We would like to thank RockRing for organizing this professional event and for inviting us be there as LebMetal.
So here we are, a year later and RockRing announces Summer Fusion II. The denial that Summer Fusion I was a success is out of question as it was a huge event, however last year is no compare to this year. This year’s event was major and if I may say, the best event that took place this year. Outdoor events should be more encouraged as they give space to audience and to artists to feel free with a wider range of bands and a more powerful sound system to be installed. I have to say that the stage setting, lighting and sound were more than most of us were expecting and RockRing did commit to their word. A spacious stage that allows the members to move around easily and interact with the crowd was in place. A monitor for each artist was in set to provide them with the most comfortable sound that could be given to them on stage. The lights and the fire that were installed were amazing, really giving life to the show.
The timing of the event was critical and crucial and everything went by schedule, unlike most events that take place around… The event started at 6:00 pm and ended at 12:00 am just like planned. The management was flawless, everything went according to plan, no fights were engaged things went smoothly. However, 9 bands were a bit much to handle and it was tiring at the end to keep track of everything that was going on, I think that a 30 minutes pause would have been a good idea, but that remains a simple recommendation. The sound was perfect where I spent the night, on the right side of the stage. I would like to say that despite the sleepless nights and the long days the crew spent preparing for the event they didn’t look tired at all, they looked like they were enjoying themselves and Roy Naufal did more than a good job sound engineering the event with all the exhaustion that he must have been going through and the fact that he had to go on stage and play with his band.
All in all it was a very good event, very well organized and greatly appreciated as to the fact that this year attendance did start at 12:00 pm and most attendees did spend the day at the beach enjoying themselves before the concert actually began. Waiting for next year’s Summer Fusion.
- General observations
“I didn’t expect to like the Rock part of the night more than the Metal part, although that speech by Blaakyum’s front man Bassem Deaibess did give me goose bumps :-D. The rock bands had the charm while the metal bands had the spirit and motive to well… get the crowd into a mania.” – Patrick Saad
“The lights were adequate and the event was nicely organized by RockRing who offered us a great spot right next to the event’s entrance.” – Patrick Saad
“Some heard complaints included the 5000 L.L price on Water, the ‘flanger’ like effect that haunted some band’s overall sound and the hosts of the event (who had a difficult job which is pleasing and having conversation with a metal crowd)” – Patrick Saad
- Review
- The event starts with Bandage (at 6 P.M)
“They kick off the show with Perfect strangers which really heated the crowd from the first moment, and it’s my life had a really good twist to it, the band delivered a really nice show and played some of the best rock tunes, such as Frozen by Madonna, Uninvited by Alanis Morisette and so on.. The band has good harmony, instruments were well coordinated a very powerful vocalist who doesn’t fail to move the crowd with her voice. Great event start.” – Mary Maksoud
“Bandage’s Performance was beautiful. There was an oriental track section really interesting melody and mood. The sing along Bon Jovi track was sang along with enthusiasm. Madonna’s “Frozen” cover was impressive, really gave more music to the lyrics than was given by Madonna.” – Rami Rouhana
“This band seemed to fly by quickly; perhaps we enjoyed their set so much that we simply never questioned about the set’s time. Also loved the oriental section and the vocalist’s interaction with the crowd who were a bit ‘shy’ but nevertheless reacted back with the band” – Patrick Saad
“They are a great live band, saw them Live before, sadly this time I was out of luck (Skipped an Amazing Song – the zoo – Scorpions). It was great to see the ROCK acts still taking their show on the road, keeping the soul of real ROCK alive. Even more encouraging is the fact that there are still lots of people who go out and support ROCK. If you get to see these guys, go support them.” – SerJ Panossian
- Chemical X
“Now this band has a vocalist who can sing men’s songs way too good, with a lead guitarist playing with so much feelings that it makes the audience feel along, they take you to another dimension. Their songs were well coordinated, good playlist, Highway star was a good success along with all the other songs that were played, Break on through received a good feedback in the crowd. Good chemistry.” -Mary Maksoud
“Then Chemical X went on stage. Those guys and girl really grasped the American rock music and performed as an original American band. They played the classics beautifully. Played the “Muse” cover of “Feeling Good” pretty much close to the album track, even with the vocal effect in the middle which sounded great.”-Rami Rouhana
“By the time the lights on the long stage lit up, the crowd was on its third wave of cheering. Chemical X performed a hell of a show: the pit went frantic when Chemical X performed their closing song *It’s a long way to the top, if you wana rocknroll -ACDC* -NEGATIVE POINTS : NONE! ” – SerJ Panossian
“Surely a good rock band, one that carefully chooses their songs which pleased everyone’s musical taste. I personally adored their The Doors cover “Break on Through” as they got the crowed singing along.” -Patrick Saad
- Roswell
“The Lebanese rock band Roswell has been around for a while but they’d been laying low for a while. Even thought their drummer was absent the substitute did a very good job and they delivered a very nice set, couple of originals and some covers, Porcupine Tree’s songs were very well played and another brick in the wall was a huge success! Thumbs up for the band.” -Mary Maksoud
“Roswell had a good clean performance. Moved the crowd and interacted with it pretty much.” -Rami Rouhana
“Loved the experimental aspect of the band as they used onstage laptops and as they say “gadgets” to further enhance the listener’s live experience (percussion). I also liked the Porcupine Tree covers for sure. Great mood guys.” -Patrick Saad
“These guys are just Stunning; the fans were amazed when Roswell played the experimental aspect, something to do about the Vietnam War > amazing atmosphere; enjoyed every second of it – Special thanks to Bassist *Maher Mardini* ” – SerJ Panossian
- Alan Azar
“Now this is where I become speechless, some progressive rock that makes your neck skin crawl. The set played was perfect, the music amazing and the guitar and the feelings put into the music were breathtaking. The progression in the songs is very well thought and the members play as one. Whatever I say will not give justice to the band. Amazing job.” -Mary Maksoud
“I only attended the first 2 tracks being played… and it was enough to say “WOWWWW!” -Rami Rouhana
“The event’s highlight in my opinion was Alan Azar, the solo artist who captivated everyone’s attention as he moved gracefully along his songs from his solo album Defective Harmony. Alan deserved every bit of applause that night and he got ’em from fans who didn’t realize that an instrumental show can have the same amount of energy as a non instrumental band.” -Patrick Saad
“Sept 11 was the first time I have seen Alan Azar play since the Rock Nation (Alienz)…Anyway that was a totally different experience. This time around I got to see him as a *headliner* at The *Summer Fusion II* that was crowded with roughly 900 metalheads on a Friday night. That sort of environment made for one helluva show.First, let it be known that Alan has not lost a step since Alienz split up.The show started off with Deffective Harmony (the album) and turned into a tour de force that didn’t let up until the encore performances of Alan and I’ll See the Light Tonight were over. There were five songs played from the new album “Deffective Harmony” to promote it, most notably an ass-kicking performance. The songs actually sounded Amazing live…Let it be known, the man knows how to treat his fans.” – SerJ Panossian
- And we go off to Metal with Blaakyum
“Bassem kicked off the event with a little speech, now when he announced that he was going to talk in Arabic some people were shocked, but I think it is an honor to talk in our native language. His speech really got to crowd going along with the fine set of songs they played! At some point Elias Njeim’s solo wasn’t quite clear but that was fixed. The band delivered a very good show. “– Mary Maksoud
“Blaakyum got on stage close to 8:40 PM, they had a small instrument mixing problem as some instruments volume was low (Guitar).”Lord of the night “from the upcoming album is truly magnificent, sounded more like prog metal with a lot of thrash in it.” -Rami Rouhana
“I’ve always appreciated Blaakyum’s metal spirit and they did show it as they played their set smoothly, with few noticeable sound mixups, which weren’t so bad since they had the crowd right in their in fingertips. Another great set by the local giants.” -Patrick Saad
“As always, never been disappointed from the “Metal Spirit” as they kicked off the Metal show. Bassem Daibess talked with the fans about how *fuxxx up* the politics in Lebanon are… Blaakyum were, are, and will always be excellent! This was one hell of a show and truly Blaakyum is one of the finest metal bands around!!! ” -SerJ Panossian
- BloodInk
“After the silence comes the storm” that’s what they kept telling us. I for one enjoyed this band’s performance. The hooded people on stage (percussionists) were a plus but I didn’t get the point quite well since I didn’t hear them. Bloodink Played a set of their old songs as well as a couple of new ones, I enjoyed the new ones more as I’m not a fan of metalcore, but all the songs were very well played and the band’s performance was magnificent. – Mary Maksoud
“The third “B” was Bloodink, but as Blaakyum it was truly an A+. No one was expecting such a performance, with a good show added (and some technical problems added.. :-P).I would say Bloodink topped them all. There was a small problem with the drum set mics, probably one was not functioning, but that didn’t make a big difference to the performance.” -Rami Rouhana
“I did like the band’s performance, their big ‘comeback’ since a year and a half. Their new adopted style is more aggressive than what everyone’s used to from them and that should help to gather more BloodInk fans to their already big fanbase.” -Patrick Saad
“They said they will surprize the fans, well they kept their word, Bloodink are back with a new style + with some monks on board, THE BIG COMEBACK did the work, an amazing performance” – SerJ Panossian
- Tristmoon
“I do believe that Tristmoon was the most musically rich band of the night. Their songs showed great composing skills and talent and their performance is nothing but error-free. The sound may have been a bit off when they were on, but they played their set without any mistake whatsoever, and that surely pleased them and us as well.” -Patrick Saad
“Amazing atmosphere, even though I’m not a Die Hard Fan of Black Metal, but I think that Tristmoon had the best composing between the other bands playing in Summer Fusion… Would like to Salute Tony, Sako, Serge, Adel and Gary for an amazing job on the 11th of Sept (Thumbs Up) “- SerJ Panossian
“The melodic black metal band Tristmoon achieved again it’s captivation of the crowd. With nice harmony and coordination in the show along with very nice keyboard put into the music which gives black metal a new twist.” -Mary Maksoud
- Silent Anthem
“I believe that what most of us missed about this band is their enthusiastic vocalist with their Manowar set and Manowar-ish originals. I’d have to praise the effort they made and the change of style they had, but to me Silent anthem will always be the band that played Manowar by excellence.” – Mary Maksoud
“Silent Anthem played their energetic set with full confidence, aided by Element 26 and PostMortem guest vocalists. A thrashy performance by a band that got all those Manowar hands rising in the past, and is developing more in the metal genre. Still, I thought the sound was quite rough when they went on, but the show must go on and they kept the energy going for ther rest of their timeline.” -Patrick Saad
“Recently Silent Anthem’s original lineup reformed and got back on the road.. The 11th of September was one of those dates. I am glad to have gotten the opportunity to see these guys up close doing what they do best, turning out some great metal. Switching Gears From Heavy to Thrash Metal, they kicked off the show with FIVE MINUTES ALONE – Pantera, The sound was amazing until they got to the solo part when all things turned the wrong way, the same thing happened with the Original songs even though the vocalist (Kamal Khoueiry and Jean Michel – Sessionists) screamed that there’s something wrong going on (sound on stage) … Let me remind you that Silent Anthems original Vocalist left the band a month ago for personal reasons.JM (voc Postmortem) ended the Show with 4 words *GOD HATES US ALL* – SerJ Panossian ”
And last but not least,
- Engraved
“The closing band was “Engraved” and although I am not a fan of “…Core” they have well mastered the genre and performed as old long beards professionals… (Am sure they looked differently, and jumped on stage differently :-P) -Rami Rouhana
“Another release was Engraved’s EP “The Hidden Truth” which was sold for a mere 3000 L.L. Engraved played the songs later on in the night, and surprisingly the crowd was ready to cooperate and respond to the deathcore songs, after many hours of Metal activity. Great spirit and performance by the band who waited many months for this particular concert.” -Patrick Saad
“I have seen “Engraved” a few times, so I initially went to this concert expecting to see a good show, but nothing “out of the ordinary” or earth shattering. Now even though they were the closing band, the fans were there. Engraved’s EP was being sold at the LEBMETAL stand, bref it SOLD OUT. About a third of the way through the set we found out how truly cool a band they really are. Engraved’s show itself was a good mixture of Core songs, new fan favorites, and deep album cuts. They played for a solid half an hour. No solo’s and no ego trips, just one killer song after another.” – SerJ Panossian
Statistics: 156 people participated in the LebMetal.com live draw.
Average age: 17.6.
There were only 13 people above the age of 20 in the draw.
