The story of the metal festival "Zombïfests" began two years ago – or, rather, in the 1980s, says one of the festival's organizers Nata Bramberga.
If the coastal city of Liepāja is known in Latvia as the city of rock music, Cēsis was once known as the capital of metal. "Crowds of metalheads from Cēsis were spotted from afar. Everyone knew we were from Cēsis. Everywhere we went, also in Estonia, we were spotted at once," says Nata.
Why Cēsis? "The story is about the forbidden stuff", Nata says. Groups of rebellious youth sprang up all over Latvia in the late 1980s.
"They [the rebels] could not have cared less about metal music. The main thing was ripped jeans, long hair, leather jackets, writing on the walls, doing things that were forbidden."
The Cēsis gang was known not only by youth in other cities but also by the Soviet militia, who pursued them diligently, and even the Cheka.
The leader of the Cēsis rebels and one of those who brought metal to the city was Gundars Vīksna, nicknamed Zāģis ("Saw"). "Youth literally stuck to him, he was from a family of musicians and very much into it all. And people really flocked around him."
Zāģis thus gathered quite an impressive following, and, by extension, a metal fanbase in Latvia. But, as it happens, time passed, the youth grew up, and everyone eventually went their separate ways.
At the beginning of 2022, Zāģis' journey on this earth unfortunately ended. An "insane" number of people came to the funeral, remembers Nata Bramberga: "Metalheads, all hairy, out of who knows where after all these years..."
The old acquaintances figured they should meet up in the summer, sit around in a meadow somewhere, listen to some music, talk, have a bit of fun. A place for the party – the territory of a farmhouse in Vaive near the city of Cēsis – was offered by Uldis Voitkevičs, nicknamed Zombis, who once played in the band "Procession" together with Zāģis.
At first, the idea really was just to meet up as old friends. But when the Latvian death 'n' roll band "Sanctimony" unexpectedly agreed to perform, "Procession" reunited though without Zāģis, more artists emerged and friends of friends expressed interest in attending – and so the house party grew into a festival, then called "Zāģis".
"We had zero experience in organizing such events, and that might have been a plus," says Nata.
"Had we known it was so difficult, we would never have done it."
The first festival "Zāģis '22" was attended by around 250 people. The next year at "Zāģis '23", even the Latvian leading folk metal band "Skyforger" took the stage, and some 300 attendees arrived. And so the festival continues this year, renamed "Zombïfests," with about as many metalheads at the scene as in previous years.
Eleven bands took the stage: local Zaķis, Kapu svētki, Varkals, Overcast Rain, Urskumug, Lureaway, Ryvendir, Bloody Heels, and headliner Māra, as well as the Estonian Woundgiver and UK-based Helestios. Asked how they get international artists to perform at the small event, the answer was simple: acquaintances, proving once again that the metal community around Cēsis is far from dying out.
The live performances began at 1 PM and ended at 1 AM, but the music never died down – metal boomed in the surrounding areas till the morning light and onward. Neighbors don't complain, say Nata and Uldis – they have got used to music over the years.
Though Zombïfests had all the makings of a proper festival – an impressive lineup, sound and light, catering, merch and tents – it also possessed the charm of a private party with group photos being taken, all ages partying together, and very little of the mess that usually gets left behind.
As regards the promise of soup in the morning – it was there all right.
