Author: Rok Klemše
Photos: Aleš Podbrežnik
Venue: Studentski kulturni centar / Belgrade / Serbia
Concert date: 16.11.2007
Attendance: 1000
Ticket price: 2.400DIN
The Hellish Rock 07/08 tour. Helloween. Gamma Ray. Belgrade. Is there even anything left to add? After two years of hints and guesswork that had every power metal fan drooling buckets, the dream power metal double bill has finally hit the road for its long-awaited first joint tour, one that I can say without any trouble at all will go down in history. Hellish Rock started raging across Europe on November 16 in Budapest, and for a poor student’s wallet and a metalhead’s belly hungry for gallons of cheap beer, rakija and the best ćevapi in the world, the second date of the tour came in more than handy, in the former shared capital, white Belgrade. Our road trip kicked off late Friday night, and the itinerary won’t exactly be followed here, but let me mention one incident at a rest stop somewhere in the middle of “our beautiful homeland”, where some uncle, mid-business on the grass, let rip with a loud salvo that became the central motif of the whole weekend’s “fart jokes”… Oh well… After a few hours and generous caffeine stops (coffee, Coca Cola and Red Bull work miracles) we finally rolled into truly white, snowed-in Belgrade early in the morning. A quick check-in at the hostel and we were facing a seemingly simple task: finding ćevapi and beer in Belgrade, which turned into a feverish, almost addict-level hunt for deer. Jelen beer, that is, heh heh. Our little stomachs filled up fast, there was still time for a few quick pints, and finally the concert was ahead of us! My only curse goes to the Serbian snow-clearing service, which apparently consists of two guys and one shovel; we were soaked up to the knees.
The venue was the rather impressive SKC building (Studentski kulturni centar), which stands right in the very center of Belgrade, a stone’s throw from Kneza Mihajla street. A nice crowd of Serbian metalheads was gathering in front of the entrance, and around eight, after some agonizing waiting, they let us into the hall. A quick look at the merch at moderate prices, and this time MB beer (“World-class, yet ours!”), 3 dcl for a measly 100 din (a bit under a euro and a half), and there we were in a hall with a capacity of something like 1000-1500 heads, with a banner bearing the Gamma Ray logo and the obligatory demonic mascot already spread across the stage. A bit before nine the impatience was finally cut by the welcoming intro, Welcome, and the German gamma rays shone onto the stage with full force, immediately hitting us with the first surprise of the night, a killer anthem from the debut Heading For Tomorrow (1990), Heaven Can Wait. The Serbs completely lost it, I’ve honestly never seen a crowd like that, and judging by the band’s reaction, neither had they. The central figure, legendary frontman Kai Hansen, couldn’t figure out what was going on, and for the whole hour-plus of the set the smile never left his face for a second. With hits like New World Order and Land of the Free, Gamma Ray pushed the crowd into an ever more feverish delirium, which was happening on stage too. Kai screamed like there was a bet on it, hit even the highest notes without any trouble, with excellent support from Dirk Schläcther on bass and backing vocals and the animal behind the drum kit, Dan Zimmermann, and only guitarist Henjo Richter had worse luck, as his guitar kept acting up. Next came the first track from the new record, a sequel to the cult Land of the Free, the punchy opener Into the Storm, which the crowd sang through in its entirety in a fever, together with Kai, who asked in astonishment afterwards whether the new album was already out. Well, for his first visit to Serbia we’ll forgive him for not knowing he had landed in the European mecca of piracy. I can certainly count Valley of the Kings among the highlights of the Gamma Ray set, along with an extended Heavy Metal Universe with a crowd interlude, and one more big and so much lovelier surprise, the Helloween classic Ride the Sky. Magical! Rebellion in Dreamland closed the set, and after the euphoric chanting of the Serbs it was followed by an encore, in the form of yet another very pleasant surprise, the fantastic Send Me a Sign, from the excellent Powerplant (1999). Gamma Ray, after what I’ve seen, all I can say is: come deflower the Slovenian stage boards as soon as possible!
GAMMA RAY
Welcome (recorded intro):
1. Heaven Can Wait
2. New World Order
3. Land Of The Free
4. Fight
5. Into The Storm
6. Real World
7. Valley Of The Kings
8. Heavy Metal Universe
9. The Silence
10. Ride The Sky
11. Rebellion In Dreamland
—encore—
12. Send Me A Sign
Then roadies and techs took over the stage for a quarter of an hour, getting everything ready for the legendary German pumpkin-bashers, Helloween, to step out. A huge banner with the motif of the new record, Gambling With the Devil, spread across the stage, and the eye immediately landed on Dani’s impressive drum kit, made up of at least 20 different drums. But more on that a bit later. At ten the Devil finally spun the wheel of fortune, which stopped on a pumpkin, and Helloween blew the whole hall away the moment they walked on and put everyone on their feet with an unbelievable surprise that I had quietly been hoping for… Andi and the gang went back to the cult Keeper of the Seven Keys, with the first part of the epic trilogy, the epic saga Halloween played in its entirety. I don’t think I need to stress that the atmosphere for the next 13 minutes was hellish, the crowd went nuts like there was a bet on it, and the band, which is considered one of the better live acts anyway, steamrolled everything in front of it from the stage. Especially Andi’s supersonic voice, which shone vocally all evening in Belgrade. I don’t think even Kiske himself sang Halloween that well. The energy that filled the hall from the very beginning to the very end of the concert was incredible, a real connection formed between the band and the crowd, and we fed off each other with magical power. When I had barely caught my breath after the epic 13 minutes, Helloween took it away again with another big surprise, the fantastic Soul Survivor from the unjustly overlooked Master of the Rings (1994). Not from the Serbian fans and the worn-out Slovenes on foot, that’s for sure, we helped Andi out generously with singing and non-stop headbanging. Helloween will surely not forget their first visit to Serbia any time soon. Soul Survivor! As if our hearts weren’t already beating several times faster, Helloween made sure the pulse went even higher with a phenomenal mini-masterpiece from the second Keeper, March of Time. It was hard to stay on your feet in the unhinged crowd, and over the next few minutes we proved that the new record, Gambling With the Devil, had already won our hearts too, singing the chorus together with Andi on the first of three songs played from the album, As Long As I Fall. As expected, the cult Eagle Fly Free smashed us in the head, followed by another fresh track, Paint A New World, and the gorgeous ballad A Tale That Wasn’t Right. It was time for the boys to polish up some well-deserved rest, and only poor Dani had to sit behind his new toy for the next 10 minutes, a colossal drum set that he made full use of during a breathtaking drum solo. After the thunderous ovations we got another epic from the new record, The Bells of the Seven Hells, and the heart fluttered again at the raw, blazing punch of the opener of The Time of the Oath, the power metal anthem We Burn! SKC truly caught fire in Helloween’s company. I think everyone who still doesn’t like Andi should lift their grumpy asses and head to Hellish Rock. If an unbelievably strong frontman with a fantastic voice doesn’t convince you, then there’s simply no helping you. Then came the close of the Keepers saga with the epic King For a 1000 Years, during which Sascha also showed off his new acquisition, a double Dean guitar, and the old-school Dr. Stein, and Helloween waved us goodbye. Not for good, of course, a damn fine encore followed, announced by Andi in a shiny tuxedo, a hat and a walking cane… What else could follow but Perfect Gentleman, this time Helloween prepared a wreath of choruses from some of their best songs, with more surprises in the form of I Can, Where the Rain Grows and Power, and it was oh so lovely to hear If I Could Fly and Keeper of the Seven Keys, even if only snippets. One more gentlemanly farewell bow, and then for the very finish came the moment we had all been waiting for so badly, something they had already hinted at at last year’s Masters of Rock festival in the Czech Republic… Gamma Ray and Helloween walked on stage together and fired off probably their biggest hits, the classics Future World and I Want Out. The combination of four guitarists, two bassists and Andi and Kai swapping vocals is something you simply have to experience, so don’t you dare miss this tour. A phenomenal setlist, a band at its peak, in the best form of its career, an incredible atmosphere and an unforgettable moment of two foundational metal bands performing together – the result can only be an evening you’ll remember for the rest of your life.
HELLOWEEN:
Crack The Riddle (recorded intro)
1. Halloween
2. Sole Survivor
3. March Of Time
4. As Long As I Fall
5. Eagle Fly Free
6. Paint A New World
7. A Tale That Wasn’t Right
8. Drum Solo
9. The Bells Of The 7 Hells
10. We Burn
11. King For A 1000 Years
12. Dr. Stein
—encore 1.—
13 . Medley:
-Perfect Gentleman Pt.1
-I Can
-Where The Rain Grows
-If I Could Fly
-Perfect Gentleman Pt.2
-Power
-Keeper Of The Seven Keys
—encore 2.—
14. Future World (with Gamma Ray)
15. I Want Out (with Gamma Ray)
photos: Aleš Podbrežnik
text: Rok Klemše
Setlist
GAMMA RAY:
Welcome (recorded intro):
1. Heaven Can Wait
2. New World Order
3. Land Of The Free
4. Fight
5. Into The Storm
6. Real World
7. Valley Of The Kings
8. Heavy Metal Universe
9. The Silence
10. Ride The Sky
11. Rebellion In Dreamland
—encore—
12. Send Me A Sign
HELLOWEEN:
Crack The Riddle (recorded intro)
1. Halloween
2. Sole Survivor
3. March Of Time
4. As Long As I Fall
5. Eagle Fly Free
6. Paint A New World
7. A Tale That Wasn’t Right
8. Drum Solo
9. The Bells Of The 7 Hells
10. We Burn
11. King For A 1000 Years
12. Dr. Stein
—encore 1.—
13 . Medley:
-Perfect Gentleman Pt.1
-I Can
-Where The Rain Grows
-If I Could Fly
-Perfect Gentleman Pt.2
-Power
-Keeper Of The Seven Keys
—encore 2.—
14. Future World (with Gamma Ray)
15. I Want Out (with Gamma Ray)
Photo gallery
