It is happening now: A massive wave of traffic is incoming but thanks to the experienced stewards everything works like a well greased machine. All cars are rolling. Today’s sky looks like a painting in white and blue with a yellow dot. It is getting quite hot and inside the tents temperatures get close to boiling.

Now it is time for a tea, coffee, orange juice, water or whatever you like as long as it kills that dreadful hangover from last night. The building crews have been busy bees as well and the two main stages are already being tested. A massive PA will give a strong sound and even the people in the back can enjoy a great sonic pressure thanks to the big delay towers, which have meanwhile been fully outfitted as well.

Next to the Party Stage you will find another nice novelty in the shape of another new video wall. Again this festival has listened to the wishes of its visitors to improve their experience. Your criticism and suggestions are being treated seriously in Wacken.

Behind the scenes of the W.E.T. Stage all hands are busy. At 12:00 CET the Metal Battle between international hopefuls for a record deal will commence. This is your chance to support the heroes of tomorrow and to tell your grand children: "When I was at your age, I saw those guys playing their first gig in Wacken!" Run to the tent now...

In the Wackinger village warriors clad in helmets and armour, bearing shield and sword are battling it out and delivering kind of historic explanations. More entertainment is offered in the Bullhead City tent, where the big boys are wrestling and some girls are having competitions in wet t-shirts. Across the field a long queue marks the entrance to the Wacken Outlet Store, where Larry is making sweet bargain offers for merch left offer from previous festivals and tours to happy punters. Good luck with your hunting!

In the inner area those German beer taps are getting polished, while the press is arriving in droves in the backstage camping area. The traditional Metal Hammer bus surprises everybody for only blocking the access road for ten minutes with interesting manoeuvring this year. Congratulations. If you are able to read German you should sneak a peek at their Wacken Open Air blog too.

And now it’s about high time to check out the quality of the beer in the Bavarian beer garden. One has to make sacrifices to the great good. Cheers!

Your Wacken diary team

Time to get the party started: Crazy or creative – the things that our visitors are coming up with to decorate themselves or their spaces on the camping sites seem hard to believe sometimes. Anything goes as long as it is fun. Amidst this happy chaos a marching band is playing Metal hits on brass and drum to the delight of their audience. Beer is being offered in exchange of flashing certain body parts and weird games are being played all over the grounds often involving the more or less voluntary participation of those passing by. Metalheads just know how to throw a big party.

On the W.E.T. Stage the contestants of the Metal Battle from all over the globe are fighting it out with guitars and riffs amongst each other. Great to see, that so many supporters are cheering their bands in the tent. In order to play here some travelled to Wacken from far places like El Salvador or Iceland. This is all done in a spirit of good humoured competition among friends even thought here can only be one lucky winner in the end.

Bullhead City goes wild. Big and nearly naked men are hammering each other onto the boards or flatten the referee much to the entertainment of the audience. The wrestlers are back and their tent already well visited even on first day. In the meantime some probably not so original Scots are having "Highland Games" in the Wackinger village, where armoured guys and girls are parading around too.

This band is to big for their stage: the legendary Wacken Firefighters are filling up the Bavarian beer garden far beyond its normal capacity. A large crowd is assembling outside the garden fence too. A swarm of reporters and camera crews in front of the stage makes this show look like a major press conference. If the reporters have been speculating on protests from the Metal community in the face of such musical difference, they are being proved wrong by a happily cheering crowd. And fun for all...

More people are coming in all night long. In the dark it is especially necessary of course to drive carefully and rather have one break to many than one too less. Have a good trip!

Your Wacken diary team