Hammerfest was a

music festival A music festival is a festival, community event with music, performances of singing and instrument playing that is often presented with a theme such as musical genre (e.g., rock music, rock, blues, folk music, folk, jazz, classical music), nation ...

held annually in

North Wales North Wales ( ) is a Regions of Wales, region of Wales, encompassing its northernmost areas. It borders mid Wales to the south, England to the east, and the Irish Sea to the north and west. The area is highly mountainous and rural, with Snowdon ...

. In 2013, Hammerfest moved to the Haven site in

Pwllheli Pwllheli ( ; ) is a market town and community on the Llŷn Peninsula (), in Gwynedd, north-west Wales. It had a population of 4,076 in 2011, which declined slightly to 3,947 in 2021; a large proportion (81%) were Welsh language, Welsh speaking. ...

, Hafan y Môr Holiday Park as the festival outgrew its original site at

Pontin's Pontins is a British company operating holiday parks in the UK, founded in 1946 by Fred Pontin. It was acquired by Britannia Hotels in 2011. Pontins specialises in offering half-board and self-catering holidays featuring entertainment at r ...

Holiday Village,

Prestatyn Prestatyn (; ) is a seaside town and community in Denbighshire, Wales. Historically a part of Flintshire, it is located on the Irish Sea coast, to the east of Rhyl. Prestatyn has a population of 19,085. Origin of name The name Prestatyn d ...

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

. It is not related to a music festival of the same name hosted by white supremacist groups. The festival was owned by emc3i Ltd, sponsored by the music magazine

Metal Hammer ''Metal Hammer'' is a heavy metal music magazine and website founded in 1983, published in the United Kingdom by Future, with other language editions published by different companies available in numerous other countries. ''Metal Hammer'' featu ...

and run by the organizers of the

Hard Rock Hell Hard Rock Hell is a three day music festival held at Vauxhall Holiday resort, Great Yarmouth. It was previously held at Hafan y Môr Holiday Park, Pwllheli, Gwynedd, North Wales, and up until 2011 at Pontin's Holiday Village, Prestatyn, Wales. ...

festival. Because the festival was held at a

holiday camp A holiday camp is a type of holiday accommodation, primarily in the United Kingdom, that encourages holidaymakers to stay within the site boundary, and provides entertainment and facilities for them throughout the day. Since the 1970s, the term ...

, the organizers made pre-built venues and stages, and attendees stayed in the on-site accommodation. This enabled the festival to be held during the winter/spring months when outdoor camping is not desirable.

Hammerfest I

The original Hammerfest was held on 24–25 April 2009 in

. Fifty bands appeared at the festival spread over three stages and across the two days.

Saxon The Saxons, sometimes called the Old Saxons or Continental Saxons, were a Germanic people of early medieval "Old" Saxony () which became a Carolingian " stem duchy" in 804, in what is now northern Germany. Many of their neighbours were, like th ...

Sepultura Sepultura (, "grave")Barcinski & Gomes 1999, page 17. is a Brazilian heavy metal band formed in Belo Horizonte in 1984 by brothers Max and Igor Cavalera.Barcinski & Gomes 1999, page 16. They were a major force in the groove metal, thrash met ...

and

Opeth Opeth is a Swedish progressive metal band from Stockholm, formed in 1990. The band incorporates folk music, folk, blues, classical music, classical, and jazz elements into its usually lengthy compositions, as well as strong influences from deat ...

headlined the two-day event. *

Bullet for My Valentine Bullet for My Valentine, often abbreviated as BFMV, are a Welsh heavy metal band from Bridgend, formed in 1998. The band is currently composed of Matthew Tuck (vocals, rhythm guitar), Michael Paget (lead guitar), Jason Bowld (drums) and J ...

were originally booked as headliners for the festival, but pulled out due to recording commitments.

Hammerfest II

The second Hammerfest was held on 12–13 March 2010, with a pre-party on the preceding Thursday. 44 bands performed across three stages during the two-day festival, with an additional 8 bands performing on the second and third stages during the Thursday pre-party. The festival was headlined by 5 Finger Death Punch and

Suicidal Tendencies Suicidal Tendencies is an American crossover thrash band formed in 1980 in Venice, California, by vocalist Mike Muir. The band has undergone various lineup changes, with Muir as the only remaining original member. Their current lineup includes ...

Hammerfest III

The third Hammerfest was held on 18–19 March 2011. A pre-party was held on the preceding Thursday as in the previous year, with bands performing on the second and third stages. 48 bands performed across three stages during the two-day festival, with an additional 11 bands performing during the Thursday pre-party. Accept and

Sabaton A sabaton or solleret is part of a knight's body armour, body armor that covers the foot. History Sabatons from the 14th and 15th centuries typically end in a tapered point well past the actual toes of the wearer's foot, following poulaines, f ...

were the headline acts. Four months before the festival,

(who own the venue) went into

administration Administration may refer to: Management of organizations * Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal: the process of dealing with or controlling things or people. ** Administrative assistant, traditionally known as a se ...

. However, the festival still took place as scheduled.

Hammerfest IV

Hammerfest returned for a fourth edition of the festival on 15–18 March 2012.

Anthrax Anthrax is an infection caused by the bacterium '' Bacillus anthracis'' or ''Bacillus cereus'' biovar ''anthracis''. Infection typically occurs by contact with the skin, inhalation, or intestinal absorption. Symptom onset occurs between one ...

and

Skindred Skindred is a Welsh band that fuses heavy metal with other genres, most notably reggae. Formed in Newport in 1998, they are well known for their energetic and involving live performances and have won several awards including "Best Live Band" a ...

were the headline acts on the main stage. The format was the same as previous years with the pre-party beginning on the Thursday night. In Total, 57 bands played across the three stages. Tickets for next year's Hammerfest 5 went on sale during the festival which promises to be bigger than ever at the new site.

Hammerfest V

The fifth installment took place between the 14 and 16 March 2013. The pre-party night took place on the 14th with bands playing on the second stage. Hammerfest 5 saw the introduction of an unplugged stage on the Friday but in general only two stages were used. The event was moved to Hafan Y Mor in Pwllheli.

Hammerfest VI

Hammerfest VI ("Book of the Dead") was in Pwllheli from 13 to 16 March 2014.

Hammerfest VII

Hammerfest VII, titled "METAL MARAUDERS" was held from 12 to 15 March 2015.

References

External links

* {{Major British Music Festivals Heavy metal festivals in the United Kingdom Music festivals in Wales Pwllheli Spring (season) in Wales