly and coarse, belted out record quality tunes and classic lyrics like ‘You’re poison’, before the bar beckoned once more and the day was done. 

Words by Fleur Terry

Photos by Lara Leon-Cullen

Thumbs up from the fashion forward….

Skipping to the beat (hopefully not to Rammstein…)

God loves a tryer…