is hard rock making a mainstream comeback?

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"We announced Ozzfest Meets Knotfest and the original Misfits reunion on the same day and literally the media world exploded," marvels Brennan. "We were No. 1 trending topics all over the world, and took over every form of media out there. Not bad for what many thought was a dying genre."

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A rock fest branding platform DWP calls "The World's Loudest Month," with fests running every weekend from late April through May, moved 500,000 tickets this year for such events as Fort Rock in Ft. Meyers, Fla., Welcome to Rockville in Jacksonville, Fla.; Carolina Rebellion in Charlotte, N.C.; Northern Invasion in Somerset, Wis.; Rock on the Range in Columbus, Ohio, and Rocklahoma in Pryor, Okla. Still to come are DWP-produced or co-produced events Louder Than Life (Louisville, Ky.), Aftershock (Sacramento) and Rock Allegiance (Chester, Pa.)., the latter two sponsored by Monster Energy.

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"You get outside of L.A. and New York, there's a lot of nooks and crannies out there," says AEG Live promoter/produce Joe Litvag, who directs the promoter's festivals in that genre. "There are rock fans in every one of those nooks and crannies, and our job is to speak to them. We embrace the black T-shirts."

Adds Brennan: "The fact that L.A. and New York have no rock radio station blows my mind. Sponsors, brands and media may think that Tame Impala and X Ambassadors are sexy and exciting to talk about, but the rest of the country couldn't give two shits."

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The economics are another positive as the talent pool offers up scores of acts with significant name recognition but not the hefty price tags. "A lot of these bands have been around for a long time, they've got very loyal and rabid fan bases that come out and support their bands," says Litvag, who believes affordable pricing allows producers to stack the deck without busting the budget. "Avenged Sevenfold, Slipknot, those bands work in our financial model and -- in the past at least -- bands like Red Hot Chili Peppers just don't," he adds. "Ultimately, it allows us to keep our financial model in check and not have to jack ticket prices up so much to where we have to leave our fans at home because they can't afford to come. That would be a devastating blow if we did that."

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Metallica, too, remains on the wish list, he says, "but we have to worry about the price."

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