It’s Thursday, everyone. That means two things. 1. It’s time to start the weekend’s drinking. And 2. You jabronis get a new #tbt. Lucky you. Now, if you’ll recall, it was this Thursday last year that my first Wacken Open Air experience kicked off — and frankly, that’s still hard to believe. Furthermore, today marks the start of W.O.A. 2015. I can’t think of a better time to reflect on last year’s festival, can you? Of course you can’t.

Obviously, that week was filled with countless memorable moments throughout. Performances by Emperor, Behemoth, King Diamond, Carcass… (the list goes on and on almost indefinitely) all made for what was quite literally the trip of a lifetime. But as insane as it was seeing all those bands with 100,000 other fans, there is one personality in metal that allllways stands out. And that would be Devin Townsend.

Now, by the time Hevy Devy took the stage, we had been standing in the hot sun at the front row nestled in between the Black Stage and the True Metal stage for the better part of seven hours. We were tired. It was pushing 100 degrees. There was no shade. So we were exhausted. I distinctly remember sitting, back against the barricade to the stage, and dozing off during the likes of…I don’t know, Skid Row or some shit. But needless to say, this dude’s ridiculousness brought us back to attention quite quickly once he took the stage. What helped all that? Why, a giant heavy metal group hug, of course…

Fun stuff, am I right? That would be “Grace,” off Devin’s 2012 album Epicloud, and it’s incredible to see live. Especially in this setting. I’ve said it a million times before: if you EVER get a chance to attend Wacken Open Air, do it. No excuses. This is the signature open air metal festival and you owe it to yourselves to go at least once.

“Ein Bier… bitte.”
-Corey