The news has been circulating around for the last few hours and after some poking around for veracity, its all too clear that the 2015 Rockstar Mayhem Fest was the final one and that this yearly summer touring package has been cancelled going forward.

This statement appeared on festival co-founder John Reese’s Facebook Page;

Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival 2015 comes to an end. After spending 8 calendar years of passion and one full year of my life on the road with the festival, tonight is a very emotional night. All I know is we have all tried our damned hardest to make Mayhem a home for artists, a platform for bands to increase their fan base and a place where people feel welcomed.

There are so many people to thank but most of all I want to thank my family who complete me and I owe everything to. I love you with every fiber of my being Elenie Hovartos Reese Kelsey Reese Kylie Reese and Nicolette Reese. A very very special thank you goes to Jason May Nick Allen Chelsea Coffey and Mike Kelso without you it never would of happened. The Mayhem lifers Ray Picard Keri Lee Joey Perez Andy Lee Benjamin Layden Mike Terrazas Strati Hovartos and Perry Johnson Thank you to every single band who have performed and the amazing mayhem crew people who have ever been out with us thank you thank you thank you. To Perry LaVoisne You are my brother and I cherish our friendship and the fact that we have fought together so many fucking times. KL and DE ….blood sweat and tears.

WITH EVERY END THERE IS A NEW BEGINNING.

PiercingMetal Thoughts: Having just attended the Mayhem Fest that passed through Jones Beach Theater I have to say that I was not surprised at this outcome once it was all said and done. Watching this event in a setting of that size and to see so few people in attendance on top of hearing that many gained entry via online competitions from the promoters in the first place, makes me just shake my head. I mean this is the NY and NJ Market after all so these shows should have been the most packed of the whole lot of them, and yet this was not to be the case by a long shot. Yes, there was controversy about this one after a couple of weeks passed and numbers where not glamorous but it was still a place to enjoy a LOT of Metal from a vast and varied pool. I had friends telling me that this years lineup sucked and while I felt it could have been just a little better, “sucks” is not the word I would have used. The audience support clearly sucked and that I will sign off on for sure.

Historically speaking I had only ever attended two years worth of the Mayhem Fest with this most recent one and the one in 2013. Having no background on the other tours across the years I dug around a little and was amazed/surprised at some of the bands that had to have their first exposure to fans via its summer presentation and what artists that really needed a boost and were able to get merchandise moving again in terms of shirts and music and perhaps even personally engaging the fans. This last go round had to cost a lot of people money because whether you supported it or not, bands and staff still had to be paid so its very likely that the financial hole that the 2015 apparently was left the organizers little choice. Reese’s closing statement does find me curious because it sounds like he has something up his sleeve to replace it. Only time will tell if that is the case. So what do you readers think about this news? Please let me know in the comments section below as I have left them open for you. If you were a long time fan and attendee of this yearly event what are some of the highlights or lowlights that you feel like sharing. I’m interested in hearing from you on this.

Official Wiki Entry: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mayhem_Festival