Sylwia is the official promoter of the Polish edition of Wacken Metal Battle, a prestigious competition for young metal bands.Winners have the chance to perform at the legendary Wacken Open Air festival in Germany. She has been in this role for two years now, representing Poland in the international structure of the competition.
As an organizer, she is responsible for coordinating the national final, which select the best metal bands in Poland. Her tasks include organizing the concert, cooperating with music clubs, promoting the event, and communicating with bands and metal fans. Thanks to her commitment, the Polish edition of Wacken Metal Battle has gained prestige and attracts more and more talented musicians.
Sylwia is also the president of Agencja SE, which supports the organization of music events in Poland. Her experience and passion for metal music contribute to the success of Polish representatives on the international stage of Wacken Metal Battle.
Thanks to her work, Polish bands get the opportunity to present themselves to an international audience and establish valuable contacts in the world of the metal music.
How did your adventure with Wacken Metal Battle begin and what prompted you to get involved in organizing the Polish edition of this competition?
My love for the Wacken Open Air festival was born in 2011. I went there as a tour manager with the then Polish finalist of the competition, the band Leash Eye, and I was amazed by the scale and German precision of the organization of such a large event, and how amazing it must be to participate in building this. The festival takes place on several hectares of pastureland. That’s probably why it’s sponsored by a cow, which is featured in the WOA branding every year.
I returned later as a fan, following the competition and watching it grow, with more countries joining in. Event moving to bigger stages, and the quality of the bands constantly improving. When Poland took a long break, I contacted the previous promoters and, due to their involvement in other projects, they gave me the green light to establish cooperation with the Wacken Foundation. Witek and Grzegorz supported me at the beginning with their knowledge and experience, for which I am extremely grateful. With that preparation, I opened the 2024 competition. From almost 200 entries, together with an eight-member jury chaired by Marek Pająk from Vader, we selected the band Aquilla, which won second place at the Wacken Battle Grand Finale.
How does the selection process for the national final work? What criteria are considered when choosing the finalists?
It’s a very tedious process. It’s often said that it’s hard to choose, but it’s very true. The whole process begins with the opening of applications on the official German website of the competition. Bands apply using a form, which must be completed and sent to an email address accessible to the German coordinator and promoters. This is where my many hours of work begin.
I read about 200 applications, check them, download the music files, organize them, archive them, and prepare them for the jury to listen to. This is where the first problems arise, because I often find jpg files in the music section, files labelled Track 1 instead of the band name and title. I then email or call the bands and we sort things out. I want to make sure that no one misses out on an opportunity. It takes many hours of work. The next few hours are spent listening to the entries. Our judges are active musicians, often combining their concert life with additional professional commitments, not to mention their family life. They do it thoroughly, and I prepare tables for them where they enter their scores and comments. We consider the composition, the skills of individual instrumentalists and vocalists, and at the final concert, we also consider the quality of the show itself, stage presence, and cooperation with the crew.
For me personally, the culture of communication with the band and the quality of the prepared materials are also important. It is important when I ask for a band video, documents, a contract, and a rider that everything is on time. German organizers are extremely demanding in this regard. We promoters receive a Brand Book every year with detailed guidelines and deadlines. We travel many miles with the band, investing a lot of resources, so it simply must work between us.
Can you share the biggest challenges you face when organizing a competition in Poland?
Well, again, first and foremost, I must mention the obvious. The biggest challenge is people. People who either come or don’t come to concerts. Everything else can be done when you know you’re doing it for a reason.
That on the final day, you’ll see a crowd in front of the stage and think that all the effort was worth it.
We all know how saturated the music market is with concerts, so it’s impossible to go to all of them. In addition, there’s a trend where we’re more likely to go to see a mediocre foreign band than a good Polish one. We’re not curious about new things, the same performers keep filling the clubs. And finally, we don’t buy tickets in advance. This means that the organizer has to pay for the organization out of their own pocket. The backline rental, the club, and the artists’ fees have to be paid in advance with no guarantee and with a great deal of uncertainty as to whether they will be recouped. This has already ruined many beautiful festivals or planned concerts.
What changes and improvements have you introduced to the Polish edition of Wacken Metal Battle over the last few years?
These changes are primarily driven by the growing popularity of the competition and the guidelines provided by the German organizer. For example, since last year, the application process has been centralized. An official form has been created and the email addresses of promoters from individual countries, where applications are sent, have been standardized. Last year, we also voted electronically in Germany for the first time. I personally expanded the jury to ensure that the evaluations were as objective as possible and gave one vote to our audience. I always reward them with a raffle of attractive prizes.
Are there any moments or performances from previous editions that are stuck in your memory?
In our Polish qualifiers, I am surprised by the high level of all the performers, and I remember every performance equally well. Practically every band, starting from the semi-finals, could have represented us.
Our choice is therefore extremely difficult because we are no longer choosing “better” or “worse” music.
We choose a band that will make us stand out on the international stage. I joke that it’s a bit like Eurovision for metal, you never know who will impress the jury and the audience. So, we focus on diversity of styles, something fresh and at the same time firmly rooted in metal. Let’s remember that Wacken is an extremely diverse festival. One year, Behemoth can be the headliner, and the next, it can be Scorpions. What stands out most from the Wacken finale is the incredible enthusiasm of the audience. They come in droves and listen to new bands, filled with curiosity.
What are the benefits for bands participating in the Wacken Metal Battle, regardless of their final ranking?
As far as the national final is concerned, I think that firstof all it’s an opportunity to show yourself to a wider audience and play on a large professional stage. You get to experience the hospitality of a renowned club where the biggest names play. You get to meet colleagues from the other side of the country. And then there’s the trip to Wacken and playing there, regardless of your ranking, which is a whole other level of pampering for artists. Including access to physiotherapy and massages. And then you find yourself sitting next to Alex Skolnick or some other legend at dinner. You can also sign up for meetings and consultations with managers and promoters who work with the top global bands and gain knowledge and make contacts. There are many opportunities if you want to take advantage of them.
What are your expectations for the upcoming 2025 edition? Are there any new features or changes planned for the competition?
Well, this time we would like to take first place (laughs). Seriously, though, I would like this competition to become a trusted brand in Poland and grow year after year.
Am I planning any changes? I don’t think so. If something works well, why change it? This formula has been developed, perfected, and nurtured by people with many years of experience. Although, maybe when we grow, we’ll have some semi-finals in other cities. Everything is still ahead of us.
How would you rate the Polish metal scene compared to the international scene? Do you notice any distinctive features that set Polish bands apart?
I think we have nothing to be ashamed of. We are recognized as a country thanks to several bands that have performed on stages around the world. Playing metal in our country is hard work, so our musicians are determined, technically very good, and disciplined. The Wacken Metal Battle stage is huge, not only physically but also because of the number of countries participating in the competition. Bands often stand out with some folk element from their region.
A distinctive sound, an exotic instrument, or elements of stage clothing. Our representative clearly stood out that year with their authentic style, virtuoso instrumentalists, great clean vocals, which were few and far between, and enormous enthusiasm. They gained a crowd (sic!) of German fans.
Can you tell us about your cooperation with the international organizers of Wacken Metal Battle and how coordination works on a global level?
Even though there are so many of us, from distant corners of the world and different time zones, cooperation is very well organized. We operate under the patronage of the Wacken Foundation. As I mentioned, we have a Brand Book where we receive templates for all documents and consistent visual identification, guidelines on sizes, graphic resolutions, and even a standardized font and deadlines.
All this is to ensure that the competition brand is recognizable. The contest has been running since 2004 and there are currently around 70 countries participating. I say around because some are difficult to count as they are grouped into regions. So, we have the Middle East, Arab countries, the Balkans, the Caribbean, South America, Africa, and the US, where each state is like a country. So, we meet every year in the holy land of Wacken, and we have a rule that we don’t fight each other, we fight for metal. We try to support each other, we talk on the group at odd hours, and we can’t wait for the festival. Once there, we and the bands receive hospitality on an outstanding level.
What advice would you give to young bands who dream of performing at Wacken Open Air and plan to take part in the competition?
First of all, work on your application – choose your songs carefully, describe them, pay attention to the quality of the recording. This is your first calling card. When I get a link to an entire disk full of unorganized files with a bit of everything, plus a password that I have to wait for, and then I have to choose three songs myself, on behalf of the band, that first impression is not great.
Remember that success is 5% talent, 90% hard work, and the last 5% is being in the right place at the right time. Sometimes chance determines success, so work hard and believe that it will happen to you. I wish you that with all my heart.