Read a review of the Athens gig: (from www.metal-temple.com)
"Though there werent 60.000 people attending Saxons show last night at the Gagarin 205 club in Athens (Greece), there was magic in the air, indeed, like in every one of this glorious bands concerts. Saxon is and always has been (for 25 years already) an undoubtedly "must see" Heavy Metal band, a steady value when it comes to live performances. I like every other metalhead attending concerts have seen various bands play live; big ones and small ones, in small venues and big venues - Saxon probably tops almost all of them!
On Sunday night, it was going to be the second time I was going to see Saxon play live. Last time was in 2001 and that show was deeply carved in that part of my brain where I keep my best Heavy Metal memories. Theyd come in 2003 too (together with Doro Pesch and Circle II Circle) but I didnt make it to the show. So my thirst for a really good concert had grown stronger in the meantime. I arrived at the venue at 08:00 pm and headed inside as most of the Magazines crew was already there (Eleni, Alex, Yiannis, Grigoris and Dimitra), waiting for Chinchilla to start off the nights show.
Chinchilla is a German Heavy Metal/Hard Rock band and I must admit I knew very little (almost nothing) about them. Of course I wasnt the only one who didnt know much about them; the entire venue seemed to share the same ignorance with me (and I feel ashamed to admit it but unfortunately you cant know everything about every single band on this planet). Nevertheless, Chinchilla were not bad, not at all, and played their set list professionally and with a fair amount of passion. Their music seemed to me pleasant, listenable but nothing Id really brag about all day long. Their set list ended with a well performed cover of Kiss "I Stole Your Love" ("Lovegun", 1977) and the 1.000 (more or less) people attending the concert were now ready for the almighty eagle to land...
The time was about 9:15 pm when the lights went out and it was time for Saxon to appear and satisfy the crowds intense anticipation. The intro-track ("The Return") of their latest albums homonymous song, "Lionheart", started playing, smoke filled the stage and Saxon came out. The crowd was once more ecstatic (as in every other Saxon show)!
The band did what it knows best for almost 2.5 hours, leading the crowd to a pleasant exhaustion (I know I was dead meat after the show had ended), taking all of us on a headbanging journey through the bands loaded discography. There were legendary songs like "Wheels Of Steel", "Backs To The Wall", "Crusader", "Princess Of The Night", "747 (Stangers In The Night)" and "Ride Like The Wind" and there were also songs from their latest works like "Lionheart", "Searching For Atlantis", "Flying On The Edge", "Man And Machine", "Beyond The Grave", "To Live By The Sword" and "Witchfinder General" which all these were from the "Lionheart" (2004) album. It was all there; the passion, the glory, the power of a true Heavy Metal bands story.
Heres the entire set list in detail:
01. The Return ("Lionheart" album)
02. Lionheart ("Lionheart" album)
03. Backs To The Wall ("Backs To The Wall" album)
04. Power And The Glory ("Power And The Glory" album)
05. Motorcycle Man ("Wheels Of Steel" album)
06. Searching For Atlantis ("Lionheart" album)
07. Flying On The Edge ("Lionheart" album)
08. Ride Like The Wind ("Destiny" album)
09. Heavy Metal Thunder ("Strong Arm Of The Law" album)
10. Man And Machine ("Lionheart" album)
11. Beyond The Grave ("Lionheart" album)
12. To Live By The Sword ("Lionheart" album)
13. Unleash The Beast ("Unleash The Beast" album)
14. Broken Heroes ("Innocence Is No Excuse" album)
15. Dragons Lair ("Killing Ground" album)
16. This Town Rocks ("Power And The Glory" album)
17. Dogs Of War ("Dogs Of War" album)
18. Witchfinder General ("Lionheart" album)
19. Princess Of The Night ("Denim And Leather" album)
20. 747 (Strangers In The Night) ("Wheels Of Steel" album)
21. Never Surrender ("Denim And Leather" album)
22. Crusader ("Crusader" album)
23. Wheels Of Steel ("Wheels Of Steel" album)
24. Solid Ball Of Rock ("Solid Ball Of Rock" album)
25. And The Bands Played On ("Denim And Leather" album)
Only problem after 2.5 hours of non-stop Heavy Metal... and an aching neck is that I couldnt remember when the first encore started (which lasted for like 40 minutes or so). Well, thats of no great importance. Set lists arent of that great important...at least thats what Biff Byford (singer) showed us when he took his set list sheet, went "whats next?", laughed a bit and tore the paper up into little pieces (and the crowd went ecstatic as usual).
The bands new drummer, renowned Heavy Metal "killing machine" Jorg Michael (ex-Stratovarius, ex-Running Wild etc) was a human drum machine throughout the entire concert giving all songs the Heavy Metal loudness needed in order to blow the fans away (his double bass drumming rules). Even the older songs sounded pretty louder and slightly faster at times! Paul Quinn (a legendary guitarist) and Doug Scarratt were simply awesome on the guitars their solos really rocked and they perfectly delivered all of the bands magnificent tunes. Nibbs Carter (bass) was the bands most passionate member and he never stopped headbanging all over the stage. Biff though fifty-something in age still manages to jump around like a teenager (well, not all the time), headbanging from time to time (not violently...hes always careful not to strain his back well, I do that too and Im not even close to his age) and of course...playing with the audience. Yup, Saxon always love making the audience sing along their tunes. Thats why most of their songs are "sing along" songs (this is something more general if you take a look at a lot of bands coming from the N.W.O.B.H.M. era). I especially love it when they make the audience on the ground floor compete with the audience on the upper floor and then...all together, united. They even video taped the show for later use of the footage on an upcoming DVD!
Overall this concert was once more proof of my usual saying: "If Saxons in town and you dont go and see their show, its your loss". Some things I just wish theyd last forever. Well, even if the band calls it quits one day, the memories we hold from such experiences as seeing them play live will remain forever, in that special part of our brain I mentioned in the beginning...Well, as long as we still got a brain..."
My opinion: fantastic gig, one of the best i've ever been. The band was powerful, the crowd loved the show and was very energetic (although many people were kind of bored with the too many new songs..).
Thanks Saxon for a great gig and a GREAT new cd (i can't stop listening to Lionheart!).
Babhs
www.gate13.gr
PANATHINAIKOS FC
THE PRIDE OF ATHENS
"Though there werent 60.000 people attending Saxons show last night at the Gagarin 205 club in Athens (Greece), there was magic in the air, indeed, like in every one of this glorious bands concerts. Saxon is and always has been (for 25 years already) an undoubtedly "must see" Heavy Metal band, a steady value when it comes to live performances. I like every other metalhead attending concerts have seen various bands play live; big ones and small ones, in small venues and big venues - Saxon probably tops almost all of them!
On Sunday night, it was going to be the second time I was going to see Saxon play live. Last time was in 2001 and that show was deeply carved in that part of my brain where I keep my best Heavy Metal memories. Theyd come in 2003 too (together with Doro Pesch and Circle II Circle) but I didnt make it to the show. So my thirst for a really good concert had grown stronger in the meantime. I arrived at the venue at 08:00 pm and headed inside as most of the Magazines crew was already there (Eleni, Alex, Yiannis, Grigoris and Dimitra), waiting for Chinchilla to start off the nights show.
Chinchilla is a German Heavy Metal/Hard Rock band and I must admit I knew very little (almost nothing) about them. Of course I wasnt the only one who didnt know much about them; the entire venue seemed to share the same ignorance with me (and I feel ashamed to admit it but unfortunately you cant know everything about every single band on this planet). Nevertheless, Chinchilla were not bad, not at all, and played their set list professionally and with a fair amount of passion. Their music seemed to me pleasant, listenable but nothing Id really brag about all day long. Their set list ended with a well performed cover of Kiss "I Stole Your Love" ("Lovegun", 1977) and the 1.000 (more or less) people attending the concert were now ready for the almighty eagle to land...
The time was about 9:15 pm when the lights went out and it was time for Saxon to appear and satisfy the crowds intense anticipation. The intro-track ("The Return") of their latest albums homonymous song, "Lionheart", started playing, smoke filled the stage and Saxon came out. The crowd was once more ecstatic (as in every other Saxon show)!
The band did what it knows best for almost 2.5 hours, leading the crowd to a pleasant exhaustion (I know I was dead meat after the show had ended), taking all of us on a headbanging journey through the bands loaded discography. There were legendary songs like "Wheels Of Steel", "Backs To The Wall", "Crusader", "Princess Of The Night", "747 (Stangers In The Night)" and "Ride Like The Wind" and there were also songs from their latest works like "Lionheart", "Searching For Atlantis", "Flying On The Edge", "Man And Machine", "Beyond The Grave", "To Live By The Sword" and "Witchfinder General" which all these were from the "Lionheart" (2004) album. It was all there; the passion, the glory, the power of a true Heavy Metal bands story.
Heres the entire set list in detail:
01. The Return ("Lionheart" album)
02. Lionheart ("Lionheart" album)
03. Backs To The Wall ("Backs To The Wall" album)
04. Power And The Glory ("Power And The Glory" album)
05. Motorcycle Man ("Wheels Of Steel" album)
06. Searching For Atlantis ("Lionheart" album)
07. Flying On The Edge ("Lionheart" album)
08. Ride Like The Wind ("Destiny" album)
09. Heavy Metal Thunder ("Strong Arm Of The Law" album)
10. Man And Machine ("Lionheart" album)
11. Beyond The Grave ("Lionheart" album)
12. To Live By The Sword ("Lionheart" album)
13. Unleash The Beast ("Unleash The Beast" album)
14. Broken Heroes ("Innocence Is No Excuse" album)
15. Dragons Lair ("Killing Ground" album)
16. This Town Rocks ("Power And The Glory" album)
17. Dogs Of War ("Dogs Of War" album)
18. Witchfinder General ("Lionheart" album)
19. Princess Of The Night ("Denim And Leather" album)
20. 747 (Strangers In The Night) ("Wheels Of Steel" album)
21. Never Surrender ("Denim And Leather" album)
22. Crusader ("Crusader" album)
23. Wheels Of Steel ("Wheels Of Steel" album)
24. Solid Ball Of Rock ("Solid Ball Of Rock" album)
25. And The Bands Played On ("Denim And Leather" album)
Only problem after 2.5 hours of non-stop Heavy Metal... and an aching neck is that I couldnt remember when the first encore started (which lasted for like 40 minutes or so). Well, thats of no great importance. Set lists arent of that great important...at least thats what Biff Byford (singer) showed us when he took his set list sheet, went "whats next?", laughed a bit and tore the paper up into little pieces (and the crowd went ecstatic as usual).
The bands new drummer, renowned Heavy Metal "killing machine" Jorg Michael (ex-Stratovarius, ex-Running Wild etc) was a human drum machine throughout the entire concert giving all songs the Heavy Metal loudness needed in order to blow the fans away (his double bass drumming rules). Even the older songs sounded pretty louder and slightly faster at times! Paul Quinn (a legendary guitarist) and Doug Scarratt were simply awesome on the guitars their solos really rocked and they perfectly delivered all of the bands magnificent tunes. Nibbs Carter (bass) was the bands most passionate member and he never stopped headbanging all over the stage. Biff though fifty-something in age still manages to jump around like a teenager (well, not all the time), headbanging from time to time (not violently...hes always careful not to strain his back well, I do that too and Im not even close to his age) and of course...playing with the audience. Yup, Saxon always love making the audience sing along their tunes. Thats why most of their songs are "sing along" songs (this is something more general if you take a look at a lot of bands coming from the N.W.O.B.H.M. era). I especially love it when they make the audience on the ground floor compete with the audience on the upper floor and then...all together, united. They even video taped the show for later use of the footage on an upcoming DVD!
Overall this concert was once more proof of my usual saying: "If Saxons in town and you dont go and see their show, its your loss". Some things I just wish theyd last forever. Well, even if the band calls it quits one day, the memories we hold from such experiences as seeing them play live will remain forever, in that special part of our brain I mentioned in the beginning...Well, as long as we still got a brain..."
My opinion: fantastic gig, one of the best i've ever been. The band was powerful, the crowd loved the show and was very energetic (although many people were kind of bored with the too many new songs..).
Thanks Saxon for a great gig and a GREAT new cd (i can't stop listening to Lionheart!).
Babhs
www.gate13.gr
PANATHINAIKOS FC
THE PRIDE OF ATHENS
