Category: Line-up

Formed in Ghent in the early 80s, Ostrogoth has built up quite a cult following over nearly four decades. What a feat ! Plus, a great story.
Initially, no one believed in this somewhat “barbaric” band. Their first EP, Full Moon’s Eyes, is cliché. Their outfit are (knowingly?) caricatural. Ostrogoth opened for Def Leppard in Poperinge (at the mythical Maeke-Blyde) in 1983. Their fans gave voice but the young English were having fun.
Always be wary of a wounded beast. Ectasy and Danger (1984) and Too Hot (1985) are walking in the same steps of the biggest heavy metal classics like Scorpions / Accept / NWOBHM.
Courageous and determined, Ostrogoth is still there with his stainless pillar: drummer Mario “Grizzly” Pauwels. It is with young swordsmen that our “Grizzly” will smash everything in a theme that sticks to his coat: the good hard old school 80’s.
Fun fact : Ostrogoth shared the stage of the Heavy Sound Festival in Bruges in 1983 with Baron Rojo.

Sorry, this entry is only available in French.

Back in 2019, first edition of our festival, Angel was a banger!
In front of the avalanche of compliments and a significant demand, we decided to schedule them once again but as a main eventer. This quintet with disturbing magnetism and innate sense of spectacle has well deserved its “cult band” status. Borned in the mid-seventies in Washington DC, Angel is more than a marketing operation orchestrated by the Casablanca label and Bill Aucoin, their manager.
Discovered by the mad Gene Simmons, Angel is quickly the “arch enemy” of Kiss but no one is fooled: it is indeed two legends of the american hard rock that the fans are entitled to. Moreover, the gifted Angels quickly make Deep Purple and Uriah Heep look old as their aerial climates and opaline melodies are made of.
If “Helluvah Band” in 1976 is made to be their vintage classic, it rather is The Tower (present on their eponymous album of 1975) which remains ad vitam aeternam as their masterpiece.
Since GARF 2019, Angel released “Risen”, finally an album that really sounds from nowadays. Angel continues his astonishing comeback with Frank Dimino and his unique accents’ voice, as well as in the company of guitarist Punky Meadows, the charismatic disturbing angel.

A 100% feminine touch was wanted. It will happen during this 2nd edition of our GARF and we believe that we made no mistake. Indeed, the London girls from Girlschool can claim to be the first female hard rock band(if we consider that the Runaways were not hard rock). Kelly Johnson, Denise Dufort, Kim McAuliffe and Enid Willams invented themselves in 1980 in the midst of NWOBHM under the maddening patronage of Motörhead and its mogul Lemmy. “Demolition” sets the tone but it is “Hit and Run” in 1981 which integrates the young ladies into the inner circle of the best hard rock bands. Rebellious schoolgirls, our Girlschool promised us an exclusive and special set with their hit singles (“Take It All Away”, “Emergency”, “Race With The Devil”, “Hit and Run”, “C’mon Let’s Go”, “Don’t Call It Love”…) perfectly melodic and well in line with the philosophy of our festival.

Born in 1972 in Atlanta (Georgia) in the torments of racial segregation, Mother’s Finest quickly became a multicultural group juggling happily with various musical fusions. At the center of this unique group, a man and a woman: Glenn Murdock and Joyce “Baby Jane” Kennedy in a duo compared to Ike and Tina Turner.
The RCA label is going to support this group which cheerfully mixes funk, rhythm’n’blues and hard rock. With “Iron Age” in 1981, Mother’s Finest leans towards square and groovy hard rock. Better, he will be the great precursor of fusion rock of the 1990s (Living Colour, Fishbone, Extreme, Faith No More…).
If the Netherlands remain their second homeland, Mother’s Finest rarely visits Belgium and France. Don’t miss this single mother fed with good family values. Indeed, Glenn and “Baby Jean” have hired Dion Derek, their drummer of a son…

Pink Cream 69 was formed in Karlsruhe in 1987 by vocalist Andi Deris, drummer Kosta Zafiriou and guitarist Alfred Koffler. They quickly signed with a major (Sony Music) and became at the end of their first 3 cds (Pink Cream 69 in 1989, One Size Fits All in 1991 and Games People Play in 1993) the «cream» of melodic hard rock made in Germany!
Andi Deris left the band in 1994 to join the heavyweight Helloween, allowing the arrival of an English singer, David Readman. At this time PC69, took a more «modern» turn given the devastating effects of grunge on melodic bands through this era, the laps of time of 2 studio albums and a 1st live, before returning to their first love : all the components of very melodic hard rock with Electrified in 1998, until their last opus, the excellent Headstrong released in 2017, which It is said to be near perfection .
For lovers of beautiful melodies and screeching guitars, PC69, who does not often come to visit our country, will have the heavy task of
compensating for the defection of the Americans from Prophet, but it is already certain that they will win this challenge hands down

 

Band from Liege with a strong transalpine tendency, Steelover enjoyed the good reputation of Rudy Lenners as The Scorpions drummer to make a top spot in the belgian hard rock scene which fluctuated between speed metal and melodic hard rock in the mid eighties.

 

Thanks to Vince Cardillo, an exceptional “cantatore” with a very wide range, Steelover has intelligently made the choice for the second alternative, the melodic one. Their 1984 album, “Glove Me”, brings colourful music with a sharp edge, straight as a die.

 

After a very long break, Steelover reactivated the continuous casting but without Rudy who finally decided to hang back his sticks up to the wall (remember the homage for the first Golden Age Rock edition). Steelover, supported by two “grognards de la Vieille Garde” Pat Fréson and Nick Gardi, will produce themselves for our second edition.

 

With his solid gold fetish singer (Vince), as well as a strong component of youthfulness.

Missing link between The Variations (a frenchie Aerosmith, Led Zep with sinister looks and hangovers) and Trust (undisputed monarch of the all times blue white red hard rock), Océan marks his territory with “God’s Clown” in 1977, or an interesting fusion between a stallion Led Zeppelin and a scary King Crimson.

 

Océan will especially incarnate the pioneering role similar to a big brother in front of the maddening hexagonal hard rock wave from the eighties with Warning, Blasphème, H Bomb, Attentat Rock, Sortilège, Satan Jokers or Vulcain.

 

If Robert Belmonte, the magnificent screamer from the good old days, will contemplate his work from the skies, Georges Bodossian, riffer sniper, will pound up straight to make us understand Océan’s pivotal role in the french loud decibel exoplanet.

Alcatrazz therefore currently has one thing in common with Wishbone Ash, Saxon and far too many others: an entity angry to death and divided in two! It’s rock in a nutshell. We have to bow down and adapt. Even though the very essence of Alcatrazz is that of singer Graham Bonnet, we had to opt for the most modern version and the most suitable for direct operation. That of the two
founding members Jimmy Waldo and Gary Shea.

 

The keyboardist and bassist of this new Alcatrazz (but also of New England!) macqués with the guitarist prodigy Joe Stump and the Scottish singer Doogie White, an old pro who officiated in Rainbow but also with Yngwie Malmsteen and with Michael Schenker . Listening to his latest opus (“V”), this over-vitamined Alcatrazz seems in great shape. To check.

 

Listening to his latest opus (“V”), this over-vitamined Alcatrazz seems in great shape. To check.

Born in the basement in the middle of the punk revolution, Diamond Head, while practice makes perfect, is being seriously considered as one of the most serious underdogs of that famous NWOBHM (New Wave Of British heavy Metal).

 

The 1980 cult album, “Lightning to the Nations” A.K.A. “The White Album”, will put Lars Ulrich’s mind at ease (next Metallica leader), his number one fan. Since then, Diamond Head is living on the royalties earned by his benefactor (four songs covered, one of them is the amazing Am I Evil) and elaborates old school hard rock new treasures, against all odds.

 

Guitarist Brian Tatler’s band will come and play their fabulous “White Album”, the flagship of 1980, an ideal hard year !