Brazil’s seven-day music festival, the legendary Rock In Rio (de Janeiro), is winding up its 2013 iteration. The festival’s line up, which includes artists as disparate as Beyoncé, Muse, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Florence And The Machine and Metallica, offers something for everyone.
Rock In Rio has amassed crowds over around 1.5 million people in years gone by, and has been running for almost 30 years. In 2014 the festival will be held in Lisbon, Madrid and Buenos Aires.
With the summer festival season drawing ever closer, Rock In Rio also acts as a taster, a preview of bands soon to hit Australian shores.
Check out the videos below, which include performances from Soundwave acts Alice In Chains and Rob Zombie, Big Day Out 2014‘s Ghost B.C., Warped’s Offspring, Bluesfest‘s John Mayer as well as Metallica 30 Seconds to Mars.
The festival’s YouTube stream right below – Soundwave headliners Avenged Sevenfold are playing shortly, followed by legendary rockers Iron Maiden.
(Live Stream Has Now Ended) LIVE: Rock In Rio 2013 – Slayer, Avenged Sevenfold, Iron Maiden, 22/09/2013
Watch: Alice In Chains – Complete Rock In Rio set, Thursday 19/09/13
http://youtu.be/ppxs4C3pu0s
American grunge stalwarts Alice In Chains teased fans with a massive set. The band will no doubt be a must-see at Soundwave 2014, so take a look now so that you know what you’re in for.
Watch: Ghost B.C. – Complete Rock In Rio set, Thursday 19/09/13
http://youtu.be/jX1sCd1lUY0
Swedish heavy metal outfit Ghost B.C. provided a perfectly taste of what’s to come at their Big Day out 2014 performance. An hour of dark, cloaked metal always gets the blood pumping.
Watch: Rob Zombie – Superbeast live at Rock In Rio, Thursday 19/09/13
http://youtu.be/ZMXMeTO8r-o
Multi-talented American Rob Zombie is also heading for Soundwave 2014 and played through a number of his hits at Rock in Rio. The epic track Superbeast was a notable highlight.
Watch: Metallica – Complete Rock In Rio set, Thursday 19/09/13
http://youtu.be/UzoJO9X0DQI
Metallica proved they still have energy. Two hours of Hetfield “yeahs” is always fun to “yeah” along to.
Watch: 30 Seconds To Mars – Complete Rock In Rio set, Saturday 14/09/13
http://youtu.be/ULl4oDK6s6M
30 Seconds To Mars provided something a little more accessible. They held a massive crowd under an impressive light show, even stopping mid-song to let them cheer and jump.
Watch: The Offspring – Complete Rock In Rio set, Saturday 14/09/13
http://youtu.be/MhPM6THnu4o
Warped Australia 2013 headliners Offspring showed they’re pretty fly (for white guys). And no, that wasn’t the first song on their set. It was the fourth last.
Watch: John Mayer complete Rock In Rio set, Saturday 21/09/13
http://youtu.be/sk8W9zCjOb0
John Mayer is playing Bluesfest in 2014. His hour-long set proved the America is tremendously skilled with a guitar, even if his public profile is a little rough around the edges.
Watch: Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band – Born in the USA live at Rock In Rio, Saturday 21/09/13
http://youtu.be/3RXw7XYzY88
Ever the performer, Bruce Springsteen played to a massive crowd for almost three hours. The Born in the USA singer still has a bundle of energy, as well as his innate talent, and will be bringing all that with him when he returns to Australia for a 2014 tour.
Watch: Slayer complete Rock In Rio set, Sunday 22/09/13
http://youtu.be/sjuM-DHiG58
Thrash metal heroes Slayer played the festival’s final day, bringing a heap of energy along with them. Now without late guitarist Jeff Hanneman, who died of liver failure in May this year, the band performed to a huge crowd, despite bassist and vocalist Tom Araya admitting he was uncertain about the band’s future back in June.
Watch: Avenged Sevenfold complete Rock In Rio set, Sunday 22/09/13
http://youtu.be/bsAfZHKWUPg
Avenged Sevenfold, who will be in Australia for Soundwave 2014, played to a massive Rio crowd, their stage fitted out with fire-spurting frames and a huge light show. The band went in full throttle; the first ridiculously impressive guitar solo hits around 3 minutes into the set.
Watch: Iron Maiden complete Rock In Rio set, Sunday 22/09/13
http://youtu.be/MGMP0goctwk
Heavy metal icons Iron Maiden closed out Rock In Rio’s final day, starting their set, quite fittingly, at 5 minutes past midnight. The band’s two hour set solidified their high status in the metal world, and showed just how much some of the other bands at Rock In Rio have learnt from their British masters over the last three decades.
