23rd edition of Europe's largest festival was held on 5-9 of June 2014. The initial memories after returning home, probably like in most cases; first come the favorite concerts, funny situations from camp life, the festival's more interesting elements of flora and fauna. Partially it was like that, but not quite, and that’s why I decided to tell you a bit differently about the last Wave Gotik Treffen.

The certain things this year were an extensive line-up and a set of dilemmas, combined with compromises how to arrange the festival schedule. The next regular attractions were: the great shopping setup, having in their inventory everything a dark soul can desire, the only sad thing was the lack of X-Tra-X stand. Victorian Picnic located in the Clara-Zerkin-Park, this year the red barrier separated a part where photographers were not let in, apparently there were some stalkers of who the participants had enough;). The campsite could not exist without the festival name, arranged carefully from cans, imaginative solutions to combat the heat, which was unique this time, but later about that... and the pagan village that lives its own life.

We started our concert conquests the day before the official start of the event in Moritzbastei. On that evening the line-up consisted of four shows from Liebknecht, Framheim, Keluar and Formalin. Daniel Myer literally blew away the competition with his set;).Anyway, there was no competition for the best show of the evening, but the fantastic energy and the level of performance was so influential, that listening to the subsequent performances I felt the lack of something, bearing in mind the power given to the audience by Liebknecht.

June - heat, nothing unusual at this time of year, and even highly expected that during the festival the weather would be nice, please enjoy it. True, there was no rain, but this time the weather adventures tipped the scales to the other side; for 5 days there were over 30 degrees! My admiration to the people fully styled in Victorian creations or armor or latex grew every day, while I chose my clothes as light and practical as possible. Full respect for those enduring in spite of everything, because interiors were no colder; places where concerts are held, by force of human masses, were heated up like a good sauna. The sequence of collective melting is on, please constantly fill up of fluid level in the body:). Now imagine how the joy was ignited in our little tent camp by a bag of crushed people got from a nearby gas station?

Friday's stage adventure was reserved for electronic music in different variations with an unexpected ending. At the beginning, the trip to Kohlrabizirkus, where first gentlemen of Siva Six duo played. Concert, musically, was quite monotonous, it was blasting, but not at all wrong as well, they had their interesting points, but what stayed for a longer time in the memories was their stage attitude. Vocalist’s (Herr Khaos) improvised choreography added a considerable charisma to the whole:). Then the scene was graced with Greek dark electro from Cygnosic, followed immediately by the energy torpedo, Rotersand. Excellent condition and contact with the audience, the fans got everything for what they love this band, including the favorite songs, "Waiting to be born" or "Exterminate Annihilate Destroy". It’s time for a little pause, another band away from Erk Aicrag’s performance, that is [:SITD:]. The audience has already completely filled the norm set up by the organizers, more gathered in front of the gates, and the line was almost as in the communist era, they had to brace themselves not so much with patience but with hope for a stroke of luck, that someone will come out just so that someone could enter. After thunderous applause, a quick stage rearrangement with a distinctive logo and other must-haves of Hocico’s Erk and Racso. The first two songs were played in El Mariachi version, and this heated up the atmosphere even more. Then it was just louder, faster, and even faster! Setlist included "Bite Me!", "Dog Eat Dog" and "The Watched", at the end the duo returned to the stage in a mariachi climate to perform together a set of known and popular "La Cucaracha" and "Tequila". Hocico once again proved that live they are a reliable team, and after the concert, we always are extremely supercharged.

The audience demanded more, while we rushed to Agra Halle for today's surprise and simultaneously a whim of the organizers, meaning, White Lies. Once we reached the place we still caught the last sounds of Apoptygma Berzerk, so no one should be surprised by the fact that Agra was full. The British are probably not quite in the dark atmosphere, but it didn’t change a thing, music is a universal language and, as it turned out, there were band’s loyal fans among the organizers, hence the decision to invite them. The setlist was dominated by material from their latest album "The Big TV". After some initial minor technical problems they played at 100%. A very successful concert at the end of the day, even the singer Harry McVeigh was not able to hide his satisfaction with the positive response from the black crowd of WGT.

Good morning! Time to pull your ass out of the already steaming tent to move to a meeting with a strong dose of electronics in its full glory. Meanwhile, for everyone who wished that, there was a special exhibition presenting the history of the funeral caravans, including Cadillac, acting as the last procession for Marlene Dietrich. For those who crave for fashion attractions, on Saturday afternoon, there was a show from unique designer Lucardis Feist, whose domain is extraordinary and sublime wedding creations.

We return to Agra where Pouppee Fabrikk is already preparing with their EBM straight from Sweden. Fans gathered under the stage are raging like sheep startled by the wolf in the herd and this, in return, motivates the singer to continue "howling" to the delight of the crowd;). After a technical break veterans of the genre - Placebo Effect – enter the stage. The band played their last show (also on the WGT) in 2003, then everyone was preoccupied with solo projects. It is not difficult to guess that it was a special attraction, plus, we heard some new music, never before played live.

We stay under the influence of electronic sounds, this time moving to Belgium for a meeting with masked masters, so you have me; The Klinik in front of you. On July 4 premiere of a special 8-disc box set of the discography of the years 1984 to 1991 was scheduled, including rare and previously unreleased tracks, a real gem and the same miracle was this concert. The incredible expression  and power of transmission, I felt that Dirk climbed to the heights of his abilities. As if he existed in another reality that he transfers to the public through music. In the set list many gems including "Bite Now Bite", "Sick In Your Mind", "Moving Hands". Slight change of sounds, however, still in the climate of ebm, industrial, welcome to the next heroes of the stage - Front Line Assembly. Under the stage there was quite a change in the audience, whose numbers were growing from track to track. All great, but fatigue and stuffiness inside the venue took lead, and so, we went to gather strength for the night’s special concert.

Vitalic, under this name, saying little to most of the audience, hides Arbez Pascal Nicolas, a French DJ and producer of electronic music. When you do not know what to expect - expect everything! It was just that moment, it was definitely the most danced concert at WGT 2014 Vitalic’s set made the whole audience move, even the most determined walls supports finally succumbed to the unusual allure floating directly from the speakers. A huge plus, if you are looking for something a bit different, living, I recommend to start the adventure with this artist from tracks "Stamina" and "Second Lives".

Festival Sunday passed in the company of guitars, violins, drums and other manual instruments. First, happily hopping The Cruxshadows. Concert correct, they’re still in shape, but if one saw their performance more than 2-3 times it starts to call for some variety in the show. Apart from that, very vigorously, plus for a great contact and climbing the stage;). Next hour belonged to the British UK Decay, playing sounds between post punk and gothic rock. Quite pleasant to the ear, especially the pieces resembling The Sisters of Mercy in style. Before the next artists, the stage require a little preparation, but every Umbra Et Imago listener roughly knew what to expect apart from their favorite music. Mozart and the rest of his band took care of the setting compatible with the motif of their work, a part of which was a little erotic show in the aesthetics of BDSM that attracted audience's attention. To this, add powerful vocals, dominant guitars, and you will receive a crowd of satisfied faces under the stage;). Lady ruling the stage for another 1.5 hours does not need bigger advertising - Tarja Turunen. The first song was enough for me to remembered why I stopped listening to Nightwish. Her vocal power and range of sounds she produces simply knocks out. Accompanied by strong guitars and dynamic drums, she quickly took over the audience gathered in large numbers. Listening to the soprano was such a pleasure, I strongly encourage home listening to Tarja's solo works.

Longer pause and we go back the next night concert of the festival, also in a slightly different mood than their predecessors. Slowdive is an English project playing an intimate, quiet music, you may be tempted to assign them to shoegaze / indie rock. Joyful interspersed with reflective, guitar stroking with a quiet singing, sometimes replaced by a tambourine. Nice break after an eventful day, the densely gathered audience proved that they also had a light flow after the show:).

As you already managed to notice, WGT, apart from loads of concerts, events, attracts dark souls with attractions well away from music. Literary readings, fashion shows, exhibitions, meetings with artists. This year's show was a special one; dedicated to the memory and work of the late, from 12 May 2014, Hans Rudolf Giger. In his works he combined technology with surrealism, mechanics with bizarre creatures, alluded also to sexuality. Within the exhibition, of course, there had to be the most recognizable work of the artist, Xenomorph. For those wanting to personally say goodbye to the master, there was a book of condolences prepared.

We spent the last day of concerts in Agra Halle. According to the program, God Module was to start, but was replaced by Erk Aicrag’s solo project. I do not think anyone specifically complained about this. Rabia Sorda attracted cheering crowds, despite the fact that their repertoire is not as aggressive as Hocico, the frenzy under the stage was not smaller than the basic performance of the lords of Mexico. Very energetic show with well-known songs, as well as fresh productions from the new album "Hotel Suicide". Next two performers are divided by a vast gap and it was perfectly illustrated in the movement of audience. I’m talking about Faderhead and Absolute Body Control. During the first a typical club boom, fast pace, simple text and the party is spinning. On stage Faderhead was supported by Joel Meyer and Daniel Meyer of SAM formation, in the form of accent Marco Visconti of XP8 also appeared. There were plenty of dancefloor hits including 'Dirtygrrrls / Dirtybois'. After the party ended people were literally swept away, as if someone sprayed a particularly foul gas;). Thanks to that, road to the front row lay open before me, after a longer moment Dirk Ivens’ creativity fans started pouring into the hall in growing numbers. Minimalist measures, maximum transmission, already without masks, but just as expressive. A must have for The Klinik enthusiasts! After emotions with songs like "Is There an Exit?" and "Give Me Your Hands" the time has came for the last concert of that WGT stage.

The headliner of the evening was German Oomph!, their popularity in their home ground was proved by the fact that the size of the audience exceeded the capacity of the hall. Refined show; crowd sang along with vocalist Dero not only one song, including the hit "Augen auf!". At the end of the show the masked sailor hero sang a cover of Monty Python's "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life", maybe as a consolation after the ending of this year's Wave Gotik Treffen. For a long time you could hear the applause and requests for an encore, but we, pretty drained, decided to leave toward the tents, grabbing on our way the delicious rolls baked on the spot, stuffed with mushrooms and cheese with fresh fondant and chives on top. The perfect ending of a five-day escapade around the dark and very colorful Leipzig.

Other articles:

• Hocico - Lost World EP - 2021-12-07 (Music reviews)
• M'era Luna 2016 - 2016-10-13 (Live reports)
• Castle Party 2016 - 2016-08-04 (Live reports)
• Oomph! - XXV - 2016-06-08 (Music reviews)
• Amphi Festival 2014 - 2014-09-25 (Live reports)
• Castle Party 2014 - 2014-07-24 (Live reports)
• Faderhead - Atoms & Emptiness - 2014-05-19 (Music reviews)
• White Lies - Big TV - 2014-01-27 (Music reviews)
• Nocturnal Culture Night 2013 - 2013-12-07 (Live reports)
• Gothic meets Klassik 2013 - 2013-11-21 (Live reports)

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