Heaven Shall Burn was the headlining act of the final day of Metaldays anno 2017. This isn’t a band I have any personal attachment to musically, but the show promised something special, and we had some time to kill, so why not give them a go? I could be pleasantly surprised.

Heaven Shall Burn had definitely gone all out in creating a visual experience to go along with their aggressive melodeath core take on metal. The stage was built up to resemble some kind of large, oppressive factory building, with huge metal fans (snigger) revolving in the building like walls they had on stage. They also had large boxes at the front of the stage, which especially vocalist Marcus Bischoff spent a lot of time on top of.
The band opened the show by firing long strips of paper into the air from confetti cannons at the front of the stage - these strips became a popular toy among the fans through the rest of the show, so the timing couldn’t have been better. After this though, it was all about a magnificent pyroshow, making the band truly live up to their name.

Heaven Shall Burn was as lively as their reputation would have it. There wasn’t a still moment, as they rushed back and forth, headbanging away, and Marcus Bischoff commanding the willing audience to do this and that for him.
I’m not sure this last part was necessary though, as it was clear from the beginning that this was going to be a wild party no matter what happened. I estimate more or less the whole festival crowd showing up for this show - the place was packed, and even though we were long into nighttime by this time, it was still hot as hell in front of the main stage, and not just because of the pyroshow. If the band was lively in their performance, it was still nothing to the lively response they had from their fans.
The wildest mosh of the festival was taking up a very large space in the middle of the grounds, and all around it, there was a constant flow of crowdsurfers sailing by. Heaven Shall Burn certainly had a good take on the audience, and no-one held back in showing their appreciation of the band.

Heaven Shall Burn certainly lived up to their responsibility as the final headlining act. They came, and delivered something truly special and memorable, putting it all out there for the fans to appreciate.
Myself, I’m still not won over by the music, which is far from what I enjoy listening to, but I will not deny the power and impact of the flawless execution of their performance.