FIREBALL Fest.

FIREBALL Fest., led and curated by Golden Melody-winning band Fire EX., returned for its fifth edition on November 22–23 at Rakuten Taoyuan Baseball Stadium, drawing nearly 35,000 attendees over two days. This year's lineup spanned the globe: Japanese rock legends ELLEGARDEN, back after missing last year to injury; WANIMA, Japan's punk powerhouse, making their Taiwan debut; South Korea's SE SO NEON; 04 Limited Sazabys returning after an eight-year gap; and a stacked Taiwanese bill including MATZKA, Flesh Juicer, Sorry Youth and Mong Tong Band, turning the baseball stadium into a full-on "rock wonderland."

Day one opened with Fire EX. playing their anthem "Pay Money to Wonderland," frontman Chang Chia-wei telling the crowd, "I stepped outside today, saw the weather, and just felt lucky." The band treated fans to rarely-played cuts like "Didn't Cry When Your House Exploded." ELLEGARDEN's vocalist Hosomi Takeshi, who had to sit out last year due to health issues, opened his set with a few words of Mandarin: "I learned a little Chinese — sorry we couldn't make it last year, so glad we're here this year!" His twenty-year friendship with Chang Chia-wei played out onstage as a genuine, heartfelt exchange, and the night closed with a full fireworks display and a rare double encore.

Meeting FIREBALL Fest. once a year, every year, is such a rush — we spend all of November looking forward to it. A round of applause for FIREBALL Fest.!

Flesh Juicer, who have never missed a FIREBALL Fest., whipped up another round of massive mosh pits, wall of death and circle pits behind frontman GIGO, declaring "Taiwan can't lose." Day two was headlined by WANIMA's Taiwan debut, with hip-hop group Nine One One making a surprise appearance to join Fire EX. onstage for "Once Crazy." Fire EX.'s closing set brought out Lin Chih-sheng, Taiwan's professional baseball home-run record holder, for one last punk-fuelled send-off on the eve of his retirement.

Reflecting on the night, Chang Chia-wei shared a dream he's held since he first picked up a guitar at sixteen — to throw a music festival inside a baseball stadium, "a place where people who love music, skating and a good drink can gather every year, like one big wonderland." That same conviction is what keeps In Utero and Fireball United working together year after year, curating the international lineup and building the bridges that make the exchange happen.