Alright, so, here's the deal

Let's say you've been put in charge of booking every band for the first ever official Metal Archives music festival. This fest is spread over, say, 3 or 4 days. Who do you pick for each day?

In Flames (only playing material from the last few albums)
Virgin Steele (same)
Six Feet Under
Babymetal
Five Finger Death Punch

No, more seriously (and not necessarily in order)...

Atlantean Codex
Avantasia
Craven Idol
Archspire
Oranssi Pazuzu
Primordial
1914
Iron Maiden

Visigoth
Immolation
Mare Cognitum
Tribulation
Panopticon
Blood Incantation
The Ruins of Beverast
Judas Priest

Traveler
Ulcerate
Obscura
Havukruunu
Unto Others
Anaal Nathrakh
Cannibal Corpse
Black Sabbath

That's a good start.

I'm cooking up a batch of popcorn for the upcoming fight about more "questionable" bands.

Every single death metal band that decided to become prog instead. All in the same place.

Assuming there'd be multiple venues, here would be my pitch for a Maryland Deathfest Baltimore Soundstage stage diving allowed bill for a single day. All of these bands have played this venue at this fest in the past.

-doors-
Bound By the Grave
No/Mas
Cloud Rat
Malignancy
Tomb Mold
Full of Hell
Defeated Sanity
Insect Warfare (reunion)
Cryptopsy (None So Vile set - they did in fact play this back in 2017)

Actually somewhat curated so that we don't have too many consecutive bands that sound the same and even threw in local openers.

A quick one I've just made:

Vengeant
Witchbreed
Hatriot
Coronatus
Thy Art is Murder
Hell
Demolition Hammer
Cryptopsy (playing their old material)
Epica
Deep Purple

I'll post for the other days on another occasion.

Sabbat (jpn)
Abigail
Raven
Satan
Ironsword
Dark Quarterer
Briton Rites
Syphilitic Vaginas
Mi'gauss
Brocas Helm
Vomitor
Pentacle
Ares Kingdom
Körgull The Exterminator
Voivod
Varathron
The Meads of Asphodel


Would probably die raging to a line up like this. It also has enough variety in styles to keep things interesting, without clashing. Split over 4 days It'd be one I'd travel overseas for too.

Regretfully they are broken up now, or soon to be broken up. Not actually sure.

Day 1

Helloween
Nightwish (Oceanborn lineup reunion)
High On Fire
Battle Beast
Visigoth
Frozen Crown

Let's say there are 3 days and the venues are small to medium sized clubs.

Mosh Night :
Overkill
Enforced
Gatecreeper
Antichrist (SWE)
Steal Bearing Hand

Occult Night :
Blood Incantation
Gorguts
Tribulation
Hooded Menace
Spectral Wound

Warriors and stoners' sunday :
Candlemass
Electric Wizard
Cirith Ungol
Satan
Visigoth

Okay. I spent WAY too much time on this, but here it is.

Metallica organizes a huge metal festival which takes place in Quebec City, Canada. They've long mentioned that city as one of their favourite cities to play. It takes place outside at the Plains of Abraham.

Four day festival, with a themed slot for each day:

THURSDAY:
12:00pm - 12:45pm (Canadian Metal Kickoff Slot) - SKULL FIST
1:00pm - 1:45pm (Newer American Band Slot) - POUNDER
2:00pm - 2:45pm (Blackened Thrash Slot) - BEWITCHER
3:00pm - 3:45pm (Canadian Legacy Act Slot) - ANVIL
4:00pm - 4:45pm (Contemporary / Connection Slot) - NEWSTED (reunion show)
5:00pm - 6:00pm (Teutonic Big Four Slot) - SODOM
6:15pm - 7:30pm (Beyond The Big 4 Slot) - OVERKILL
7:45pm - 8:30pm (Legends, Influencers Slot) - VENOM
9:00pm - 11:00pm (Headliner) - ANTHRAX

After party at some bar: Motorhead tribute band

FRIDAY:
12:00pm - 12:45pm (Canadian Metal Kickoff Slot) - TRAVELER
1:00pm - 1:45pm (Newer American Band Slot) - UNTO OTHERS
2:00pm - 2:45pm (Blackened Thrash Slot) - MIDNIGHT
3:00pm - 3:45pm (Canadian Legacy Act Slot) - VOIVOD (Jason Newsted Joins for some songs)
4:00pm - 4:45pm (Contemporary / Connection Slot) - GOJIRA
5:00pm - 6:00pm (Teutonic Big Four Slot) - DESTRUCTION
6:15pm - 7:30pm (Beyond The Big 4 Slot) - EXODUS (Kirk joins for some songs)
7:45pm - 8:30pm (Legends, Influencers Slot) - HALFORD (Solo Band Set)
9:00pm - 11:00pm (Headliner) - MEGADETH (James Joins for The Mechanix)

After party at some bar: Judas Priest cover band - Halford shows up and jams some deep cuts

SATURDAY:
12:00pm - 12:45pm (Canadian Metal Kickoff Slot) - STRIKER
1:00pm - 1:45pm (Newer American Band Slot) - ENFORCED
2:00pm - 2:45pm (Blackened Thrash Slot) - HELLRIPPER
3:00pm - 3:45pm (Canadian Legacy Act Slot) - ANNIHILATOR
4:00pm - 4:45pm (Contemporary / Connection Slot) - SUICIDAL TENDENCIES (Rob joins for some songs)
5:00pm - 6:00pm (Teutonic Big Four Slot) - KREATOR
6:15pm - 7:30pm (Beyond The Big 4 Slot) - DEATH ANGEL
7:45pm - 8:30pm (Legends, Influencers Slot) - MERCYFUL FATE
9:00pm - 11:00pm (Headliner) - SLAYER (Reunion Show. Dave on Drums, Gary on Guitar)

After party at some bar: Iron Maiden tribute band

SUNDAY
12:00pm - 12:45pm (Canadian Metal Kickoff Slot) - CAULDRON
1:00pm - 1:45pm (Newer American Band Slot) - WALPYRGUS
2:00pm - 2:45pm (Blackened Thrash Slot) - RAIDER
3:00pm - 3:45pm (Canadian Legacy Act Slot) - EXCITER
4:00pm - 4:45pm (Contemporary / Connection Slot) - BARONESS
5:00pm - 6:00pm (Teutonic Big Four Slot) - TANKARD
6:15pm - 7:30pm (Beyond The Big 4 Slot) - TESTAMENT
7:45pm - 8:30pm (Legends, Influencers Slot) - DIAMOND HEAD
9:00pm - 11:00pm (Headliner) - METALLICA (joined by Members of Big 4 and Legends/Influencers)

After party at some bar: Black Sabbath (all eras) tribute band

Day 1:
Judas Priest
Black Sabbath
Candlemass
Opeth
Ghost
Amorphis
Paradise Lost
My Dying Bride
Anathema
Katatonia
Dark Tranquillity
Evoken

Day 2:
Rage Against the Machine
System of a Down
Morbid Angel
Bolt Thrower
Enslaved
Neurosis
Cult of Luna
Converge
Immolation
Amenra
Isis
Thy Catafalque

Going by active/active-ish bands

Sabbath Stage:

Pentagram
Electric Wizard
St. Vitus
Candlemass
Sleep (playing Dopesmoker in it's entirety)
Pagan Altar
Crowbar
MDB
Evoken
Skepticism
Esoteric
Sunn O)))

Bathory Stage:

Mercyful Fate/King Diamond (separate set for each)
Emperor
Immortal
Satyricon (playing only the early stuff)
Mayhem (classic stuff)
Twilight of the Gods (playing only Bathory stuff)
Blut Aus Nord
Shining
Primordial
Root

Death Stage:

Morbid Angel (playing only classic material)
Carcass
Obituary
Cannibal Corpse
The Chasm
Cryptopsy (only first 2 albums)
Gorguts
Dismember
Deceased

Metallica stage:

Metallica (playing only non-sucky material)
Overkill
Sepultura (getting the bros back in, sticking to the classics)
Kreator
Sodom
Destruction
Gehennah
Coroner

Priest Stage:

Iron Maiden
Judas Priest (w/ KK and Glenn)
Satan
Virgin Steele
Angel Witch
Slough Feg
Fates Warning

Misc Stage:

Neurosis
Godflesh
The Gathering
Sigh
Devin Townsend
Dan Swano (playing whatever he wants to play; EOS, Nightingale, Moontower, whatever)

One of those alternating stage things

Judas Priest
Mercyful Fate
Devin Townsend
Blasphemy
Venom Inc
Archgoat
Dark Fortress
Vassafor

Nightwish
Within Temptation
Kreator
Napalm Death
Electric Wizard
The Gathering
Devourment
Last Days of Humanity

Frostbite Vol. 2

Summoning (with full symphony orchestra and three drumsets)
Darkthrone (with Zephyrous)
Mayhem (with Dead and Euronymous)
Bathory (playing only Requiem and Octagon material)
Burzum (unplugged solo performance with wooden table amplification)

How many bands would you miss through clashes though?

I'm not playing by the rules lol, and I don't feel confident making a festival for this forum because I feel I'd have to represent every genre and everyone else, so I'll just make a festival for myself based personally on what I want to see:

The Roster would include:

Black Curse
Anaal Nathrakh
Knelt Rote
Dragged Into Sunlight
Carcass
Insomnium
Cauldron Black Ram
The Berzerker (are they back together?)
In Flames (by gun point they are ONLY allowed to play material from Clayman and earlier (with extra emphasis on Colony, Whoracle and Jester Race) and Jesper has to come back and play with them)
Ensiferum
Make Them Die Slowly
Fukpig
Born to Murder the World
Slugdge
Cattle Decapitation
Napalm Death
Cannibal Corpse
Mayhem
Emperor
Wiegedood
Eyehategod
Caustic Wound
Pissgrave
Fluids
Xoth
Exhumation
Devil Master
Funeral Chic
Amorphis
Mercyful Fate
King Diamond
Archgoat
Oranssi Pazuzu
Baring Teeth
Dendritic Arbor
Immolation
Cryptic Void
Of Feather and Bone
Vitriol
Wolfheart
Scour
Hissing
Necrot
Necrophobic
Insect Warfare
Lord Mantis
Watchmaker
Dephosphorus
Sloth Herder
Morbid Angel
Plebeian Grandstand
Indian
SKAM
Igorr
Whourkr
Mi'guass
Sacriphyx
Abyssal
Adversarial
Disma
Krypts
The Chasm
Bastard Feast
Suffocation
Piss Vortex
Catasexual Urge Motvation
Imperial Triumphant
Reek of Unzen Gas Fumes
Black Sabbath with Ozzy
Celtic Frost
Horrorgrind
Frost
Arson Anthem
Mastery
Discordance Axis
Gridlink
Gride
Eluvietie
Wintersun
Bolzer
Malthusian
Diocletian
Portal
Antidiluvian
Mitochondrian
Cultes de Ghouls
Necros Cristos
Stargazer
Cthe'ilist
Axis of Advance
Lik
Dead Congregation
Origin
Ulcerate



And maybe a few more lol...

All I will say is that headliners on the final night will be Demon (UK) who will play The Unexpected Guest album in its entirety!

Magnificent, you will need about 12 bands a day for 5 days or more than one stage! And put MF and KD on at the same time on different stages and see what happens! Imagine the King running from one stage to the other between songs!