Dimebag Darrell of Pantera

Ozz Fest 97 - The day could be described as 10 hours of the loudest and heaviest metal you’ve ever heard in your life. Kicking off the show on the main stage was Powerman 5000. Their music was a mixture of heavy metal with a groove sound. Next up was Machine Head followed by Fear Factory. Both bands had an ultra pounding heavy screaming sound which made your head feel like it would explode.

It was a nice break from the mayhem when Type O Negative took the stage with their melodic goth metal. This turned out to be the calm before the storm. Philip, Pantera’s lead singer, joined Type O on stage for a song and to fire up the crowd. Then Pantera came out for their set. Their wailing and thunderous sound shook the pavilion and could be heard back home in Texas.

The audience stormed the aisles when the video backdrop appeared showing clips of Ozzy in various famous scenes of our time - like Gump. The crowd stood and cheered the entire set which included I Don’t Know, Mr. Crowley, Suicide Solution, and Bark At The Moon. After an hour set and a fifteen minute break, Ozzy returned with original Black Sabbath members Tony Iommi and Geezer Butler for a set of Sabbath classics including War Pigs, Into The Void, Sweet Leaf, Children Of The Grave, Black Sabbath, Iron Man, and Paranoid. During both the Ozzy and Sabbath sets, Ozzy looked worn out and relied on a teleprompter to guide him through the lyrics on most of the songs. It seemed like the only thing he didn’t need help with was his usual “I love you all!” and spraying the fans with water.

With the set changes only twenty minutes apart it was nearly impossible to enjoy the bands on the second stage if you didn’t want to miss any on the main stage. Second stage acts included Vision Of Disorder, Drain, Coal Chamber, Slo Burn, Neurosis, and Down Set. In between sets you could also wander the grounds with 19,000 other people where numerous vendor tents and carnival games were found. Along with the high price of food, water, games and souvenirs, it gave you the real feeling of a traveling carnival rip-off.

Overall it was a long but enjoyable day. Expect a CD compilation of the tour sometime later this year.

More shots:

Pete Steele of Type O Negative
Adam 12 of Powerman 5000
Adam Duce of Machine Head

Review and Photos by John Perry

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