FESTIVAL REVIEW: Inkcareration Festival – at Ohio State Reformatory 

Posted on by

2022’s edition of the very popular Inkcarceration Festival was held once again at Ohio State Reformatory in Mansfield Ohio, aka the prison from the Stephen King movie The Shawshank Redemption. The three-day festival was packed with some of the music industry’s biggest artists. 

 

Friday:

Night one featured the likes of headliners Korn and Papa Roach. Korn dug deep into their catalog playing a ton of classics and the crowd enjoyed every second. Papa Roach had a very energetic set with a great mix of old classic songs and some newer songs. Code Orange, Three Days Grace, Lacuna Coil were among the other highlight bands of the day.   

 

 

Saturday: 

Day two  brought lots of heat with headliner Breaking Benjamin having an amazing amount of pyro during the band’s set. Evanescence were the co-headliners of the day. I haven’t seen this band in a really long time. Amy Lee had the audience in the palm of her hand during their performance. Black Label Society played a crushing set in the middle of the very hot afternoon sun, and were definitely a fan favorite of the day. Falling in Reverse, Saint Asonia,and Avatar also stood out as highlights of the day. 

 

Fans attending the festival had access to the Ohio State Reformatory, a.k.a. the prison that was made famous in the Stephen King movie The Shawshank Redemption, for walking tours. The long lines seemed to move through the former  prison at a steady pace throughout the day. I recommend touring the prison. There were many delicious  food options to choose from to enjoy. There were over twenty-five world-renowned tattoo artists providing some fantastic tattoos to attendees. 

Sunday:
Late Saturday night (July 16) at Inkcarceration, the band Silly Goose drove to Ohio from Atlanta and set up a guerilla style impromptu performance in a parking lot on the back of their modified flat bed truck and trailer.
Danny Wimmer proceeded to the parking lot to see what was happening. Initially frustrated by the unauthorized show, Wimmer was so impressed by the band’s perseverance and talent–and immediate fan response–that he offered him a spot to open the Inkcarceration 3rd stage the next day.

Day three had some rain that continued most of the day. There were a few delays in opening the gates on time to get the festival grounds ready for the sold-out crowd. Disturbed co-headlined the final day of Inkcarceration with Lamb of God. Both artists played through constant rain but it didn’t seem to matter. Earlier in the day crowd favorite JellyRoll rocked the crowd with his special brand of country rap style. Other standouts  included Butcher Babies, Falling in Reverse, Seether, Black Veil Brides and Nothing More.

 

Inkcarceration was an absolute blast and a great run festival! I definitely plan on attending next year!

 

WORDS BY EVIL ROBB DUCHEMIN

PHOTOS PROVIDED BY AND USED WITH PERMISSION OF THE FESTIVAL