Krank’d Up Festival, Johannesburg SA, 2018

Krank’d Up Festival

29th September 2018
Sundowners, Alberton, Johannesburg, South Africa.

Review and photography by Matt Henry Mendonca.

It’s me again, your friendly neighbourhood photographer. I wanted to start off with a disclaimer: I’m not really a reviewer. The reason I needed to say that is not to lower expectations, but as a segue to the purpose of this “review”.

I’m currently on holiday in South Africa. I came here with the intention of maybe catching a few local bands and photographing them while being able to see some old friends and maybe make some new ones. I never imagined that when I would be here another Krank’D Up festival would be around the corner. “What’s Krank’D Up” you might ask? The best way for me to describe it to someone from New Zealand… Bay Dreams, but Metal! So the intention for this review is not to give you set lists of each band, tell you about how each band played (though I will give some detail) or give you history on the bands. I’m here to try and explain what it’s like experiencing a festival here in South Africa since I truly believe it’s something New Zealand needs for it’s metal community. Maybe I haven’t been in NZ long enough to know all the festivals that have been and passed, but since I have been in New Zealand, I have never experienced something like Krank’D Up.

Here is a quick rundown of this amazing festival:

• Two stages, one inside and one outside main stage
• Two international bands (This year)
• Local bands from across the country start playing from 12pm
• Food stalls and local business stalls for all to enjoy
• Sponsors

Now for some the main focus is the headlining international bands. Can’t deny, the line up each year is incredible… but… To put this into perspective, we recently had two international bands play in New Zealand at one venue. These two bands, Silverstein and Comeback Kid. One million followers and 270k followers respectfully on Facebook. They played at The Whammy Bar. Krank’D Up 2017 had Memphis May Fire and Intervals, one point one million and 170k followers on Facebook. What I’m trying to get at is that basically the show we had at Whammy Bar, could have been a Krank’D Up Fest headliner… Krank’D Up is comprised mainly of LOCAL bands and this to me is the main attraction. With two stages going at alternative times means that when one band is finishing their set, another band is starting theirs. These bands are what makes the Festival great and brings the sense of community. Bands from around the country coming to play and attendance included, folks travelling up to catch a glimpse of one of the Headliners. So my question is, what happened to the New Zealand version of this?

Now if you are in the mood for something other than the current bands playing and you are waiting for another band to play, there are some crazy stalls lined up as you walk towards the main stage. Something as cool as the Monster Energy tent with a photo booth, Guitar Hero stations and did I mention FREE Monster drinks? Something so simple as a gaming station to bring people together to play a game and have fun. This is obviously smart advertising as Sponsorship plays a big part in why a festival like this can exist. With big names like Volkswagen, Monster Energy, Hunter’s and HellFire Cinnamon Whiskey Liqueur, it’s no wonder this has become an annual attraction. This is obviously no easy task to get companies to hand over money for sponsorship and I have to commend the team who put on this show. I’d love to see this model in New Zealand but unfortunately I’m not sure if the big players would come to the plate.

If food was something you were after, there was a options available no matter what you were in the mood for. From gourmet pulled pork burgers, chip n’ dip to pitas and whiskey. Options were great and for an event this size it was quite necessary. Departing from the food came the local business stands similar to what you would find at a local Saturday flea market. From Handcrafted beard wax (which I obviously had to purchase) to jewellery and clothing. Certainly something that I felt catered to the metal community.

Before this review becomes too long and I lose your attention (hoping you’re still with me this far), I do want to talk about how great SikTh and Miss May I were. The Monster Energy Stage had some of the most incredible lighting I have seen in the longest time. SikTh came on stage, mesmerised the audience with just how tight they were and had a performance to match the stunning visuals behind them. The screen on the main stage had such jaw dropping visuals for each band that even Mikee had to turn around and say to the audience that he just wants to sing while turned around looking at them. The guys who ran the sound board and visuals did such an amazing job making each band on that stage have a unique backdrop it felt like each act was a headliner. Mikee, being true to who SikTh are, needed to perform one of their spoken tracks off their first album. Having such a unique voice and range gave “When will the forest speak” it’s authentic performance. If you came to the show having never experience SikTh’s poetic side, you would walk away with a great appreciation of it. Before long, Mikee needed to get South Africa to do one thing for him, raise their voices and chant with him “Look At The Sky”, he wanted all of Johannesburg to hear them and I can testify they did!

Last of all, with great anticipation, after many rap songs being played over the P.A, the lights dim, a back track plays and Jerod walks on stage behind the drums and starts playing “Lost in the grey”. Levi follows suit and Johannesburg goes crazy, echoes of “We are greater than this, We are stronger than before” coming from beyond the barrier. The pace of their set is relentless, favourite like “Hey Mister” and “I.H.E” not giving the circle pit time to recover. Seven songs in, I felt as though it had only been moments before that they walked on stage, the songs have got such energy that 4 minute songs pass in the blink of an eye. One thing is certain, Levi had control of every single person, I believe there is a reason for the lion imagery and symbols in the band and it all has to do with Levi and his presence (and hair) on stage. The only other time I felt a presence from a front man like that was Jesse from Killswitch Engage. When it comes time to conclude their time with Krank’D Up, one last song written for the sole purpose of making the biggest circle pit, “Forgive and Forget”. Though it came to an end, the band walk off stage to meet the voices that were repeating their lyrics back to them. Even though Levi has the presence of a lion on stage, when speaking to him he gives off a very welcoming demeanor wants to speak with each person that line up to ask for a photo that he accepts with open arms…and Pulled tongue on each photo. Here’s hoping that they travel to New Zealand sooner than later after I gave him a little heads up about Download becoming a huge force in Australia. And with that, my long day of many bands, great food and great company came to an end.

Were you there at Sundowners for this magnificent music festival? Or have you been to the Krank’d Up Music Festival some other year? Tell us about it in the comments below!

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