Rock2Wgtn (translation: Rock to Wellington) is all about Phil Sprey and the team at Capital C entertainment doing exactly that: bringing rock to Wellington. Over two nights during Easter weekend an almost ridiculous array of the biggest stadium rock and metal acts from yesteryear will rock ‘n’ roll all night and party every day at the Cake tin. Alice Cooper, Kiss, Poison, Whitesnake, and the prince of darkness himself Ozzy Osbourne headline the biggest gig this city has ever seen (probably).
The entertainment ain’t limited to aging rockers though: kiwi bands The Valves, Sonic Alter and The Symphony of Screams all get to test their metal against the internationals. Saturday night also sees some of the country’s top guitarists compete in the ‘Riff2Wgtn’ guitar duels before the 2006 Eurovision winners Lordi take the stage. Apart from Ozzy, the biggest draw card for Rock2Wgtn has to be the mighty ‘Drusilla’; a giant dragon currently under construction in the centre of the stadium. The Weta Workshop designed and built ‘Drusilla’ will be, according to Wotzon: “one of the biggest effects ever made for a rock concert anywhere in the world with smoke, fire and laser eyes”. Don’t even try to pretend that’s not awesome. And the fun doesn’t stop there, as a stunt team and ‘zombie cheerleaders’ will also be entertaining the masses between drinks (and bands). This bogan’s wetdream starts at $135 for either of the two nights and goes all the way through to $460 for the platinum weekend pass that I suspect noone reading this can afford. But, as they say, you can’t put a price on happiness or giant laser-eyed dragons. So put your boardies away, sell your Summerset ticket and don the black jeans for the extravaganza that is Rock2Wgtn. The zombie cheerleaders alone should entice y’all to drop a week or two of Studylink funds on this bad boy.
Saturday 22 March
Music starts at 6:30pm: Riff2Wgtn Guitar duels
Lordi plays 1 hour Alice Cooper plays 1 hour
KISS plays 1 hour
NZ bands in between: Sonic Altar + The Symphony of Screams
Total 5 hours
Sunday 23 March
Music starts at 6:30pm: The Valves Poison plays 1 hour
Whitesnake plays 1 hour
Ozzy Osbourne
NZ bands in between: Sonic Altar + The Symphony of Screams
Total 5 hours