Earlier this month, we learned that it's highly likely that Mayhem Fest would not be coming back. This leaves a massive void in the summer touring circuit in North America. Summer for metal in North America is already pretty bleak as most bands head overseas to Europe for the festival circuit there, leaving very few bands in the States.
But it looks like Slipknot is, maybe, trying to change that with their namesake, Knotfest. Knotfest first started in 2012, with two one day shows in Iowa and Wisconsin. Last year, it expanded to a weekend destination festival in California and went to Japan. This year, it's back in California as a destination festival and if Corey Taylor has it's way, it's going to hit 10 different cities next year.
In a brand new interview with Musik Universe, Taylor stated:
“We’re gonna continue to do the Knotfest shows. Right now we’re trying to figure out how big to make them and how to expand it. My idea was to do maybe ten weekends in different places—maybe five in the U.S., a couple up in Canada, and maybe one down in Mexico City. Just try to expand it like that, so people get the actual experience of it, and you’re not running yourself into the ground trying to chase something that it isn’t. So that’s what we’re looking at right now.”
I think that seems like a reasonable approach and there is certainly quite the void, as mentioned, in the summer touring scene for metal. But will there be enough bands available on only weekends to make this a feasible tour? It could be argued that the bands on these bills could book their own off-dates in smaller markets en-route to the next gigs, but then that means all these bands are competing for venues and fans and it could lead to more trouble than it's worth.
I guess we'll see how this pans out next year.
