(
/72)
Avantasia
Wacken - 2008
Text: Tobias Nilsson Photo: Lunah Lauridsen
It was with no small expectations we went to see Avantasia. This was the first time we would see them live, and to the best of my knowledge, the first tour ever they've played. Actually, to be true, we didn't know what to expect. We knew from earlier experiences that Tobias Sammet is a great frontman for live acts from seeing his main band, Edguy, on several occasions, but this could and should be a totally different experience all together since it is after all called a Metal Opera.
Avantasia started out with Twisted Mind, the opening track of their latest album The Scarecrow, and it was mainly from this album the songs of the evening were taken. Older songs did appear, but mostly towards the second half and the ending of the show.
Still, the stage production was massive, which gave rich opportunity for Tobias Sammet to run around all over the place as he usually does; this is something he took advantage of, but maybe not as much as I had expected.
Avantasia are also known for its many guest artists, so it was interesting to see who would be singing / playing at this show. The first guest vocalist to appear was Jörn Lande (solo, ex-Masterplan), who sadly was off to a bad start of the evening since someone had messed up with his microphone. For the first couple of songs there was absolutely no sound coming from him and when it finally came back three or four songs in, in the title track The Scarecrow I believe, he was accompanied by a roaring cheer from the audience. Too bad for him, it was his last song for the moment.
There were two more guest singers this night; Andre Matos (solo, ex-Angra, ex-Shaaman) and Bob Catley (solo, Magnum), to help Tobias out with the different roles of the stories, and they both looked very enthusiastic about being part of the concert. Show-ways they were really good choices, but I still missed some of my favourite guest vocalists, like Kai Hansen (Gamma Ray, ex-Helloween) and Michael Kiske (solo, ex-Helloween).
Other prominent guests were Amanda Somerville (solo, and a lot of other stuff) who was helping out with the backing vocals for the entire show, and also got to be up front and centre a couple of times during the evening. There was one more girl doing the backing vocals, but I didn't catch her name.
As an extra treat, especially for the German part of the crowd, Uli Jon Roth was invited in to play in the first encore song of the evening, which I didn't catch the name of. I can most of the time recognise songs, but I'm worthless at remembering titles. It's kind of a disadvantage in this line of work...
As for the show, it went down without any major problems except for Jörn's initial microphone issues. Everyone performed very well and seemed to have a great time on stage. Although not very theatrical, Tobias did have a lot, and I mean a lot, of wardrobe changes which provided some variation. Also, the constant change in vocal assistance did give us something of a varied show to look at, and it was a pretty cool thing at the end of the show when they all came in at once and sang together.
Although an extreme amount of people had gathered to watch the concert, it didn't feel crowded at all, and the whole thing was very calm and quiet. Of course people sang along to their favourite tracks, and there were a lot of arms raised to the air, swinging along, after Tobias asked for all the crowd-lights to come on for Farewell.
Although actually a good show, I couldn't help but feel a little disappointed afterwards. After all, I feel that calling the thing a Metal Opera does oblige you to perform with some measure of acting and storyline, as with the albums, but this was just played out as any other, normal show would have been done by a band promoting their latest release. Also, since it was their first time live, I think the set should definitely have contained a whole lot more from the first two albums than it did, and again, in a more chronological correct order. It didn't feel like there was a thought behind it to tell a story, and that should definitely have been the case with a band such as Avantasia. In my opinion.
Setlist (incomplete):
Twisted Mind
The Scarecrow
Another Angel Down
The Story Ain't Over
Shelter From The Rain
Lost In Space
Avantasia
Serpents In Paradise
Promised Land
Farewell
Sign Of The Cross
The Seven Angels
Avantasia started out with Twisted Mind, the opening track of their latest album The Scarecrow, and it was mainly from this album the songs of the evening were taken. Older songs did appear, but mostly towards the second half and the ending of the show.
Still, the stage production was massive, which gave rich opportunity for Tobias Sammet to run around all over the place as he usually does; this is something he took advantage of, but maybe not as much as I had expected.
Avantasia are also known for its many guest artists, so it was interesting to see who would be singing / playing at this show. The first guest vocalist to appear was Jörn Lande (solo, ex-Masterplan), who sadly was off to a bad start of the evening since someone had messed up with his microphone. For the first couple of songs there was absolutely no sound coming from him and when it finally came back three or four songs in, in the title track The Scarecrow I believe, he was accompanied by a roaring cheer from the audience. Too bad for him, it was his last song for the moment.
There were two more guest singers this night; Andre Matos (solo, ex-Angra, ex-Shaaman) and Bob Catley (solo, Magnum), to help Tobias out with the different roles of the stories, and they both looked very enthusiastic about being part of the concert. Show-ways they were really good choices, but I still missed some of my favourite guest vocalists, like Kai Hansen (Gamma Ray, ex-Helloween) and Michael Kiske (solo, ex-Helloween).
Other prominent guests were Amanda Somerville (solo, and a lot of other stuff) who was helping out with the backing vocals for the entire show, and also got to be up front and centre a couple of times during the evening. There was one more girl doing the backing vocals, but I didn't catch her name.
As an extra treat, especially for the German part of the crowd, Uli Jon Roth was invited in to play in the first encore song of the evening, which I didn't catch the name of. I can most of the time recognise songs, but I'm worthless at remembering titles. It's kind of a disadvantage in this line of work...
As for the show, it went down without any major problems except for Jörn's initial microphone issues. Everyone performed very well and seemed to have a great time on stage. Although not very theatrical, Tobias did have a lot, and I mean a lot, of wardrobe changes which provided some variation. Also, the constant change in vocal assistance did give us something of a varied show to look at, and it was a pretty cool thing at the end of the show when they all came in at once and sang together.
Although an extreme amount of people had gathered to watch the concert, it didn't feel crowded at all, and the whole thing was very calm and quiet. Of course people sang along to their favourite tracks, and there were a lot of arms raised to the air, swinging along, after Tobias asked for all the crowd-lights to come on for Farewell.
Although actually a good show, I couldn't help but feel a little disappointed afterwards. After all, I feel that calling the thing a Metal Opera does oblige you to perform with some measure of acting and storyline, as with the albums, but this was just played out as any other, normal show would have been done by a band promoting their latest release. Also, since it was their first time live, I think the set should definitely have contained a whole lot more from the first two albums than it did, and again, in a more chronological correct order. It didn't feel like there was a thought behind it to tell a story, and that should definitely have been the case with a band such as Avantasia. In my opinion.
Setlist (incomplete):
Twisted Mind
The Scarecrow
Another Angel Down
The Story Ain't Over
Shelter From The Rain
Lost In Space
Avantasia
Serpents In Paradise
Promised Land
Farewell
Sign Of The Cross
The Seven Angels
Avantasia
