More than 30 years after the US Festival’s seminal heavy metal day shook the grounds where
San Manuel Amphitheater now stands,
Slipknot’s KNOTFEST–the most cutting edge heavy music festival in America–burned a new chapter into the heavy metal history books. The
San Manuel Amphitheater & Campgrounds in
San Bernardino, California hosted
more than 50,000 fans during the October 24-26 destination music festival. At the same time, heavy music fans around the world tuned in to the free
KNOTFEST simulcast of band performances, which logged nearly
five million impressions.
The Vixlet-sponsored GTV simulcast included
Slipknot’s
two full performances, as well as select songs from most of the bands performing at the festival. Saturday and Sunday were each highlighted by
Slipknot’s unique closing sets on Stage 001, featuring
brand new music from their
#1 album .5: The Gray Chapter–the fifth studio album from the GRAMMY®-winning group–and an entirely new stage set and experience. The album was released globally in the week leading up to the fest, and has made a stunning impact, with #1 debuts in the U.S., Japan, Australia, Canada, Russia and Switzerland as well as Top 5 debuts in the United Kingdom, Germany, Ireland, Austria, New Zealand, Mexico, Denmark and Finland.
KNOTFEST U.S.–powered by Rockstar Energy Drink–featured a massive lineup of
over 50 bands playing on
five stages on Saturday and Sunday.
Slipknot was joined by some of the biggest names in metal, including
Danzig, Five Finger Death Punch, Volbeat, Of Mice & Men, Anthrax, Black Label Society, In This Moment, Killswitch Engage, Of Mice & Men, Testament, Fear Factory,
Hatebreed, Napalm Death,
Atreyu,
Hellyeah, and dozens more.
The festival was an epic experience for Maggots and metalheads even apart from the five stages of earsplitting music, with the
Slipknot-curated
Slipknot Museum, the
Fire Zone,
Ring Of Fire carnival ride,
Thunderdome,
Fitz Army Freestyle Motocross Show,
Junk Car Drum Circle, and more.
In addition, Friday night’s VIP Pre-Party Bash featured exclusive performances from
Suicide Silence, The Black Dahlia Murder,
Butcher Babies and more for those that purchased VIP or Camping Packages.
Based on the overwhelming success of
KNOTFEST U.S. 2014, discussions are underway for a possible return to Southern California in 2015–but first,
Slipknot will bring
KNOTFEST to Tokyo, Japan November 15 and 16, 2014.
Check out Rolling Stone’s exclusive
KNOTFEST photo gallery by 2001 World Series MVP and future Hall of Famer
Randy Johnson here:
www.rollingstone.com/music/pictures/randy-johnson-knotfest-photos-20141030