THE OZZFEST '98 @ Milton Keynes Bowl, June 20, 1998

Main Stage: Black Sabbath / Ozzy / Foo Fighters / Soulfly / Pantera / Slayer / Fear Factory / Therapy?
Second Stage: Coal Chamber / Life of Agony / Human Waste Project / (h?d) p.e. / Entombed / Pitchshifter

Being in England twice in as many years was reminiscent to visiting the local dentist. This time the trip consisted of me, my Dad, & my brother and we all had the crazy idea of checking out The World Cup in Paris. With a few days to spare, there was no question checking out one of the biggest & freshest metal fests to date.

Milton Keynes is an hour train ride from London and going solo, I had no one to talk to which felt strange. Luckily, the metalheads in the same cabin were listening to Strapping Young Lad "City." This put me at ease and knew the whole day would totally fucking rock.

The set up of this fest was great - two stages side by side and bands would alternate between the main and second. Merchandise tents were in the shade so you wouldn't suffer in the heat and food stands were conveniently located by the stage. It was impossible to miss bands.

Missed Pitchshifter by a heartbeat so next up were Entombed and factoring in their lineup changes as well as musical direction, odds of a decent set were slim. However, "Left Hand Path", "Wolverine Blues", and "Hollowman" all made it possible for no complaints.

Slayer had just released Diabolus In Musica and thankfully, only a few songs from this album were played. Tom Araya greeted the audience to "War Ensemble", "Mandatory Suicide", "South of Heaven", "Killing Fields", and others.

No idea how the Foo Fighters were on the bill but one moment I'll never forget is Dave Grohl having some fun by openly asking the crowd, "Do you want to see my butt?" About 300 different answers were yelled out but all was silent when Dave's rear end had the final laugh.