There are few nice traditions around Christmas but none is more heavy metal than the official W:O:A® Xmas calendar. 13 years ago the promoters started to announce new band for the next festival from December 1st to December 24th. This year’s edition included about 60 new bands for Wacken Open Air 2018 line-up. The biggest band package was revealed on Christmas Eve.
One of the four bands is German Power Metal legend Helloween with their Pumpkins United Tour. The Pumpkins United banner brings together the current lineup of Helloween and the former members Kai Hansen and Michael Kiske to perform their biggest hits together on stage. Another highlight: The Swedish heavy metal band Ghost with their satanic yet playful lyrics and catchy melodies will come back Wacken after their first show in 2011. Next year, Papa Emeritus 0 and his Nameless Ghouls will transform the “Harder” stage into a very special black mass.
Also the fancy Glam Metal heroes from Steel Panther are back in Wacken. The band released its new album “Lower the Bar” earlier this year and again it was a huge success all over the world. As always, the album features coarse and offensive humor combined with great rock and metal melodies. Last but not least the biggest another US band was announced: Cannibal Corpse. New York Death Metal is always in season and this is why the band will return to Wacken in 2018.
For the metalheads every day since December 1 felt like Christmas since they got new band announcements on every day. For example the Swedish melodic metal band In Flames or their fellow countrymen Clawfinger who will celebrate the 25th anniversary of “Dead Dumb Blind“ in Wacken. Furthermore Metallic Hardcore specialist Hatebreed, the German medieval band Schandmaul as well as the Metalcore bomb Eskimo Callboy were some of the additions to the billing for the 29.