Sick New World is a one-day festival filled with various rock and nu metal bands who come together to share a day of music. This festival is usually held in Las Vegas, but in 2026 they decided to share the stage with Texas for the first time. On this page I will bring on boots on the ground journalism, as my first festival going experience. October 24th 2026, Sick New World will host their first festival in Fort Worth, Texas with headliners like; System of a Down, Deftones, and Slayer, their first major reunion performance since 2019. The festival will also be bringing other major performances like; Marilyn Manson, Evanescence, The Prodigy, and Knocked Loose. A personal favorite of mine from the lineup is ‘She Wants Revenge’, which has strong influences from gothic rock and darkwave. I am currently located in San Marcos Texas and the festival will take place in Fort Worth Texas at Texas Motor Speedway, about a four hour drive for me to get there. I will be leaving on Friday, the 23rd of October at about 8am for me to get there at 12pm. The festival starts on Saturday at 11am, so that gives me an extra day to prepare for the festival goers. On the day of the festival, I got to the grounds near 1pm. The lines for parking was so long, it would've take over an hour to finally get through the entrance. Luckily Sick New World provides a carpool and drop-off section, so I was able to exit the vehicle closer to the entrance rather than through the parking lot. When I actually got off the vehicle provided by my sister, I was closer to the Buccee's than the actual entrance. The walk towards the festival was about ten minutes give or take, and I only had to go through a metal detector and to scan my wristband. Once I was actually inside the motor speedway, I ran to the first band I was able to see, which was 'Filter'. Unfortunatley, I got to the grounds so late I missed 'Failure'. I went to the opposite of the venue and got to see 'Filter' and 'P.O.D' back to back. The managment was pretty good all considering, since I was closer to the side barricades I got to see workers handing out water to whoever needed them. I thought it was pretty lucky since the water at the concession stands were $6. After 'P.O.D' ended their set, I ran towards the entrance of where I came from to get to the Spiral Stage. All the bands I wanted to see were either at the main stages or at the Spiral Stage. I wasn't able to see the Diablo Stage, but they were right across the Gold Stage. Once I got to the Spiral Stage, I saw the last part of the set of 'Kittie', until 'Lords of Acid' was able to go on. 'Lords of Acid' came on at about 3pm and I was able to get towards the barricade, but it stopped short from the stage. I was on the wrong side of the stage, so once 'Lords of Acid' finished their set, I went all the way around the barricade to get to the other side which was the closest to the front stage. All of this was to set up the presence of 'She Wants Revenge'. Once I was nearer the stage, 'Twin Tribes' played their set. Coincidentally, they're from the Rio Grande Valley which is where I'm from. When their set was over, I thought we would get a short intermission, little did I know that 'Coal Chamber' would be coming up next. If you don't know who 'Coal Chamber' is, they're a hardcore band known for thier moshpits, so I knew that because I was closest to the stage, that I would be a victim of the moshpit. When they started their set the crowd went wild. I was ambushed in the pit and mainly was fighting for what felt like my life. I'm not really into moshpits anymore, so I wasn't having too much fun but I do like 'Coal Chambers' music. When their set was over, they took a photo with the entire crowd. If you look on their social media you might be able to see me, but I was also towered over by very tall men. It felt like the entire crowd left so I was able to get closer to the barricade. The 'Melvins' came on next. I wasn't too familiar to their music, I just appreciate their influence on music and that they were Kurt Cobain's favorite band and he got to work with them. After, I was really close to the barricade and finally 'She Wants Revenge' made their way on stage. I was estatic. They didn't have much of a stage presence, but I really enjoy their music, honestly their set felt too short. They played some songs I enjoyed and knew, but I was really hoping for 'All Wound Up' to make an apperance. Finally I went towards the main stage for the final acts. 'Marilyn Manson' was still on when I was near the stages, but I was mainly waiting for 'Evanescence'. The end of the night I was able to see 'Evanescence','Slayer','Deftones', and finally 'System of a Down'. I didn't get too lucky getting towards the stage, but I was already tired and exhausted so I stayed towards the back. The festival officially ended at 1am and I got picked up and went back to the hotel. Overall, I had a good time, there are people that don't know any etiquette, but that shouldn't ruin your time. It was my first festival and I think I would do it again!