Chapter 1 – The First Total Metal Festival: an ambitious project

The TOTAL METAL FESTIVAL born the 27 September 2002 with the noble aim to give a change to the static situation of the metal scene in Southern Italy. It was a long time that nothing like that was done there.
So, from the passion that Vivo Management share with a lot of brilliant local bands that strongly wanted an important stage to perform on, here comes the idea to create a proper festival dedicated exclusively to our beloved Heavy Metal in all its forms, that’s why the name of the event is “Total Metal Festival”.
The first edition has seen as special guest the Italian Epic Metal Band WHITE SKULL, supported by some of the best local metal bands in southern Italy such as WARCHILD (Heavy Metal), DISGUISE (Black Metal), GOLEM (Death Metal) and PERFECT PICTURE (Glam Metal).
It’s a pleasure today to see that all those bands did a lot of progresses from that time. Warchild became very popular in UK playing in a lot of renowned venues and supporting some great metal artistes like Hammerfall, Kay Hansen, Nicko McBrain; Disguise published an album for Nuclear Blast; Golem released the new album called “Black Era” for Razar Ice Records and Perfect Picture played at the Gods Of Metal!!! … could it be that the TMF bring fortune?
What’s for sure is that we didn’t miss fortune that day because the audience was absolutely more than any good expectation! The first Total Metal Festival has been an amazing success!!! None of us could never forget the incredible atmosphere that we were breathing that day and the joy that everybody could see in the eyes of all those metalheads that from so many time didn’t have the chance to reunite that way, in a place that was just Their world, that belong to them all and that, till that day, was denied to them because of the poor attention that the authority of the music and show business always had for the Hard Rock.

Chapter 2 – Total Metal Festival 2: la confirmation of a great success

So the experiment was more than successful and, in the same day, we decided that the TMF would go on and would be realized every year!
In fact, the 26 September of 2003, as in a holy pilgrimage, a horde of metalheads in leather and bosses get back to the Stop Over Pub (location of the first 3 editions) for the second long-awaited TMF.
This time the headliners were the Italian metal band CENTURION, that, at that time, were just out with their second album and that play a heavy metal in the Judas Priest Style with no compromises. They conquered all the audience that wouldn’t stop their headbanging at all!
This time too there were 4 more bands to complete the show with the incredible variety of styles that characterize the heavy Metal World. There were again WARCHILD, at that time just coming back from their first Italian tour in which they had a gig with the popular Iron Maiden’s Drummer Nicko McBrain, There was the brilliant band BARKER’S SHOP, that unfortunately doesn’t exist anymore today but that, at that time, was the best about prog metal in Southern Italy, There were INGRAVED that recently realized their first full length album, a blasting Death Metal in the American style and finally there were the Black metallers MOTHERLY SIN to complete another great line-up for the TMF.
The success of the previous edition was showed not only from a great crowd once again down the stage, but also from a greater participation of sponsors and stands to the event giving it a more nice and complete image.

Chapter 3 – TMF2004: A higher level

The edition of 2004 bring a big increase to the festival.
In fact here comes to the TMF2004 a special headliner, ELDRITCH, one of the most important Italian metal band ever and, for the first time also two guest bands more: MARSHALL (a veteran Italian metal band) and, from United Kingdom, the amazing PANIC CELL, one of the most important new bands of British metal. As usual there are also some brilliant local bands like GOLEM, the progsters SHIDE, called to replace FALLIN’ TIME that should have been there reunited just for this festival but that had problems at the last minute and the thrashers THE SCAVENGER.
Little technical problems apart, the event was another big success. This was its last time in Giovinazzo, in fact the Stop Over Pub, after this edition, shut down and the Total Metal Festival had to find a new location for the successive year.

Chapter 4 – TMF2005: Cancelled at the last minute!!!

This was the first (and only) time that the TMF was entrusted to a collaborator out of the Vivo Management Agency. In fact, in that year, the creator and organizer of the festival, Luigi Pisanello, couldn’t manage it because he was in England.
For the edition of the year 2005 were engaged the prog power metallers SECRET SPHERE that should have been supported by CRUENTUS, ASTREA, KHAOSPHERE and DEW FALL.
The location should have been a soccer camp in a city called Mola di Bari, but, unfortunately, the organizer of that time didn’t manage very well all the bureaucratic stuff and, just a day before the event, he realized there was a problem with the permissions that brought to the cancellation.
Many people, in fact, have gone to the location in the established day to find nothing!!!!
Vivo Management, also if was not to blame for that, successively wrote to all the people a newsletter apologizing for the inconvenience and assuring everybody to entrust nevermore the precious festival to incompetent persons!

Chapter 5 – TMF2006: Finally a real Open Air Festival in Puglia!!!

In 2006 the organization of the festival is back in Luigi Pisanello’s hands that, supported by the precious collaboration of Francesco Di donna, member of the cultural association ARCI “A. Gramsci” of Noicattaro, decide to give a new aspect to the festival completely! Now Luigi wanted it to became a big Open Air Festival!
The new location of the new TMF is a huge soccer camp at the stadium of Noicattaro (BA) definitely more suitable to receive a real pilgrimage of metalheads and bikers from all over southern Italy.
15 bands performed on the new stage featuring some renowned and important names of the Italian Metal scene like NECRODEATH, HIGHLORD, RAIN, DGM, SUDDEN DEATH and some other awesome bands coming out from the underground of our lands like ADIMIRON, DISGUISE, BACKJUMPER, MOTHERLY SIN. REALITY GREY, DEW FALL. SUBLIMINAL FEAR, INGRAVED and KHAOSPHERE, all proud to be part of something like that!. Unfortunately, because of some big personal problems, CRUENTUS cancelled their performance at the last minute disappointing all their fans there (But they will enjoy them at the 2007 edition!).
Moreover, for this edition, the TMF presented a great innovation for the southern Italy’s metal events: two stages! In fact, on the second stage, closed o the main stage, there was the hard rock cover band BALLBREAKER, giving a fantastic entertainment to the crowd during the stage changes!
Finally something is moving, Finally the hard rock without any compromise get his space also in Southern Italy!
Everywhere, everybody will talk about TOTAL METAL FESTIVAL!

Chapter 6 – TMF2007: Great international artists!

At this point was right and proper to increase more and more the quality level of the festival!
After the incredible success Open Air Experiment of the 2006 edition, Vivo Management wants to cross the limits!
The ambitious project born 5 years before is now getting to something really great and important and finally the Total Metal Festival is unanimously renowned as one of the most important metal events in southern Italy!
For the first time in its history, at the TMF participate 3 very important international bands: RAGE, DARK FUNERAL and VISION DIVINE, supported, this time, not only from some brilliant local bands like DELIRIA, BACKJUMPER and SOVRAN, but also from some very important bands of the Italian Underground scene like THE ORANGE MAN THEORY, GOLEM, GODYVA, CORAM LETHE, NECROTORTURE, CRUENTUS and ILLOGICIST!
A great list of great bands definitely! A great festival that, from the beginning to the end won’t see any falling-off but that instead will offer always a higher artistic level and a great prestige for the region never seen before about metal: for the first time 3 very important bands together!!!
Moreover, this year there will be again two stages, Something already experimented the year before, but that this year is presented in a more professional way. In fact the second stage of this edition, won’t be simply dedicated to some entertainment during the changes of the meaning stage and to some cover bands, but on it will perform some of the official bands on the bill and there will be also a proper headliner! This will be a real “Second Stage” with a very professional P.A.
So the bands will alternate one by one on two stages from the beginning of the fest till the end! There will be no chance to relax for your ears!!!
As you already should know, in the TMF are important also the frills around it, so this year there will be a lot of stands more with merchandise and gastronomy, a big bikers meeting in the stadium and an exciting innovation…. the Sexy Show!!!

Chapter 7 – TMF2008: Unbreakable!

Unbreakable!
This word is the most appropriate to describe this festival in 2008 because the festival is still there in spite of the enormous economical  difficulties we faced for the last edition, to get those international names like  Rage and Dark Funeral here in the city of Bari. And it's still there greatest and with the will to increase more and more!
In Fact 2008 is the year of another important turning point, we got a new location, the New Demodè Club (the bigger live club around), closer to the most important urban center of the Region Puglia, the city of  Bari; but the meaning news is that, for the first time ever, the TMF has been officially sponsored by the public authorities!
But let's talk about the bands!
Also this year we got international Big bands. We got one of the most important death metal band of the world coming from Florida: DEICIDE! Yes, the legendary band of Mr Glen Benton! On their side probably the best metalcore act in Europe, the danish metal band number one... HATESPHERE!
and still some great italian metal bands: SLOWMOTION APOCALYPSE, SCHIZO, METHEDRAS, NEURASTHENIA, i REALITY GREY, ROSAE CRUCIS, PLASTER CASTERS  and CLINICAMENTE MORTI.
As usual there will be also the merchandise market where you can buy  gadgets, t-shirts, CDs and whatever. The news of the year is the Rock Dance Hall with the local popular DJ Violet Tear and some Hard & Heavy musical selections.
After the gigs will start the second part of the night: the Party Anni '80! Always with Dj Violet Tear, to dance all night long!

Chaptrer 8 – TMF2009: higher and higher!

In 2009, still proud and strong of the last edition success that won on all the difficulties and troubles, the Total Metal Festival show how constant it is about is growing up year by year.
The international acts are more than in the last years! The stage, in fact, will be shared by FINNTROLL, the "inventors" of Folk Metal, MALEVOLENT CREATION, icons of the american death metal scene, VOMITORY, another great death metal act, and PINO SCOTTO, the spiritual leader of all italian riockers, the “godfather” of all the hard & heavy fans around the Country, the TRUE rocker!
With these band there are as usual some of the best italian metal act of the underground: THE MODERN AGE SLAVERY, KERNELZERO, GOLEM, NO MORE FEAR, ECNEPHIAS, NEFERTUM, ABSOLUTE TERROR FIELD, CANCRENA, SHANK and DEADLYSTRAIN.
All these bands really got it and shown to the audience that they really deserve to be on that stage! So also this year the TMF was on a great level even when on the stage was performing the underground bands, less renowned than the headlining acts, but able to make a great show anyway!



This festival became what it is thanx to its awesome audience, thanx to the very important support of all those of you who believed in us and all those who works on it with us, Thanx to the bands who took part of it in these years and to everybody who believed there was a possibility to call back to life a dead metal scene as the one that was here in Southern Italy!
THANK YOU ALL! The Total Metal festival is yours too… be proud of it!