With Friday and Saturday already starting to sell out, Thursday’s opening day of Louder Than Life set the tone for the 2025 festival. From a new layout, food, drinks, and music, this festival has a great weekend ahead.
The 2025 festival provides a revamped and better experience for music lovers. Wider walkways, added shaded areas, and a seventh stage helped ease congestion and gave fans a little relief from the heat of the afternoon.
Shade and hydration stations seemed adequate, but midday heat still posed a challenge, especially for early acts. More shaded lounge areas could help those who want to catch early bands without burning out.
Inside the air-conditioned Expo Center, the expanded merch setup offered a nice break for guests.
New VIP platforms improved viewing comfort across the main stages.
One of the new surprise highlights for the festival this year was the addition of Kentucky Kingdom rides for festival goers—something that was included with the festival’s admission. This unique perk added a complement to the otherwise heavy atmosphere.
Sound quality shifted depending on the setting. The main stages boasted crisp, well-balanced mixes, particularly during the headliners.
Smaller stages, though, occasionally leaned more on the louder muffled side. Depending on the audience depended on the audience’s reaction.
The festival provided many food and drink varieties from a variety of meats, tacos, sweets, and cold beverages. Alcoholic beverages included brands like Jack Daniel’s, White Claw, BeatBox, Jim Beam, and many more.
For those individuals with dietary restrictions, the festival is allowing food/drinks that fits the needs for those individuals.
Thursday’s lineup started off strong with acts like Fulci and Guilt Trip, who kicked off the festival at 11:45 A.M.
Between the 7 stages, 44 acts played on Thursday. One of them being The Black Dahlia Murder.
The group brought a high-energy set, with strong riffs, dynamic vocals, and the crowd engagement was nothing less than engaged. Their live show strength was easily loved by the fans.
Bigger names for the night included Slayer, long-awaited return to the stage promises one of the weekend’s most intense sets, Rob Zombie, bringing a global exclusive performance of Astro-Creep: 2000 alongside his signature horror-fueled theatrics, Marilyn Manson, never one to shy from shock and spectacle, adding a dark, industrial edge to the night. Meanwhile, Lamb of God delivers modern metal precision and ferocity.
Although a few fans noted that scheduling overlaps forced tough decisions.
Alabama native, Michael Stewart said “There are multiple bands I’d like to see, yet with the overlaps I’m having to jump back and forth.”
With so many strong names, that’s inevitable, but perhaps next year slightly lengthening change-over times could help.
“Either way, if that’s the worst thing I run into this weekend, I’ll be okay.” Stewart said. “I’m just excited for great music, bourbon, and time with friends.”
With the revamp of Louder Than Life 2025, it’s no secret that the weekend is looking lively with head bangs, good times, and good music.
If the first day was any indication, Louder Than Life is carving out an identity that goes beyond pure heaviness—it’s becoming an expansive, immersive musical experience.
Thursday’s kickoff struck a careful balance between spectacle and intimacy, blending nostalgic callbacks with bursts of fresh intensity.
The energy was consistently high, the crowd deeply engaged, and even the occasional misstep only added to the sense of a genuine, lived-in festival moment.
Louder Than Life 2025 runs from Thursday, September 18 to Sunday, September 21. Passes can still be found on the Louder Than Life website or here: https://louderthanlifefestival.com/passes/
This article appears in Sep 1-30, 2025.