A monster lineup of over 20 Midwest hardcore bands will storm Des Moines this weekend for Budhafest II, a pro-marijuana concert hosted by the senior editor of High Times magazine.

Bands like GKG, Revolution Theory, Deadfront, Smakdab and Shiloh Church are on tap to break some spines at the outdoor festival.

Coordinator Damon Moreno said he learned a lot from organizing Budhafest I and after teaming up with his brother Thor has omitted many of the problems from last year’s concert.

The result is a cavalcade of hard-hitting metal bands from as far away as Chicago and St. Louis and as close as Des Moines and Mason City.

“We’ve got some good heavy bands from the big cities,” he said. “We wanna get kids here digging on the big bands from other cities.”

When selecting the lineup, Moreno not only focused on bringing in bands from around the region, he also made sure that each band fit the description of “hard.”

Moreno said that while all the bands are heavy, stylistically each band takes on different variations.

Take Moreno’s band Chrome Seed Inhaler, for instance.

“It’s heavy with samples,” he said. “It’s groove-tinged, kind of weird.”

Moreno added that he can’t compare his band to any other because the group is trying to create something new.

When Moreno isn’t busy playing with the band and trying to support himself, he spends his time booking bands and lining up vendors and other forms of entertainment for the concert.

He said he’s been working on Budhafest II since the beginning of the year.

“I just told my brother that it’s like eating a big meal and now we’re picking up the crumbs — taking care of the little stuff,” Moreno said, comparing the change in workload he has endured over the past eight months.

In addition to the music, Moreno has even booked a mind-warping, traveling freak show.

“It’s scary shit. Eating glass, burning each other and sticking screwdrivers in their ears and nose,” he said.

There will also be a full carnival midway, tattooing and body-piercing, bizarre art from local artists, skateboard demos and vendors representing all points of the world.

Closing out the day will be a 12-minute fireworks show.

“The fireworks show is fucking big. Fireworks reflecting off the lake, it’s gonna be trippy,” Moreno said.

And speaking of smoking up, NORML, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws will also be on hand for the event.

Most importantly, record label reps will be on hand, looking for more talent to endorse. Moreno said that thanks to Slipknot, label reps from Roadrunner Records will attend the concert.

With such a wide array of heavy bands set to perform at an indie-level concert, Moreno believes it’s important for the fans to be there to see something that isn’t on the corporate level, but more in tune with the underground scene.”This concert is going to make them walk away going ‘Shit!’,” he said.

Des Moines’ 4-High headlines the Budweiser Stage and Minneapolis rockers American Head Charge cap off the Mid Air and Ink stage.