My band, Black Veil Brides, left May 31 and headed off to Germany. This would be our first time in several of the countries we visited, and our first time playing some of the biggest festivals known to metal.
First stop, Rock AM Ring. Once we arrive, we start putting our warpaint on right away. Then as we wait to play, we hang out with our friends from Asking Alexandria and All That Remains. It was a pretty hot out and quite windy, but we went out and played our show, leaving a mark of who we were and not to be forgotten.
Off to Rock IM Park for the second show of the festival run, which, of the first two, was better for me personally. We played the arena, and as our intro started to play, people in the back were sitting on the ground. By the time we came out, everyone was standing up, and by the time we finished, the place was packed and everyone's fists were in the air. Despite what you may have heard or think out Black Veil Brides, you will be a fan once you see us live.
Next stop, we head to Denmark to play a headlining show in Copenhagen. This was our first time in Denmark, and it was completely insane. The show was sold out, fans were showering us with gifts, flowers, drawings and paintings.
We played our set and then went out to hang out with the fans and sign autographs before we left. I cannot wait to head back there to play again. We flew out of Denmark and headed to London to attend the Kerrang awards, where we were won best international newcomer.
It's truly amazing to win the award knowing it was because of our fans who voted for us, showing everyone how big our BVB army really is. Like us or hate us, we are NOT going away.
It was a great experience, and we met some awesome people. We hung out with some of the guys in Bullet for my Valentine, who are super-nice guys, and I love their music. We also met Alice Cooper, who is such an inspiration. It was an honor when he gave us a shout out during his acceptance speech.
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I had the chance to talk to Corey Taylor from Slipknot/Stone Sour for a couple of minutes after the award ceremony was over. The party went on, then the after parties went on, and all in all, our first time at the Kerrang awards was a highlight.
Off to Glasgow, Scotland, we go. Another headlining show, again sold out. This was was just as crazy as Denmark. The crowd was so loud, it hurt my ears on stage. It was an amazing show! On this festival run we have been playing four new songs from our new record, Set The World On Fire, which came out June 14.
The tracks include "God Bless You," "Love Isn't Always Fair," "Legacy" and "Fallen Angels." After the show we had to leave to drive back to Download, and as we were leaving fans were chasing us down the street screaming!
Finally the last show of our two-week run, the Download Festival. We played the last day of the three-day festival, and the weather was not looking good. It started raining before we even arrived, and it was pretty windy and cold.
However, this didn't stop people from freezing and getting soaked. We did a signing that lasted a couple hours, and I felt so bad for everyone being so cold and wet, but they are so loyal to us, they didn't seem to care.
Finally the time has come where we head to stage. Our intro plays, and we go straight into "Love Isn't Always Fair." The stage is soaking wet, it's cold, but that is the last thing that will stop us. We gave the show our all and rocked out hard to keep ourselves warm. The crowd was amazing and it felt very unreal to be playing Download.
It's been a dream. By the end of our set, I was burning up and the cold air actually felt good for a little while. The next day we flew back to Los Angeles where we will be heading out all summer on the Warped Tour. After this festival run overseas, I cannot wait to head back for our headlining tour in October.
We will see you all out there on the road!
Jake Pitts plays guitar in Black Veil Brides, whose highly anticipated sophomore effort, Set The World On Fire, was released on June 14 via Lava Records.
