If there is one thing Wintersun fans are good at, it is being patient – they have been well trained so far!
But to think that the band would test it on a whole new level when they hit the stage at Metaldays, a festival that has over the years become more or less a second home to the brain child of Jari Mäenpää, I did not see coming. Although, I suppose the surprise in itself should be just as surprising...

“Thank you guys for the patience!”
- Jukka Koskinen (bass)

In his home studio in the frozen wastelands of the winter kingdom, Mäenpää is accustomed to not have enough power to properly run his project, and apparently this was a curse he had brought along for the trip this time – just in time for the bands entrée, during When Time Fades Away which was used as an intro, the power went out for the whole main stage area!
It took just about 25 minutes before things were up and running again and the show could commence. Well, so and so I suppose, because all of the effects had had to go and we were left with only the live instruments, and even they sounded quite poorly. Anyway, the new Sons Of Winter And Stars was on the menu, and it seemed like a release for both the fans and the band that they were finally playing something.
And then the power went out again.
At this point things began to feel quite silly – this problem had not occurred for any band so far on the festival, and as it would turn out neither did it come back for any of the following bands, no matter how lavish their shows might be. Another 10 to 15 minutes of darkness, silence and empty beer glasses, and we didn’t stand the test of time anymore and decided to head over to the coming action on the 2nd stage instead.

It should be said that even with the lack of music, Wintersun’s fans were many, and they were forgiving. Even though we decided to leave, most people stuck around, intent on keeping an eye on the blackened, empty stage to see if anything else would happen.
During the first long break, time was spent chanting the Wintersun name in hope that this might reach the right deity to help the situation, and just in case that didn’t work (which certainly seemed to be the case), someone had been thoughtful enough to bring along a few large beach balls which were happily passed around overhead.
The amounted energy finally got its release when the band hit the stage, and that segment of the first song saw an incredible wave of crowd surfers passing by!
The second break was calmer, maybe the hopes weren’t as high as the first time around, or maybe the Slovenian crowd had simply accepted that this was the way of their favourite winter warriors.
What happened later on I can only relate to vaguely as we only heard it from a distance, but apparently the band came on again and ripped out a few old songs before their time was finally up.

Yes, Wintersun fans must be some of the most patient and forgiving fans out there, and apparently I am no longer as into it as I once was, but the recurring theme of time was one that I wasn’t content on spending in darkness anymore. Come back when you get your shit together and we’ll party again.