Review & Photos: Summer Of Loud Festival in Clarkston, Michigan

By Neil Shumate, OOTB Publications

With a general absence of wide-ranging city-to-city, traveling, day-long, heavy music tours to look forward to each summer—thinking back to the likes of Ozzfest (RIP 2010), Mayhem Festival (RIP 2015) and Warped Tour (RIP 2019)—it’s a breath of fresh air to have the torch passed and welcome in the inaugural Summer Of Loud Festival.

Eight stellar bands with a rotating four headliner lineup, traveling nationally from late June to late July, were welcomed with open arms, bringing thousands to rock out with leaders of modern heavy music at Pine Knob Music Center in Clarkston, Michigan on July 16.

The lineup brought a bit of everything to everyone: Florida band Dark Divine’s gothic paint and crowd interactive showmanship; Alpha Wolf’s solid metalcore quintet fury; The Amity Affliction’s perseverance and persistence with lead vocalist Joel Birch in a broken foot boot; The Devil Wears Prada’s incomparable variety of angst and energy, with twenty years of rocking; Australian band Parkway Drive’s superlative metal and a rotating drum wheel o’ flames; Killswitch Engage’s ferocious metal backed by longevity with a span of twenty-five years; Beartooth’s dedicated devotion to fans and performances of hit after hit; I Prevail’s superb headlining spot, repping their home city of Detroit like no other.

Each artist gave it their all, delivering 10/10 performances for attendees to remember for a lifetime. Did I mention the fire? The heat and humidity was one thing, but this tour brought heavy amounts of pyro on stage at most excellent levels.

It was a tour not to be missed, presented by Live Nation alongside independent artist management company Sound Talent Group. STG was co-founded by late, prominent music executive and agent Dave Shapiro who passed away in May following a tragic plane crash in San Diego.

Noted by STG as Summer Of Loud Festival being “a dream for many years” that has come to fruition, dedicating each show to Shapiro who helped artists on the lineup achieve success and “Kendall Fortner and Emma Huke who helped make it a reality with care and passion for the music we’ll get to experience.”

With as well as this festival has been received with some sold-out dates and fans filling in throughout the day—packing amphitheaters even on weekdays—hope is present that the Summer Of Loud Festival thrives and carries on each year as an annual summer music tradition for fans of heavy music.

Tour Dates

https://summerofloud.com/

I PREVAIL (click to enlarge)