180 bands, six stages, over a four day period. This was Blue Ridge Rock Festival 2021! Headliners for this past year’s Blue Ridge Rock Festival included Rob Zombie, Rise Against, Breaking Benjamin, Five Finger Death Punch, Megadeth, Papa Roach, and Shinedown.
2021 was the year to take risks Blue Ridge Rock Festival did just that. From the minute that full lineup dropped in 2021, Danville VA’s Blue Ridge Rock Fest instantly became the most boom-or-bust, can’t miss event of 2021.in 2021 the anticipation for live music was at a all time high. The anticipation sure didn’t manifest as hesitation from fans, as tickets completely sold out over two months in advance. With the most diverse lineup of the year and a dozen or more “Headline” quality bands on the bill, Blue Ridge made good on its promise to be “The Fan Driven Experience”.
Now Blue Ridge Rock Festival 2022 surely ups the bar and is set to be unlike any other rock experience to date.
My first taste of Blue Ridge came from the insanely talented Spiritbox. Spiritbox has been the beneficiary of a couple viral singles, but their rise to prominence within the Djent/metalcore/progressive metal spheres has been primarily driven by their uniqueness in a genre that sometimes gets a little stale. Opening with their new record’s lead single “Holy Roller” felt like the perfect start this festival deserved- an absolute rager of a track that sets the tone for the following. Their setlist focused mostly on the already-released singles from their since-released album Eternal Blue, a significant taste of the band’s new sonic direction. As more and more fans filtered into the festival the aura of anticipation was a heart-stopping buzz. Passing through scattered clusters of people, you could hear chatter and excitement about how many different bands were on the bill. Some were geeking about the big name headliners, of course, but more often than not it seemed like the deeper cuts and unlikely additions were what drew people to Blue Ridge. Other bands performing that day – Soulfly, Testament, Miss May I, Adelitas Way, Sabaton, From Ashes to New, Black Label Society, The Ghost Inside, POD, Skillet, A Day to Remember, Halestorm and Breaking Benjamin
As the sun set on day two, the gothic metalcore kings Motionless in White took over the MainStage for what felt like a true marquee slot.
I had seen Motionless many times previously, but never on such a high billing- just a week prior, they played just after noon at Rocklahoma. With the longer set time and greater freedom as the stage’s closer for the night, Chris Motionless and crew pulled out all the stops. Other bands performing that day – Fozzy, D.R.U.G.S., Sevendust, Clutch, Gemini Syndrome, Asking Alexandria, Anthrax, Chevelle, Fever 333, Rise Against, Atreau, I Prevail, The Offspring, Motionless in White, and Rob Zombie
Saturday and Sunday both featured their share of hard hitting headliners and midday gems. Swedish heavy metal rockers AVATAR took the main stage early in the day, getting the crowd into a frenzy with their theatric performance. Avatar’s sound has came a far ways over recent years, but the one thing held constant is their commitment to their “freakshow” aesthetic. An eccentric act that doesn’t compromise on musicianship, they drew probably the most involved mid-billing crowd of the day. Mainstay songs like “Hail the Apocalypse” and “Smells Like a Freakshow” led to some really hardcore moshing- to the point that people were jumping the Golden Circle barricade to get in on the action.
Other bands performing that day – All that Remains, Corrosion of Conformity, 10 Years, Hatebreed, Avatar, Wage War, Trivium, Cypress Hill, Body Count with Ice T, Seether, Lamb Of God, Megadeth, Badflower and Five Finger Death Punch to close.
The last and final day of Blue Ridge 2021 started off a tad bit slower due to a few artist/band cancellations. With a reworked Monster stage schedule, fans enjoyed a day full of metal and rock. Other bands performing that day – We Came As Romans, Starset, Magg DylanPop Evil, Underoath, Killswitch Engage, F.I.L.T.H., Ill Nino, Mastadon, The Hu, Ice Nine Kills, Papa Roach, Falling in Reverse and Shinedown closing out the Festival. Shinedown’s performance of ‘Simple Man,’ acoustic, with Jelly Roll trading off vocals with Brent Smith is something that is forever etched in the minds of witnessing festival goers! what a moment!
a quick recap, it’s clear a lot could be said about Blue Ridge’s 2021 effort.
Teamwork makes the dream work. The bands and stages were all top-notch with amazing sound quality. While planning for such a huge event was an issue, most problems worked themselves out. Event staff and organizers truly know how to deliver a string of premium, unique performances. The positive energy BRRF fostered was a breath of fresh air after the last year and a half of COVID. All in all, I would consider Blue Ridge Rock Festival 2021 a major success! Many great bands, many great friends… and many great memories. We can NOT wait until next year!
Enjoy these images below of some of the performances from over the weekend.
