Rock on the Range 2018 came and went as quickly as the stormy weather this past weekend in Columbus, Ohio. Mother Nature was determined to wreak havoc on North America’s largest music festival for two out of 3 days in a row, but the festival and the fans came out on top. This year marks number 12 for the annual festival that includes three stages, more than 50 bands, comedians, band signings and so much more, as well as The Music Experience.
The Music Experience is a massive tent set up on the festival grounds that includes guitar displays, from several guitar companies (ESP, Dean, and Ibanez etc.), artist signings along with tons of other music and sound gear. Ronz World custom painted guitars is also a part of the music experience. Ron paints customs guitars for Rock on the Range along with other music festivals, that are raffled off to lucky ticket holders.
Friday was off to a rocky start due to weather causing a slight delay in the day’s festivities, but luckily, the days schedule was not affected. The festival was in full swing shortly after lunch time. All three stages were up and running while thousands of fans where tripping over each other to get prime viewing locations to check out their favorite artists.
Main stage played host to one of the most anticipated newcomers, Greta Van Fleet. The Frankenmuth quartet never ceases to amaze and capture the audience. The guys played their set to a massive crowd early in the day. Greta Van Fleet has been touring the globe since the release of their EP, From the Fires in November 2017. The guys have easily become a fan favorite and must been seen live to truly appreciate their level of talent.
Alice in Chains headlined the main stage on Friday night, joined on the bill by A Perfect Circle, Breaking Benjamin, Machine Gun Kelly, Greta Van Fleet, Underoath, Body Count, Quicksand, 10 Years, The Bronx, Emmure, Power Trip, Hawthorne Heights, Turnstile, Senses Fail, The Fever 333, Dance Gavin Dance, I See Stars, Mutoid Man and Spirit Animal.
Body Count is another fan favorite that sets the crowd on fire with songs like “Cop Killer” and “Manslaughter”. Lead vocalist Ice T and lead guitar Ernie C are incredibly charismatic and lead their fans to a place of free will and liberty. Beware of the front row as crowd surfers are usually rather extensive keeping the security guards on their toes.
Saturday was a different story. Mother Nature decided to shut things down for about three hours until a group of storms passed over. The entire venue had to be evacuated temporarily until safety concerns were ruled out.
Sadly, there were a couple of sets that were cut short and Bullet for My Valentine was removed from the bill completely due to time constraints while the entire evening was pushed back by an hour or two.
Avenged Sevenfold got the closing honors on Saturday, May 19, supported by Stone Sour, Three Days Grace, Black Veil Brides, Asking Alexandria, Tech N9ne, Trivium, Andrew W.K., Atreyu, Miss May I, New Years Day, From Ashes to New, Stick to Your Guns, Cane Hill, Wilson, Grandson, My Ticket Home, Like Moth to Flames and Them Evils.
Corey Taylor and Stone Sour put on a fantastic show as usual. The guys also surprised a few lucky fans by playing an acoustic set in the Zippo Encore tent. The Zippo Encore experience is another part of the festival. Be sure to check in at the Zippo display at various festivals for more information. The tent hosts secret acoustic sets with various artists in an intimate setting throughout the entire weekend.
Sunday was business as usual for rock n roll fans. It was super-hot, but the rain didn’t dare rear its ugly head three days in a row.
Tool finished out the weekend on Sunday, May 20. The bill for that day also included Godsmack, Stone Temple Pilots, The Used, Babymetal, I Prevail, Baroness, Yelawolf, Code Orange, Red Sun Rising, Anti-Flag, We Came as Romans, Tyler Bryant & The Shakedown, Like a Storm, Toothgrinder, Shaman’s Harvest, Shim, Stitched Up Heart and Joyous Wolf.
Godsmack has always been a huge favourite of mine and never disappoint. It is and has always been their goal to put on a great old fashioned “rock show”. Godsmack played songs spanning their entire career like “Go Away”, “Voodoo” , along with new release “Bulletproof” from their latest album, “When Legends Rise”.
PHOTO GALLERY
Photos by TM Photography
FRIDAY MAY 18TH
A Perfect Circle
Atreyu, Body Count, Breaking Benjamin, Greta Van Fleet
SATURDAY MAY 19TH
Stone Sour
Asking Alexandria, Three Days Grace
Zippo Sessions – Stone Sour, Joyous Wolf
SUNDAY MAY 20TH
Godsmack, Stone Temple Pilots
Joyous Wolf, Red Sun Shining, Shaman’s Harvest, Stitched Up Heart, The Used, Tyler Brant and the Shakedown
