‘Doom in June’ a labor of love

He's just returned from a two-week trip where he took metal to Malaysia.

And now, Marco Barbieri, back in the States after touring Asia with young thrash troupe Warbinger, whom he manages, is embarking on an equally daunting task: getting a hard-hitting music fest off the ground in his native Las Vegas.

Set to debut at 2 p.m. Saturday at the Cheyenne Saloon, "Doom in June" is, at least on paper, an impressive array of stoner rock, trad metal and, of course, doom bands that Barbieri hopes becomes an annual event.

Featuring such notables as L.A. riff rock favorites Fireball Ministry, garage rock revisionists Radio Moscow, new school doom heavies Gates of Slumber, classic metal torch bearers Slough Feg and close to a dozen others, "Doom In June" is an all-day buffet of guitar-driven hard rock.

For Barbieri, a metal lifer who used to preside over indie metal powerhouse Century Media Records, one of the biggest independent labels of its kind, and who has been booking shows locally under his Salem Rose Music Productions for more than a year now, "Doom in June" is largely a labor of love.

"There's really only a handful of doom/stoner rock type festivals around the world, and I'm quite a fan of those genres," he says. "I just thought, 'Hey, this might be kind of cool.' I started spreading the word and asking bands, and I was surprised by the enthusiasm a lot of fans and bands had."

Despite the fest's title, the 12-hour day of music is not limited to the doom genre, which is generally denoted by massive, lumbering riffing and a pulse-slowing pace. But most of the bands do come from corresponding limbs on the same family tree, which is ultimately rooted in the darkened groove of Black Sabbath.

"I had to mix it up," Barbieri says of the 'Doom' lineup. "To keep it all very heavy doom would have been very cool, personally, but that's a limited audience. I think a lot of this doom/retro/stoner hard rock all sort of interbreeds a little bit. These are all bands that offer something a little bit different, yet complement each other."

Though the first installment of "Doom" has yet to even get under way, Barbieri already is committed to doing at least one more and ideally going from there. His goals for the event are nearly as sizable as the riffs that'll dominate the day.

"I've already had bands from Europe and the bigger bands say, 'Definitely keep us in mind for ("Doom in June") two or three,' " Barbieri notes. "This is a good way to introduce it. We'll see if it will grow and build."

Contact reporter Jason Bracelin at jbracelin@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0476.