Reviews

Knotfest festival finally arrived in Brazil last Sunday, December 18th, in a first edition with unforgettable shows, heavyweight collaborations within the event's impeccable curation, and a feeling of wanting more at the end of the night closed by Slipknot, even with points for improvement in the structure.

The day's intense work kicked off with Brazilian bands from the lineup, with Black Pantera taking the stage at 11 am for a short but intense set to a loyal audience, delivering a message about those who believe in "white power." The band was recruited to replace the American band Motionless In White , who canceled their shows in the country at the last minute due to health issues among band members and tour crew. (If you have trouble viewing our photo gallery, click here )

During his set with Jimmy Rats, Oitão delivered a frenetic sound and managed to create a sparse mosh pit in front of the stage, but it was clear that the audience was still adjusting to the festival in those early moments under the merciless sun.

That initial shyness changed during Project46's show, which drew the biggest crowd to Knotstage in the early hours of the day. With the LGBTQIA+ flag on stage, the band demonstrated their ability to control the audience, who obeyed when vocalist Caio MacBeserra warmed up the crowd for Slipknot's show by having everyone kneel before jumping, and then opening a wall of death at the frontman's command.

Kicking off the international acts at Knotfest Brazil , Trivium arrived on the Carnival Stage with a high-energy explosion. The band, which had already performed in São Paulo during the week to a much more intimate audience (see photos here ), was celebrated even among the vendors at the bars near the stage. Under the charismatic leadership of Matt Heafy , Brazilian fans were challenged to surpass the energy of the Buenos Aires, Argentina, crowd, considered "the best of our Latin American tour" so far by the band's frontman. The solution to overcome their rivals would be to sing, jump, and headbang along with the group.

Soon after, with a prime time slot and stage for such a young band, performing after veterans like Trivium and on a more prominent stage than Sepultura, who would arrive next, Vended drew a younger crowd. Griffin Taylor showed his full potential, reminiscent of his father, Corey Taylor , in vocal quality, good stage presence, and foul mouth, never uttering a single phrase without dropping three or four "fucking"s in between. Although the rest of the band is somewhat stagnant, with necessary improvements in performance, Vended's energetic sound demonstrated their potential, and the boys' promise to return to Brazil will certainly find an audience to fulfill it.

With a few minutes' delay to await the World Cup final, which hampered movement between stages due to the sheer number of metalheads glued to the game (transmitted live on a giant screen in the area between both stages), Sepultura gathered a gigantic Carnival Stage crowd to end the year in grand style. The most relevant name in Brazilian metal delivered a celebratory show to close out the year, featuring several special guests from the album *SepulQuarta* , starting with Scott Ian (Anthrax), Matt Heafy (Trivium) , and Phil Anselmo (Pantera). The show was widely supported by the audience, who formed mosh pits after Andreas Kisser pointed out the initial shyness of the fans. The chants of "Sepultura, Sepultura" were sung at every opportunity and echoed until the end of the venue.

Since all the shows at the event were interspersed between both stages of Knotfest Brasil, positioned at opposite ends of the Interlagos Sambadrome, and with little time between each performance, it became impossible to attend all the shows – in our case, despite complete photographic coverage, it wasn't possible to follow Mr. Bungle and Bring Me The Horizon to embark on other adventures, such as buying food and visiting the Knotfest Museum, but our collaborator Leca Suzuki captured the best moments.

In the final stretch of the Carnival Stage, the Pantera tribute reunion drew another huge crowd: people arrived running, arms raised high, in a festive mood, singing along to all the lyrics and jumping around. With only Phil Anselmo from the original lineup present, since Rex Brown was absent from the tour after contracting COVID-19 and was temporarily replaced by Derek Engemann , the live result of this return of the band's discography to the stage is musically irresistible: Anselmo continues with his unmistakable vocals and in top form, while guests Zakk Wylde and Charlie Benante honor the legacy without losing their own personalities in the process.

There's an insistence on justifying the reunion – or perhaps the use of the Pantera logo and name – implied in the way the Abbott is used throughout. Before the band takes the stage, a clip with images of Pantera in their heyday is shown, with the silhouettes of Dimebag Darrell and Vinnie Paul announcing the start of the show. "Every note played is a tribute to them," the vocalist explained early on. For those more receptive to the reunion, despite the controversies, the gestures probably sit well as a worthy tribute. At the end, the vocalist hinted at a possible return, asking the fans present if they would attend another Pantera show in São Paulo.

Judas Priest arrived with the classic edge that had been missing from the lineup until then, with their leather outfits, grandiose choruses, drum solos, and 50 years on the road, drawing a huge crowd to the Carnival Stage. The band was part of Metal Week and had already performed in São Paulo (see photos and review here ) to a smaller audience last Thursday, the 15th, but showed how much more power a stage worthy of the stature of the history of metal giants gains, even with a more direct set.

To close out the unforgettable night, Slipknot arrived in full force, as expected, drawing a gigantic crowd of fans of all ages, including children, with a predominance of young adults. The setlist, balanced between past and present, was full of classics, much celebrated by the audience. "It doesn't matter if you've been with us for 20 years or 20 minutes, here we are a family," assured Corey Taylor .

With a grand stage and fire effects, the band delivered a visceral and cathartic performance, justifying the fascination of the passionate audience in Brazil and the grandeur of Slipknot's name in current metal. Promising a return, the band closed the night with fireworks and the expectation of future editions of the festival here. 

The Knotfest experience left something to be desired. 

The festival, curated by Slipknot, the night's main headliner, offers an experience beyond the music, divided between the Carnival Stage and the Knotstage. However, in the Brazilian edition, the empty spaces were surprising, spaces so commonly occupied by brand activations and covered rest areas at events of other musical styles, such as Primavera Sound , which recently took place at the Interlagos Sambadrome.

Without elaborate decorations or structures designed to fully immerse the audience in the world of heavy metal and the band's vision, Knotfest offered only the basics for its first Brazilian edition: bars, food courts with food trucks and stalls, and official merchandise stores. The few circus performers who seemed to be the necessary extra to create an atmosphere within the band's bizarre world were insufficient to occupy the fan traffic area, attracting little attention. 

Among the unique features of Knotfest were an area reserved for tattoos; a giant screen to show the World Cup final, which drew a surprising number of people throughout the game, with exuberant celebrations after goals; and the most anticipated attraction: the Knotfest Museum , the event's most distinctive attraction, which had fans queuing in long lines under the sun, waiting up to 1 hour and 30 minutes to enter and see in person the band's clothing and masks, musical instruments, and other items from Slipknot's history.

Paul Gray 's bass guitar , the attraction could have explored more photo opportunities, something that was also lacking outside: there were few spaces for fans to pose and record their experience at the event in a way that was easily recognizable from where they were.

The lines were another issue: fans reported long waits to park or enter the event. At the food trucks, there were waits of up to an hour to receive food, which meant missing shows, and some establishments even experienced periods of complete shutdown.

The festival's greatest success lay in its musical curation, with high-level shows and acts that broadly pleased the audience, balancing veterans like Judas Priest, big names like Slipknot themselves, and new generations like Bring Me The Horizon and Vended. Even without as much immersion in terms of infrastructure, the event can be considered a success and left expectations for future editions in the country.

READ ALSO: Bring Me The Horizon delivers a powerful show without "Sleepwalking" and with Pabllo Vittar

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