Halloween With The Prince of Darkness, Alice Cooper (Photo Gallery by Brian Ronald)

Halloween night, all Hallow's eve.  The little ghosts and goblins, witches and superheroes have filled the streets begging for candy treats.  What a night to see the Prince of Darkness!  That's right the master of the macabre himself, Alice Cooper, delivered a headlining performance at Centre in the Square, Kitchener and Decibel Geek's Brian Ronald and The Meister were on hand for the event.  In an adventurous and lengthy public transit trip out to Kitchener I met Brian at the train station and
we headed over to the venue close by.  We were admitted into a waiting foyer already containing many concert goers, but the door to the actual auditorium remained closed.  A couple of beers from the bar and we waited noticing that there was quite a high number with "Alice Cooper" eye make up on and white tailcoats.  When the doors were opened and we were admitted into the actual auditorium, I was surprised at it's size.  Smaller than I had thought, actually a good size for a show, not too damn big like a lot of places.  And we had fifth row seats, even better!

Like many of us I'm sure, Alice Cooper has been a part of my rock listening since the early days of it's formation.  I still remember buying the Killer album on 8-track at a garage sale, likewise with my School's Out LP.  Tonight's show was rather fitting in a few ways.  Halloween with The Prince of Darkness for one, but also my first heavy metal concert, the start of what several deem an unhealthy obsession, had been none other than Alice Cooper on his Trash album tour in 1989.  That show had taken place on New Year's Eve that year and now this one on Halloween prompts me to wonder when he'll be coming around this way on Easter?

Alice Cooper - photo by Brian Ronald

This event made the fourth time I would be seeing Mr. Cooper this year.  As had been in the case in the other times I'd seen him "The Underture" led the band on stage followed by a little of "Hello Hooray".  The whole band was adorned with what looked to be plastic Halloween masks for the occasion and things erupted with "House of Fire", crowd singing along.  During "No More Mr. Nice Guy" Cooper held the mike out into the first rows of the audience to better catch their voices as everyone in the Center in the Square sang with him.  By the end of the song we had already seen two plastic (I think) batons tossed into the crowd and Cooper seemed rather more engaging with us than usual, but that may be because I'm much closer to the stage than usual as well.  "Under My Wheels" brought a little triple threat guitar solo as guitarists Ryan Roxie, Tommy Henriksen and Nita Strauss displayed their talents.  With the masks now removed, accept bassist Chuck Garric who chose to keep the lower half of his face covered in the green jaw of a skeleton, "I'll Bite Your Face Off" was the next selection.  Guitarist Ryan Roxie performed some pic tricks, tossing his guitar pic up into the air, catching it and continuing to play or sometimes deflecting it out into the cheering mass of fans.  Nita Strauss, the newest member of the Alice Cooper band replaced

Alice & Nita Strauss - photo by Brian Ronald

 Orianthi earlier this year.  Strauss seems to have really made herself a part of the show through her interactions with the man himself and good for her.  It's great to see her doing so well, such a nice lady when we met on the cruise and an absolutely wicked guitarist to boot.  "Billion Dollar Babies" saw Alice waving a rapier sword filled with Alice Cooper "Monopoly" money around, periodically releasing the green and yellow bills to shower the first few rows.  The newer composition, "Caffeine", saw him with a huge coffee mug and "Department of Youth" brought a young girl toting a newspaper and backpack appearing to be looking for a job across the stage.  Alice tossed his riding crop out very close to Brian and I, but sadly not close enough for my T-Rex-like short arms to reach.  I reflected on how an Alice Cooper show is so much more than just a concert.  An incredible showman, attending one of his concert events is something to see as every song has a gimmick and stage act rather than just standing up there delivering the songs, never a dull moment.  "Hey Stoopid" took us to "Dirty Diamonds" and more than a few diamond (plastic I'm sure) necklaces being flung out from the stage.  "Dirty Diamonds" also contained the solo portion of the evening, something I'm not usually overly fond of as I don't play and it often just sounds like a noodling noise to me, but here the band tastefully takes care of things

Alice Cooper - photo by Brian Ronald

incorporating bass, drum and guitar.  "Welcome to My Nightmare" saw Alice wrapped about the neck and shoulders with a huge snake and during "Go To Hell" he snapped a large bullwhip.  I was pretty sure that the snake wasn't, but I couldn't help wondering if the bullwhip was coming out this way as it seemed that every song saw a souvenir for the crowd.  The song written for Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives, "He's Back (The Man Behind the Mask)" brought the young "Department of Youth" girl back onto the stage sporting a "Jason" mask to stab Cooper.  "Feed My Frankenstein" had Cooper dressed in a bloody lab coat and turned into a huge Frankenstein Monster during the song.  I was also fortunate enough to snag myself a Tommy Henriksen guitar pic that had floated it's way out from the stage.  A nurse and a straight jacket were the next stage props for "Ballad of Dwight Fry" during which Cooper breaks free of the restraints and strangles the nurse from behind.  The nurse prevails and stabs him as orderlies restrain The Prince of Darkness once again.  The ceremony includes a massive guillotine to sever the head of Alice Cooper which gets paraded about the stage to a

Cooper's Frankenstein - by Brian Ronald

background of "I Love the Dead".  See what I mean about an Alice Cooper show?  There's more than just the music to entertain you.  In a segment paying tribute to a few late great musicians the band now took us through covers of The Doors "Break On Through (to the Other Side)", The Beatles "Revolution", Jimi Hendrix's "Foxy Lady" (featuring a showcase of Nita Strauss' talents) and The Who's "My Generation".  Each song saw a tombstone displayed at the front of the stage, paying homage to the late musician in question.  A bent, twisted and bloody crutch was the stage gear for "I'm Eighteen" before "Poison" brought the end of the regular portion of the event.  The band returned shortly for an encore as bubbles filled the stage spilling out into the audience.  The loud ringing of a school bell signified it was time for "School's Out" during which lengthy, glittery streamers doused the crowd and gargantuan balloons bounced from the stage and around the throng of cheering Cooper fans.  A little teaser of Pink Floyd's "Another Brick In the Wall Part 2" and the band introductions all came before the end of "School's Out".  After the song each member of the band toting a plastic pumpkin bucket tossed Halloween candies by the handful over the heads of the assemblage to end another awesome Alice Cooper event!

The Alice Cooper guitarists - photo by Brian Ronald

 Gallery of photos from Brian Ronald

Look for videos from the whole event coming soon to Decibel Geek's YouTube Channel

Cheers,
The Meister

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PHOTO CREDIT: BRIAN RONALD & REBEKKA BRENNAN 2014

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Meister Attends Motley Crue's Funeral in Grand Rapids

Photo Gallery by QuickGallery.com

By now I'm sure that many of you have seen or heard the reports and the lambasting of the debut or initial performance of Motley Crue's All Bad Things Must Come To An End tour.  I'm not gonna say that they're overly harsh or incorrect for the most part.  I was there, I know.  Here's my story of Wednesday July 2nd, 2014.

A friend and I set out on an approximately six hour road trip, very reminiscent of high school road trips in a beat up old car with tunes cranked and snacks in hand, from Toronto Canada to Grand Rapids Michigan. Upon arrival and check in at our hotel we met some other Crue fans from Ontario for a couple of drinks before the short walk over to Van Andel Arena.  In a parking lot across the road there was a cordoned off area set up with a bar, tables and a stage with presumably a local band belting out some tunes.  I got the feeling it was similar to the tailgate party before an NFL game, but in any case the excitement was high and it's certainly something you wouldn't see in Toronto.  The time on the tickets indicated 7pm, yet the entrance line was already
 around the building at 6pm as we weaved around the protestors toting signs, also something that you wouldn't see in Toronto.  After wandering around a little we discovered another, smaller entrance with a very short line and wasted no time in getting into the arena.  The merchandise booth was terribly over crowded as I strained to see what was available.  Giving up, with a plan to return later, we hurried into the actual auditorium as the opening band took the stage.  In a growing trend of concerts of late that I've noticed on several occasions, the opening band begins substantially before the time printed on the tickets!  This is ridiculous!  In the old days it would be printed Doors: 7pm on the ticket and the show would start at 7:30 or 8pm or Show: 7pm to indicate the starting time.  Having the opening band take stage at 6:40pm (20 mins before the time printed on the ticket) is extremely annoying.  In any case The Raskins played a half hour opening set and they were not overly impressive in my mind.  Our seats, however, were awesome, 24 rows back from the stage on the floor!  The tickets, that surely would have cost well over $600 if you can get past all the pre-sales to get them in Toronto, we got for only $125 three weeks before the event!

Alice Cooper-photo by The Meister

I was looking forward to Alice Cooper, having just seen him perform a two and a half hour show at Sweden Rock Festival.  Unfortunately tonight he was only scheduled for 50 minutes of stage time, but it turns out that he would be a show stealer.  The approaching 70 year old was a consummate professional and ripped through the condensed setlist with almost no dead air between songs and all the stage tricks that you would expect from The Alice Cooper show.  Behind a backdrop sheet of Alice Cooper's eyes "The Underture" emanated as the curtain gave way to "Hello Hooray".  From there it was into "No More Mr. Nice Guy" and Alice Cooper's newest member, guitarist Nita Strauss seemed ecstatic to be there and the most active at this early stage in the game.  Replacing the departed Orianthi, Strauss (Femme Fatale/Iron Maidens/L.A. Kiss) joins drummer Glen Sobel (Sixx A.M.), bassist Chuck Garic (Beasto Blanco) and other guitarists Ryan Roxie (Slash's Snakepit) and Tommy Henriksen (Warlock) to make up Alice Cooper's backing band.  "Under My Wheels" led us through to "I'm Eighteen" which saw Cooper holding court around the stage wielding a crutch high above his head.  This was followed by "Billion Dollar Babies" for which, as he did in Sweden, Alice appeared toting a sword filled with bills.  A quick flick of the rapier sent bills, no doubt featuring Alice Cooper's face, into the first few rows of the crowd.  The late 80's smash hit "Poison" was next up bringing us to

Alice Cooper-photo by The Meister

"Dirty Diamonds" which saw The Coop tossing necklaces into the crowd.  The King of Shock Rock next treated us to "Welcome to My Nightmare" before appearing in a bloodied white lab coat for "Feed My Frankenstein" during which Cooper was strapped down and transformed into a large Frankenstein monster.  "The Ballad of Dwight Fry" saw him in a straight jacket, bursting out and stabbing his nurse for which his head was severed in a huge guillotine.  Alice Cooper's head was then paraded around the stage as an intro to the song "I Love the Dead", a stunt that never gets old!  The closer of "School's Out" featured some huge balloons, the introductions of the band and even a little of Pink Floyd's "Another Brick In the Wall" before wrapping up.  An incredible show as I had expected and I think, even better than his show in Sweden.

Motley Crue's All Bad Things Must Come To An End Tour-photo by The Meister

The house lights darkened and a recorded intro began to emanate through the PA system.  Motley Crue blasted into "Motherfucker of the Year" as their first song, one that's less than a favorite of mine and I think a poor choice for an opener.  Things picked up steam with "Wild Side" and the stage was graced by two scantily clad ladies helping out with the background vocals.  In general the

Vince Neil-photo by The Meister

Crue seemed to be sloppier in comparison to Cooper and Vince's vocals were not the best by any means, but what do you expect?  Vince Neil's vocals have been talked about for a long time now and let's face it, with the history of the band members, they're playing is not the tightest, but that's not why you go to see Motley Crue!  If you want that style of performance go and see Rush, if you want a good time and a great party and a spectacle of a show to blow your mind, you go see Motley Crue!  It was by the end of the third song, "Primal Scream" that things would begin to go really awry for the boys.  The song featured lots and lots of super high flame pyro and smoke bombs/machines timed to the music of the chorus and they were actually sounding pretty good until we approached the end of the song.  Drummer Tommy Lee had an issue, apparently a broken kick drum, but hey, these things happen.  Vince Neil even exclaimed "Tommy broke it!" and commented on the issues of the first night of a tour.  Neil then asked the crowd for 3 or 4 minutes to fix the issue and to fill the dead air while they scrambled to repair the drum Mick Mars took center stage to perform one of the most uninspiring guitar solos I've ever seen.  By the end of the solo, which did not completely fill the repair time leaving some dead air and the house lights a notch higher, he was simply playing riffs and chords.  The guitar solo silenced at 9:33pm and it wasn't until the lights dimmed at 9:42pm as Vince returned to the stage toting a guitar were we underway once again.  Technical issues can strike at any time and are completely understandable, but as a professional act I think they could have done a

Motley Crue-photo by The Meister

 better job of covering the issue and keeping the momentum going with having Vince or Tommy addressing the crowd perhaps.  "Same Ol' Situation (S.O.S.)" went through without a hitch and then into "Looks That Kill" featuring the lady dancers in light boxes behind the drum kit.  They successfully pulled off a deeper cut from the Too Fast For Love album, "On With The Show", but the follow up however was a different story.  Guitarist Mick Mars blew the beginning of "Too Fast For Love" prompting a jibe from Tommy Lee to the effect of "It's pretty fuckin' cool when a band forgets it's own song!  It's "Too Fast For Love" and it's only 35 years old!"  On the second attempt "Too Fast For Love" was delivered and a new composition, "All Bad Things Must End", followed, but it didn't last long.  No further than 30 seconds into the song and the guitars went out.  I don't know if Mars forgot the notes again or if it was a technical issue, but the house lights came on again to full brightness this time.  I vacated my seat during this stoppage to use the washroom and before long they were back up and running once again but talk about a momentum killer!  That would seem to be the worst of the issues and the latter half of the show went much better as they ripped into "Smokin' In the Boys Room", "Without You" close on it's heels.  Vince Neil looked confused and maybe annoyed during "Without You" as confetti fluttered from the rafters, but that didn't stop him from serenading a lady from the audience as she was pulled on stage to sit on a lone chair.  The boys exploded into "Saints Of Los Angeles" next featuring lots of flame pyro once again that you could feel the heat from where I was seated 24 rows back!  Nikki Sixx took the mic for what I'm sure was intended to be a touching

Tommy Lee's Drum Coaster-photo by Meister

moment that just came off awkward and annoying.  He called for everyone to sit as we were attending a funeral for Motley Crue, but we hardly parked our butts in the seats before he instructed: "On four scream and we'll break into a Sex Pistols song 'cause that's how the Crue does it!".....uuuhhh Nikki, that doesn't even make sense!  Never-the-less we were served "Anarchy in the U.K." followed by "Too Young to Fall in Love" before the stage went dark again and a recorded intro played.  The recording seemed to go on forever and with all the earlier issues I wondered what was next, but eventually it was apparent that the stalling was designed to get Tommy Lee strapped into his newest drum gimmick.  This time he rode a roller coaster that stretched along the ceiling of the venue out over the crowd to a small satellite stage at the rear of the floor seating area.  No doubt about it this was a cool trick as the kit spun 360 degrees as it slowly traveled over the audience.  What I didn't enjoy however was the mash up mix of recorded music that he played to during this journey, including songs from artists like Bob Marley, Jay Z and Rage Against the Machine.  I understand how it must be difficult to play spinning in the air, but if you're going to use a recording to play to why not perform this solo during a Crue song even if much of it is recorded?  It would certainly be better than what we heard Tommy play along to

"Home Sweet Home"-photo by Meister

 and maybe the whole thing wouldn't have seemed like the colossal waste of time that it really was.  Nikki Sixx was the highlight of "Shout at the Devil" with his flame throwing bass guitar preceding "Don't Go Away Mad (Just Go Away)".  Throughout the whole show the two dancing girls were present for just about every song in a different costume and I had the thought that they were the most organized thing about the whole affair!  "Live Wire", "Dr. Feelgood" and "Girls, Girls, Girls" were all a hit with the crowd and the booing from earlier seemed long forgotten as they ate up every minute.  "Kickstart My Heart" closed things down under the huge lighted pentagram suspended above the stage with tons of flame pyro and smoke bombs.  In fact the smoke was so thick by the end of the song and the final bow that it was difficult to see the stage at all!  Motley Crue returned for a one song encore of the ballad "Home Sweet Home" which they performed on the small satellite stage near the rear of the floor area.

One thing cannot be denied and that's the totally over-the-top stage show at a Motley Crue concert and even with all of tonight's issues there's a kind of magic with these four guys on stage.  Bottom line is this: you shouldn't be going to a Crue concert to see the most technical and perfect performance, if you want that go and see a band like Rush!  You go to a Crue show for the spectacle, to have a good time and let loose with some of the music that helped shape your life.  And that's just what I did, it may have been messy at times but over all I had fun and that's what Crue is all about to me!  It will be interesting to see what the show is like in August as they roll into Toronto!

Cheers,
The Meister

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Meister in Sweden 2014: You Wanted the Sun, You Got the Sun!

 This morning I awoke drenched in sweat as the bright sun pounded down on my tent......this is much better than the damp, cold, rainy overcast skies of the past couple of days!  After freshening up in the shower trailer (not as fun as it sounds, trust me!) I headed out for a long day of rock with many acts on my "hitlist" for today.  Once in the festival area I noticed that there seemed to be an issue with the washrooms as all except the large one between the Rockklassiker Stage and 4 Sound Stage were closed down.  That one was being policed by two officers controlling the already building line to make use of it.  I heard rumor that it was a water issue and I sure hope they get this fixed soon as the sun was already beating down harshly and concert goers will need a water re-filling station.  No matter for me at this point of the day, I'll just hydrate with beer!

Kings of the Sun-photo by Meister

Kings of the Sun were the first band of the day and although they were something that I wanted to see, they conflicted with another act that I was looking forward to, Thundermother, starting shortly afterwards.  There were quite a few K.O.T.S. shirts around and I was surprised at the following that this Australian band had here in Sweden.  With the drummer handling the vocals and proclaiming that Kings of the Sun brought the sun for us, their spirited songs, "Rockpile" and "Switchblade Knife" started off a great day of rock!  I would have liked to catch more of their set but it was off to check about re-filling my water bottle with the sun ravaging me already and then pass by Thundermother for a bit, planning to return to K.O.T.S. later.

Clare Cunningham-by Meister

The washroom police were still controlling a large line-up so my impatience led me to a Sofiero (beer) beverage instead of water!  Thundermother is a band that I had discovered through another Swedish group, Sister Sin.  While watching an online concert of Sister Sin, Thundermother was the next band on the stage in the video.  This quintet of ladies (and we all know how lady rockers captivate my attention) stormed the Rocklassiker Stage, ripping through "Man With Blues".  Also proclaiming that they

Filippa Nasil-photo by Meister

brought the sun, it was time for a shot of Fireball to wake them up before "The Dangerous Kind".  Tracks such as "Cheers", "Thunderous", "Please Me", "Rock n Roll Disaster" and "Shoot to Kill" all collected together with more Fireball for a great set that before I knew it was over and I'd not made it back to Kings of the Sun!  Must purchase CD immediately (which I somehow failed to do while I was at the Festival!)!

Crossing the festival grounds to The Rock Stage with the intention of catching the last half of Talisman I was derailed by the overwhelming need to void my bladder.  With every toilet still on lock down and the huge line still policed at the only one that was open I decided to try the VIP/Press area.  This one was closed as well, but at least "the trough" was available!  I was able to hear some of Talisman from the VIP area as I decided to get in some quick camera/phone charging and they sounded great from way over here!  I was able to catch songs like the cover of Seal's "Crazy" and "Dangerous".

Jaguar-photo by Meister

Leaving the sanctuary of the VIP and Jagermeister ladies once again I headed back out to see Jaguar. Formed in the UK in the late 70's they were a part of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement, issuing a couple of albums in the 80's before they disbanded.  Arriving late, they were into "Feel the Heat" with the vocalist down in the photo pit and they were sounding great.  "Dutch Connection", "Axe Crazy" and "Stormchild" were all tunes that I recognized and the final song of "War Machine" was chosen after polling the crowd.  I really enjoyed Jaguar and I hope that I'll be fortunate enough to catch another live experience.

After Jaguar had left the stage I began to make my way over to Sweden Stage in preparations for Q5.  This day I had chosen for my attire a white Decibel Geek tee-shirt and on my way over to the next stage I was stopped by a gentleman who said that he loves the podcast, especially Aaron Camaro's perfect radio voice and he listens all the time!  I should have gotten his name and a photo, but instead thanked him for listening and passed him my card.  Cheers to the mystery Swedish Decibel Geek!

Q5-photo by The Meister

Q5 played what I thought was an excellent set although as I had noticed more than once on the Sweden Stage, the guitar especially needed to be much louder.  Songs such as "Rock On", "Pull the Trigger", "Missing in Action", "When the Mirror Cracks", "Ain't No Way To Treat A Lady", "Steel The Light" and "Teenage Runaway" filled out the setlist.  These guys were excellent and one of the few sets that I was able to catch the full thing of all weekend.  If you've not heard of Q5, start with their 1984 issue Steel The Light, it's really all you need!

Conny Bloom-by Meister

After spending a few minutes with a friend from the UK and a couple of quick beers in the VIP it was back out to catch some of The Electric Boys.  When Lynch Mob cancelled their appearance the week or so prior to the festival, these guys stepped in to save the day.  Not being familiar with their music and not having any time to research before leaving for this event I was a little lost, but they were quite good.   Their music has a decided funk feel to it and really gets your toe tapping.  I'm told that frontman Conny Bloom is somewhat of a hero here.  I was only able to catch three of their funk infused songs including "Captain of My Soul" and their hit single "All Lips And Hips" and I'd like to see a full set sometime, but until then it's CD shopping I go!

TNT-photo by The Meister

The next big event on my list was TNT.  I have long enjoyed their music and was thrilled to get the opportunity to see them live on 2013's Monsters of Rock Cruise.  That performance was with Tony Mills handling the vocal duties, but he has since left the band and original vocalist, Tony Harnell has returned.  Harnell has a powerful voice and the whole band sounded great for this show celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Intuition album.  They played a healthy selection from that release including "Intuition", "Caught Between the Tigers", "Forever Shine On", "End Of the Line" and "Tonight I'm Falling".  They also worked in some other Harnell led material such as "Seven Seas", "Downhill Racer", "Northern Lights" and "10,000 Lovers (In One)" but as to be expected no Mills led material was played.

Annihilator-photo by Meister

Somewhere during TNT, as hard as it was, I slipped away to support fellow Canadians, thrash metal band Annihilator.  I figured that I'd have a better chance of seeing them in Canada, but wanted to get at least a little of the set as it would be my first experience.  The Canadian flag posted on the drum kit was a nice touch and the first thing that I noticed approaching during "Reduced To Ash".  Some goofing around and the lick to "Chicken & Corn" brought us to "Alison Hell" during which there was a slight tech issue halting the performance and again prompting "Chicken & Corn".  "W.T.Y.D." followed the resumption of "Alison Hell" and I made my way back to TNT.

Next up was Kamelot, a symphonic metal outfit with dual vocalists, male and female, but about half a song was too much for me.  It had already been a long day of rock with the harsh Swedish sun bearing down on me and I had to retreat and rest.

Heaven's Basement-by The Meister

My next event after meeting people in the VIP/Press area was Heaven's Basement.  Unfortunately I was extremely late, getting caught up in conversation with a newly made friend and only made the last two songs of the set.  I had seen Heaven's Basement before when they opened for Buckcherry here in Toronto and that night the singer was sick.  I don't just mean not feeling well so he gave a weak performance, he was actually puking into a steel pail on stage!  He announced that all he could see across the way (Kamelot) was dragons and fire before starting into "Reign On My Parade".  This hardly seemed like the same guy that was filling the bucket on stage in Toronto as he was bashing his head off the cymbals and had the crowd jumping, in fact the most "into it" I'd seen yet from a crowd!  The awesome "Executioner's Day" wrapped things up.

W.A.S.P.-photo by The Meister

Wasting no time I headed over to Rock Stage for W.A.S.P., something I was looking forward to.  As the floodlights swirled around the stage a recorded intro of a medley of W.A.S.P. songs played.  Tons of fireball pyro was expended during the opening track, "On Your Knees".  "The Torture Never Stops" followed and I noticed the saw blades on Blackie Lawless' arms.  The backdrop curtain, depicting a saw blade proclaiming 32 years of W.A.S.P.

W.A.S.P.-photo by Meister

 dropped away revealing a Headless Children backdrop for "The Real Me".  "L.O.V.E. Machine", "Crazy", "Wildchild", "Sleeping In The Fire", "Forever Free" and "I Wanna Be Somebody", including some audience participation, all came before a rather boring collection of songs thanks to The Crimson Idol album.  The best effort from that release in my opinion, "Chainsaw Charlie (Murders In The New Morgue)" led us into "Heaven's Hung In Black" and from there the closer of "Blind In Texas".  At the end of "Blind In Texas" the PA totally cut out during the last few seconds of the song leaving the band looking like they were miming.  A great show, glad I finally saw W.A.S.P.!

Black Sabbath-photo by Meister

Now over to Festival Stage for Black Sabbath!  "War Pigs" led the charge and I was amazed at just how good they all sounded, especially Ozzy's voice.  "Into The Void" and "Snowblind" followed and while I'm a fan (not rabid fan mind you) and appreciate what this band has done for metal I find the songs too long and drawn out instrumentally for my real liking, especially after such a long day in the sun which was finally retreating.  "Age of Reason" and "Black Sabbath" came next and Ozzy's random "cuckooing" in between songs peppered the set.  The dismal gloomy, depressing feeling of the music overtook me and it was time to rest my feet once again, hearing "N.I.B.", "Fairies Wear Boots", "Rat Salad" and "Iron Man" from the sanctuary of the VIP/Press area as I charged my gear and had a beer once again.  I made it back out for the ending selections of "God Is Dead?", "Children of the Grave" and of course "Paranoid".

U.D.O.-photo by The Meister

Now something more "up my alley" was about to happen, but was also disappointing at the same time.  I have never seen Megadeth, succeeding in missing them every single time in Toronto and thought this would finally be my chance.  Not to be as they had cancelled their appearance, and understandably so, a couple of weeks before due to a death in one of the band's family.  German power metaller and former Accept frontman U.D.O. stepped in to fill the void which was fine by me, but I still miss out on a Megadeth show! The stout singer's gruff, gravelly vocals led his band through a huge set that had to be over two hours runtime.  After an intro of The Beastie Boys "Fight For Your Right" the incredibly tight band ripped through a set starting off like this: "Steelhammer", "King of Mean", "Future Land", "Cry of a Nation", "Stranger", "They Want War" and "Animal House".

Death SS-by Meister

I thought I'd better go and quickly check out Death SS for a few minutes when the guitar solo cropped up.  I'd checked out some of their compositions prior to arriving here in Sweden but I was unfamiliar with this song.  It didn't really matter as I barely heard it anyway, my concentration was on the basically nude young lady on stage.  For the next song, which I was also unfamiliar with, she returned dressed in white.  I didn't dislike their industrial flavored brand of metal but with not knowing the material well enough I headed back over to U.D.O..

U.D.O.-photo by The Meister

"Never Cross My Way", "Stay True", "No Limits" and "Metal Machine" greeted my return and welcomed me back wonderfully.  I noticed John Nyman, guitarist for Y&T checking out the Sweden Rock Merchandise at the Sweden Rock Shop Booth which I was standing near, away from the crowd to enjoy U.D.O.  "Go Back To Hell", "Timebomb" and "Metal Heart" came before U.D.O. asked the crowd "you want some more of this old shit?".  He obliged the crowd finishing up with the three punch hit of Accept classics "Balls to the Wall", "I'm A Rebel" and "Fast As A Shark".  What an awesome show from a great performer with his distinctive throaty growl laid over some great power metal.  Sad to have missed my best so far chance at Megadeth, but thrilled that U.D.O. and his band were able to rock me like this!

Time for sleeping!
The Meister

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Links to 2013's "A Canadian Decibel Geek in Sweden" series.

(Prelude to Departure) (Days #1 & 2) (Day #3) (Day #4) (The Final Day)