ANGRA/FIREWIND/POWER QUEST TOUR 2007
Day 1 - The departure
We left Southampton around 10am on Feb 15th. Myself, Simon Burrell (Merchandiser) and Paul Finnie (Stage Manager)
headed to Chievely services on the M4 to pick up the trailer for the bus in a rather cool nightliner from the guys at Nite Flite
Bussing.
We arrived in London around 1:30pm to pick up Steve Scott and Manuela Froelich (Tour manager) before heading to Century
Media to collect some equipment for the Firewind guys. From there we headed to Maidstone where we picked up our driver for
the journey, Billy, who turned out to be an absolute legend through out the tour.
We boarded the 7pm ferry at Dover and headed for Calais, consuming a rather good Roast Chicken dinner on the way. It was
pretty quiet on the way with just the five of us on board and I think everyone had hit the hay by midnight. According to Billy
we would be in Nancy by 5am.
Day 2 - Nancy/Pagney
When I woke up I discovered we were in a quaint little village as opposed to Nancy itself. Apparently we were about 20km
from Nancy. Alessio, Andrea, Francesco and Alessandro (guitar tech) arrived just after midday in time for a great lunch of
salad, bread, meat and cheese. They had to get a taxi from their hotel in Nancy, as Billy had run out of driving hours for the
day. The first show went really well considering we had no rehearsals before the tour and it was the first time we had played
with Alessio on guitar as well. We spent a longtime chatting with fans and I was the last one back on the bus (which was to
become a regular thing!) before we headed to a hotel for a quick shower.
Gus G, Bob and Petros from Firewind had joined us on our bus and we got on well from the word go, a friendship that would
go from strength to strength over the 3 week period. We left Nancy around 2:30am and headed for Strasbourg
Day 3 - Strasbourg
We arrived at the venue around 5:30am and load in began at 12. Our friend Chizzy had flown over for the show and she
agreed to help Simon and Manuela with the merchandise that night.
Another great reaction from the crowd and no soundcheck for us tonight. Again, a lot of people talking with us after the show
including Nikolas Krofka who was Helloween's tour manager when we played with them in 2006 so it was good to catch up
with him.
Excellent catering again today, both for lunch and dinner...even pizza after the show! Could get used to that! lol Back on the
bus the mood was excellent and by 3am we had all retired to our bunks as Billy headed for Riems.
Day 4 - Riems
Arrived in Riems overnight and when I awoke we were in a secure parking area right next to the venue. As per usual we
trooped into the venue around 12pm for some lunch. Another excellent catering day for us!
The local stage manager ensure soundchecks ran to time and as a result we got a great sound on stage and really cool
reception from the French crowd.
Alessio and Apollo were on interview duty after their respective sets, one for magazines and one for internet tv.
It was a quieter affair after the show as the people were herded out by security quite quickly. I also noticed less people
speaking any english here as well, but hey, why should they?
Day 5 - Strasbourg (Day Off)
We arranged to head back to Strasbourg for the day off as Billy and Manuela had arranged parking at the venue there, which
meant we had power for the bus as well.
We split up into various groups and headed around the city to see what we could find. We also met up with som e fans from
the show the other day which was cool.
A few beers and DVD's were the order of the day in the evening, by which time we had actually run out of water on the bus as
well. We left for Switzerland around 1 and crossed the Swiss border at 3am before we finally went to bed.
Day 6 - Pratteln
We woke up on what seemed like an industrial estate with a large cow shed next to where the bus was parked. Got us
thinking! Steve Scott had already told us what a great venue this place was and sure enough when we got inside we could see
what he meant. Excellent facilities and home made food on tap all day which was incredible. With Pratteln being so close to
the Swiss border, some people had come from France and Germany to this particular show. I remember it being particularly
loud that night and the crowd were right behind us from the word go. I watched all of Firewind's set as well and thoroughly
enjoyed it. We all had a bit of party backstage afterwards with the diehards still going at 4am. Day off tomorrow, so who cares?
lol!
Day 7 - Lyon (Day off)
I was up at 10:30 and everyone else surface gradually until by 3pm everyone was up. We all did different things today. Gus,
Petros and I went to a kebab shop for lunch while some of the others ventured into the city. In the vening Paul, Simon, Billy,
Bob, Gus and myself watched football in the local bar whilst Apollo, Manuela and the remaining guys went out to eat
elsewhere. I actually had an earlyish night tonight while Simon, Paul, Petros, Gus and Andrea kept the fires burning well into
the small hours.
Day 8 - Lyon
By now it will be no suprise to hear that I was the first up around 10am. things were getting pretty desperate on the "number
two" front so luckily the bar we were in last night was open early! Phew!!
Load in was pretty smooth despite the small stage and soundchecks were good, if a little short. The actual show itself was
probably the best yet. Really crazy crowd and there was even a mosh pit going on at one point. Never expected that one! We
also received a fantastic reception at the end of the set. We spent a lot of time talking with the fans after the show as ever which
we always enjoy.
The venue was exceptionally hot here, almost uncomfortable. You could see the walls dripping, which reminded me of the
PPUK warm up show in 2006. Special mention to the local crew here who were awesome and helped us out so much
throughout the day.
Once load in was complete and we had said our goodbyes, we headed for Paris.
Day 9 - Paris
Paris was a strange one in some ways, partly due to the parking regulations which meant the bus could not park at the venue.
Billy basically had to drop us and go. With 2 busses in the equation the whole thing had to be timed to perfection. As usual
Billy ensured we arrived first to load in and then he was off for 11 hours.
Today was particularly busy for Simon and Manuela on the merchandise stand, which we had expected given we were in the
capital of France. Both of them were absolutely dog tired by the end of the evening.
Really great performance from all accounts tonight, things just seem to be getting better each night. All this despite the fact that
the monitor engineer vanished during our set and Paul had to jump in and make the best of unfamiliar equipment. He
certainly saved the day.
Billy arrived back on the stroke of 11 and we loaded the trailer in record time and before we knew it we were heading past
Moulin Rouge, Eiffel tower and Arc d'Triomphe and on our way to Bordeaux.
Day 10 - Bordeaux
After stumbling out of bed, I headed off to buy some cigarettes. Luckily I found a very friendly tobacco shop about 5 minutes
away. On my return I was greeted by the promoter who promptly took me for a tour of the venue and the facilities. Very cool
place, almost like a mini football stadium with tiered crowd area. I even bumped into a fan outside the venue who said she
was coming with her brother later.
I know I keep saying this but the show was definitely the best so far and the crowd were certainly the wildest we had
encountered on the road. Steve Cummings from www.hardrockhouse.com in England was there today and we spent time with
him and a whole host of fans after the show, including the girl and her brother who I met earlier.
Fantastic catering again...curry, pizza...excellent! The only downside was that it was nightmare getting out of the venue and
we had to unhitch the trailer to enable Billy to get the bus out, this took a little while but once again by 2am we were saying our
goodbyes and heading to Toulouse.
Day 11- Toulouse
This venue was quite like a Cuban cafe on the inside, in keeping with the name..."Havana Cafe". Certianly very diferent to the
venues we had played so far. Goes without saying almost that the catering was ace! We had a very tiny dressing room today
but that and the foul weather didn't stop us getting up there and kicking Toulouse squarely in the ass, for which we received
another great response. Tonight was Apollo's last show on this tour as he had to return home for personal reasons. We were
all sorry to see him go as not only is he a great singer but a great guy as well.
For Apollo's swansong, Angra decided to call him, Gus and Alessio on stage to join them for versions of "Smoke on the Water"
and "Come Together" at the end of the show. The crowd loved it!
There were some fans there who had followed Power Quest since the demo days and had brought all their CD's to sign. It was
really cool to talk face to face with people who I had been in contact with via email for a few years.
Day 12 - 60km outside of Salamanca (Day Off)
Billy's driving regulations meant that we had to hole up at a Gas Station/Cafe while he got his 11 hour break. It was a
dustbowl of a place where you expected tumbleweed to roll past at any moment. Most of us just hung around all day mucking
around but Manuela, Kiwi and Petros decided they would head to the nearest town, which turned out to be a village with
nothing open. A few hours later they returned, just as the rest of us were tucking into dinner at the cafe. Literally nothing else
happened despite the place taking on an almost "From Dusk till Dawn" feel once the sun went down, and there were a few
strange noises going on outside....spooky! lol!
Day -13 Lisbon
Arrived in Lisbon to discover there was no parking! Eventually we parked the other side of a football pitch which had to be
crossed to get to the venue. Communal sports showers today as well, but hey, a shower is a shower on tour!
All sorts of technical problems throughout the day at the venue but suprisingly the show passed off well and again we were
signing a lot of stuff for fans after we played and at the end of the night. The local crew were extremely friendly here as well
and most spoke.
Earlier on I had dashed to the hairdresser (for the first time in 10 years) to have some red streaks put in my hair. Well, why not?
thanks to the young lady who helped me with communication problems in the salon too!
It was a late one by the tme we loaded back in to the trailer, around 3am I think and we left at 6am. We stopped at a gas station
to get some food but were then followed for a few miles by the police until we reached the outskirts of the city. Bizarre. By this
point it was gone 7am and it really was bed time!
Day 1 - The departure
We left Southampton around 10am on Feb 15th. Myself, Simon Burrell (Merchandiser) and Paul Finnie (Stage Manager)
headed to Chievely services on the M4 to pick up the trailer for the bus in a rather cool nightliner from the guys at Nite Flite
Bussing.
We arrived in London around 1:30pm to pick up Steve Scott and Manuela Froelich (Tour manager) before heading to Century
Media to collect some equipment for the Firewind guys. From there we headed to Maidstone where we picked up our driver for
the journey, Billy, who turned out to be an absolute legend through out the tour.
We boarded the 7pm ferry at Dover and headed for Calais, consuming a rather good Roast Chicken dinner on the way. It was
pretty quiet on the way with just the five of us on board and I think everyone had hit the hay by midnight. According to Billy
we would be in Nancy by 5am.
Day 2 - Nancy/Pagney
When I woke up I discovered we were in a quaint little village as opposed to Nancy itself. Apparently we were about 20km
from Nancy. Alessio, Andrea, Francesco and Alessandro (guitar tech) arrived just after midday in time for a great lunch of
salad, bread, meat and cheese. They had to get a taxi from their hotel in Nancy, as Billy had run out of driving hours for the
day. The first show went really well considering we had no rehearsals before the tour and it was the first time we had played
with Alessio on guitar as well. We spent a longtime chatting with fans and I was the last one back on the bus (which was to
become a regular thing!) before we headed to a hotel for a quick shower.
Gus G, Bob and Petros from Firewind had joined us on our bus and we got on well from the word go, a friendship that would
go from strength to strength over the 3 week period. We left Nancy around 2:30am and headed for Strasbourg
Day 3 - Strasbourg
We arrived at the venue around 5:30am and load in began at 12. Our friend Chizzy had flown over for the show and she
agreed to help Simon and Manuela with the merchandise that night.
Another great reaction from the crowd and no soundcheck for us tonight. Again, a lot of people talking with us after the show
including Nikolas Krofka who was Helloween's tour manager when we played with them in 2006 so it was good to catch up
with him.
Excellent catering again today, both for lunch and dinner...even pizza after the show! Could get used to that! lol Back on the
bus the mood was excellent and by 3am we had all retired to our bunks as Billy headed for Riems.
Day 4 - Riems
Arrived in Riems overnight and when I awoke we were in a secure parking area right next to the venue. As per usual we
trooped into the venue around 12pm for some lunch. Another excellent catering day for us!
The local stage manager ensure soundchecks ran to time and as a result we got a great sound on stage and really cool
reception from the French crowd.
Alessio and Apollo were on interview duty after their respective sets, one for magazines and one for internet tv.
It was a quieter affair after the show as the people were herded out by security quite quickly. I also noticed less people
speaking any english here as well, but hey, why should they?
Day 5 - Strasbourg (Day Off)
We arranged to head back to Strasbourg for the day off as Billy and Manuela had arranged parking at the venue there, which
meant we had power for the bus as well.
We split up into various groups and headed around the city to see what we could find. We also met up with som e fans from
the show the other day which was cool.
A few beers and DVD's were the order of the day in the evening, by which time we had actually run out of water on the bus as
well. We left for Switzerland around 1 and crossed the Swiss border at 3am before we finally went to bed.
Day 6 - Pratteln
We woke up on what seemed like an industrial estate with a large cow shed next to where the bus was parked. Got us
thinking! Steve Scott had already told us what a great venue this place was and sure enough when we got inside we could see
what he meant. Excellent facilities and home made food on tap all day which was incredible. With Pratteln being so close to
the Swiss border, some people had come from France and Germany to this particular show. I remember it being particularly
loud that night and the crowd were right behind us from the word go. I watched all of Firewind's set as well and thoroughly
enjoyed it. We all had a bit of party backstage afterwards with the diehards still going at 4am. Day off tomorrow, so who cares?
lol!
Day 7 - Lyon (Day off)
I was up at 10:30 and everyone else surface gradually until by 3pm everyone was up. We all did different things today. Gus,
Petros and I went to a kebab shop for lunch while some of the others ventured into the city. In the vening Paul, Simon, Billy,
Bob, Gus and myself watched football in the local bar whilst Apollo, Manuela and the remaining guys went out to eat
elsewhere. I actually had an earlyish night tonight while Simon, Paul, Petros, Gus and Andrea kept the fires burning well into
the small hours.
Day 8 - Lyon
By now it will be no suprise to hear that I was the first up around 10am. things were getting pretty desperate on the "number
two" front so luckily the bar we were in last night was open early! Phew!!
Load in was pretty smooth despite the small stage and soundchecks were good, if a little short. The actual show itself was
probably the best yet. Really crazy crowd and there was even a mosh pit going on at one point. Never expected that one! We
also received a fantastic reception at the end of the set. We spent a lot of time talking with the fans after the show as ever which
we always enjoy.
The venue was exceptionally hot here, almost uncomfortable. You could see the walls dripping, which reminded me of the
PPUK warm up show in 2006. Special mention to the local crew here who were awesome and helped us out so much
throughout the day.
Once load in was complete and we had said our goodbyes, we headed for Paris.
Day 9 - Paris
Paris was a strange one in some ways, partly due to the parking regulations which meant the bus could not park at the venue.
Billy basically had to drop us and go. With 2 busses in the equation the whole thing had to be timed to perfection. As usual
Billy ensured we arrived first to load in and then he was off for 11 hours.
Today was particularly busy for Simon and Manuela on the merchandise stand, which we had expected given we were in the
capital of France. Both of them were absolutely dog tired by the end of the evening.
Really great performance from all accounts tonight, things just seem to be getting better each night. All this despite the fact that
the monitor engineer vanished during our set and Paul had to jump in and make the best of unfamiliar equipment. He
certainly saved the day.
Billy arrived back on the stroke of 11 and we loaded the trailer in record time and before we knew it we were heading past
Moulin Rouge, Eiffel tower and Arc d'Triomphe and on our way to Bordeaux.
Day 10 - Bordeaux
After stumbling out of bed, I headed off to buy some cigarettes. Luckily I found a very friendly tobacco shop about 5 minutes
away. On my return I was greeted by the promoter who promptly took me for a tour of the venue and the facilities. Very cool
place, almost like a mini football stadium with tiered crowd area. I even bumped into a fan outside the venue who said she
was coming with her brother later.
I know I keep saying this but the show was definitely the best so far and the crowd were certainly the wildest we had
encountered on the road. Steve Cummings from www.hardrockhouse.com in England was there today and we spent time with
him and a whole host of fans after the show, including the girl and her brother who I met earlier.
Fantastic catering again...curry, pizza...excellent! The only downside was that it was nightmare getting out of the venue and
we had to unhitch the trailer to enable Billy to get the bus out, this took a little while but once again by 2am we were saying our
goodbyes and heading to Toulouse.
Day 11- Toulouse
This venue was quite like a Cuban cafe on the inside, in keeping with the name..."Havana Cafe". Certianly very diferent to the
venues we had played so far. Goes without saying almost that the catering was ace! We had a very tiny dressing room today
but that and the foul weather didn't stop us getting up there and kicking Toulouse squarely in the ass, for which we received
another great response. Tonight was Apollo's last show on this tour as he had to return home for personal reasons. We were
all sorry to see him go as not only is he a great singer but a great guy as well.
For Apollo's swansong, Angra decided to call him, Gus and Alessio on stage to join them for versions of "Smoke on the Water"
and "Come Together" at the end of the show. The crowd loved it!
There were some fans there who had followed Power Quest since the demo days and had brought all their CD's to sign. It was
really cool to talk face to face with people who I had been in contact with via email for a few years.
Day 12 - 60km outside of Salamanca (Day Off)
Billy's driving regulations meant that we had to hole up at a Gas Station/Cafe while he got his 11 hour break. It was a
dustbowl of a place where you expected tumbleweed to roll past at any moment. Most of us just hung around all day mucking
around but Manuela, Kiwi and Petros decided they would head to the nearest town, which turned out to be a village with
nothing open. A few hours later they returned, just as the rest of us were tucking into dinner at the cafe. Literally nothing else
happened despite the place taking on an almost "From Dusk till Dawn" feel once the sun went down, and there were a few
strange noises going on outside....spooky! lol!
Day -13 Lisbon
Arrived in Lisbon to discover there was no parking! Eventually we parked the other side of a football pitch which had to be
crossed to get to the venue. Communal sports showers today as well, but hey, a shower is a shower on tour!
All sorts of technical problems throughout the day at the venue but suprisingly the show passed off well and again we were
signing a lot of stuff for fans after we played and at the end of the night. The local crew were extremely friendly here as well
and most spoke.
Earlier on I had dashed to the hairdresser (for the first time in 10 years) to have some red streaks put in my hair. Well, why not?
thanks to the young lady who helped me with communication problems in the salon too!
It was a late one by the tme we loaded back in to the trailer, around 3am I think and we left at 6am. We stopped at a gas station
to get some food but were then followed for a few miles by the police until we reached the outskirts of the city. Bizarre. By this
point it was gone 7am and it really was bed time!
