WINTER OF WOLVES 7 – a Powerful Comeback and We’re Looking Forward to More!
The Winter of Wolves, returned after three years of silence, was short, but powerful.
A flood of inquiries if the festival would come back after the covid, made us think about it more often, eventually finding ourselves in the midst of organising the event. After spending some time in hibernation, the beast of the WINTER OF WOLVES was eager to romp the city of Vilnius and this winter was about time to release it.
We wanted a free-spirited and unbridled metal event with a strong core since the very beginning. This led to developing a very special line-up.
An observant eye might have noticed that a few of our guests can rarely be seen in some of the largest European festivals. Yes, we knew that having them with us will make things tough. Some bands simply refused to share a stage with them. Ironically, some of those, who claim to be holding a liberal point of view eventually became very radical and ruthless towards the allegedly wrong. So be it. The truth lies somewhere in the middle and we can’t change it. We won’t get political. What we do care about is music. Sure, we did have some additional hassle, but the goal of achieving an elemental and fine-tuned triumph of metal was achieved. The Ukrainians and Australians were totally worth all of this additional effort. The event was excellent and we’re really pleased with it.
The greatest merits, of course, go to the bands: all of their performances were unique and engaging in their own way. The majority of the musicians arrived the night before to be able to prepare for a smooth gig. The logistics was crazy, all members of DESTRÖYER 666 and ASAGRAUM came from different cities and countries, departing from Lithuania in the same twisted gnarl of flights. The tighter the schedule, the more chance that something will go wrong – a delayed flight from Norway left ASAGRAUM without their bassist and the bass was taken over by the band’s guitarist at the last moment. Their gig did take place, and the majority of the audience had no clue that someone from the band was missing. This speaks of how professional these Dutch girls really are. We wish them success and look forward to their return!
Meeting NOKTURNAL MORTUM is worth of an entire chapter. Lots of hugs, lots of stories, photos of bombed buildings in Kharkiv, and sharing of life in a single-room apartment with a dozen other people and kids sleeping in the floor. Bomb explosions became a part of the daily life in Ukraine and there are no therapists in the world that could help – living at war will scar those people for ever. Listening to them leaves you speechless with sorrow. You just can't put it in words. We wish them strength and freedom – something that they have more than deserved!
Getting back to the event itself, there is a feeling that the fulfilment of this festival was very difficult. Although we had a few months to prepare, the entire technical part had to be done on the same day, because the club was also booked for other events the nights before. We focused, took aim, pulled the trigger, BOOM!!!... and then silence.
This was an excellent workout and we will definitely repeat it again.
A special THANKS to the Muzlab team – the sound was excellent!
A big thanks to the lighting team as well – a representative of Kablys club said that the lights were some of the most impressive in the history of Kablys events.
Also, thank you all, who came! Thank you for your love to the heaviest of music. Seeing so many of you thirsty for pure-blooded metal was truly something!
And we love what we do! Getting to know the metal culture, we discovered our place in the world, the people around us, and also the best of our friends. A special thanks to the team, who agreed to take this crazy adventure together! You gathered here, you did the job, and then parted ways with a smile. Excuse me, but you’re totally insane! I cherish our moments together and thank you for being who you are!
For the wild and unbridled rock and roll!
Cheers and until we meet again!
Daividas
