Knotfest Iowa
August 17th, 2012
Mid-America Motorplex, Pacific Junction, IA
Deftones, Dirtfedd, Lamb of God, Machine Head, Prong, Serj Tankian, Slipknot, The Urge
Words and Photos by Adam Tibbott
On August 17, 2012, thousands of Maggots descended upon Pacific Junction, Iowa, transforming quiet farmland into the epicenter of heavy music for the very first Knotfest. Before a single band hit the stage, the festival already felt like something different, something more. While helping distribute VIP passes early in the day, I met fans who had traveled from London, Perth, the Czech Republic, and nearly every corner of the United States. People hadn’t come simply for a concert, they had made a pilgrimage for a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
The second stage kicked off with Omaha’s Dirtfedd, who wasted no time drawing a respectable early crowd despite the afternoon heat. Prong followed with a powerful performance that immediately energized the audience, while The Urge delivered a technically excellent set. Their horns, particularly the saxophone and trumpet, caught some attendees off guard at a predominantly metal festival, but their musicianship won over many listeners by the end of the performance.
Serj Tankian offered one of the day’s most unique sets, blending older favorites with newer solo material while delivering his unmistakable vocals with intensity. Machine Head, however, turned the energy level up another notch.
Robb Flynn was relentless. Circle pits erupted throughout the field as crowdsurfers continuously floated toward the barricade. Unsatisfied with the first attempts, Flynn repeatedly challenged the audience.
“Bigger!” he shouted, and the pit immediately doubled in size.
“Ladies, put your ovaries into it! Do you know how to headbang?” The response was deafening. Machine Head’s stop at Knotfest, part of their The Eighth Plague Tour, became one of the day’s most physically demanding performances and perfectly prepared the audience for what followed.
If Machine Head elevated the festival, Deftones completely changed its trajectory. From the moment the band walked onstage, Chino Moreno barely stood still. He bounced across risers, climbed anything within reach, launched himself from platforms, and repeatedly tossed his microphone high into the air before letting it crash onto the stage. By the fourth song, “My Own Summer,” the crowd had reached another level entirely. Moreno sounded phenomenal throughout the performance, matching the studio recordings while never slowing his animated stage presence. At one point his microphone finally gave out.
“I don’t think this mic works anymore.” With perfect timing, he slammed it into the stage, shattering it before grabbing another and continuing as if nothing had happened. Watching him perform almost made you wonder whether he could even sing if someone tied his hands behind his back.
Moreno also picked up a guitar several times during the set, including during “Be Quiet and Drive (Far Away),” where thousands of fans sang every word back to the band. One of the day’s highlights came when Serj Tankian returned to the stage to join Deftones for a song. Introducing him, Moreno smiled and said, “He’s a good dude. We’ve been on tour with this man for two weeks, and I’ve seen him more today than the whole rest of the tour. I love this man.”
As memorable as Deftones were, the emotional centerpiece of the afternoon belonged to Lamb of God. This marked Randy Blythe’s first performance after his release from a Czech prison. Running nearly fifteen minutes behind schedule only amplified the anticipation. By 8:40 p.m., anxious fans were pleading toward the stage, “Please come out. Please.” Finally, at 8:48, the intro music began.
Smoke blanketed the stage before Blythe emerged to thunderous chants of “RANDY IS FREE! RANDY IS FREE!” His first words perfectly captured the surreal moment: “I have never been so fucking excited in all my life to be in the middle of a cornfield in the middle of Iowa.”
Then came Slipknot.
A massive red curtain concealed the stage until the opening notes of “(sic)” began. When it dropped, eight members exploded into view as flames shot skyward. Sid Wilson immediately launched himself from Shawn Crahan’s elevated percussion platform while the crowd erupted.
“It is my absolute fucking pleasure to say this tonight,” Corey Taylor declared. “Welcome to the first fucking Knotfest.”
He made it clear there had never been another option for its home besides Iowa. The production surpassed anything Slipknot had previously toured with. Shawn’s towering percussion platform repeatedly lifted high above the stage while Sid climbed across it and later scaled nearby lighting structures. Joey Jordison’s drum riser eventually rose into the air before tilting dramatically toward the audience. Fire erupted almost constantly during songs like “Sulfur,” “Before I Forget,” “The Heretic Anthem,” and “Vermilion,” with heat from the explosions reaching fans hundreds of feet from the stage as temperatures dropped after sunset.
There were countless unforgettable visual moments. Shawn performed in his original mask during “Disasterpiece.” Artificial snow drifted through the air during “Gently.” Paul Gray’s iconic “S” logo was engulfed in flames before later being displayed across the back of the stage as a tribute. During “Wait and Bleed,” all eight members headbanged in perfect synchronization while Shawn’s platform towered overhead. Sid dove into the crowd during “Spit It Out,” and when Corey yelled, “Jump da fuck up,” fans launched him into the air as the entire field exploded.
Slipknot even reached back into Iowa for “Everything Ends,” a welcome addition that many fans hadn’t seen during that summer’s Mayhem Festival run. The night carried an emotional weight beyond the spectacle.
“This has stopped being about the fans and the band,” Corey told the audience. “It’s become about being one gigantic family.”
That feeling became especially powerful during “Duality,” dedicated to the late Paul Gray, whose family watched from side stage. After the song, Paul’s memorial banner stretched across the back of the stage, reminding everyone why this inaugural festival meant so much to the band. As “Surfacing” closed the main set, a sea of raised middle fingers filled the Iowa night sky. Joey’s drum kit flipped forward, pyrotechnics continued to roar, and Corey promised the audience: “I understand what it was like to come from here, and that’s why I always come back here.”
“I promise you this is only the beginning.”
Following “Til We Die,” Corey returned to the stage against a backdrop of thunderous applause. This time however, he was carrying Paul Gray’s daughter. As the curtain slowly descended, bringing an emotional closer to a day that was about much more than music.
The first Knotfest wasn’t simply another festival. It was a homecoming, a memorial, and the beginning of a tradition that would grow into one of heavy music’s defining festivals. For one unforgettable day, a cornfield in southwest Iowa became the center of the metal universe, proving that no matter how large Slipknot became, home would always be where the family gathered.
