Damn - It's been a while since this gig took place - and
sitting down trying to write about it is a bit of a pain. I do remember
however rushing like a bastard to attend my dear friends Steamroller
assault opening for Riot. Billy - Kosta and the rest of the boys - came on
stage with more hooks than a hooker and more chains than a convict - and
stormed the place like the true bastard sons of Exciter. Some power-thrash
mayhem was unleashed onto our massacred ears - with Nick-The Dick-Mpouras
- sounding a little better than before although he was getting mostly
drowned in the mix by the guitars.
At least from the side - where I was sitting. Well knowing most of the
lyrics from the debut - it was fun to watch this - but it might have been
a bit bizarre for those not in knowledge of the bands womanising - finesse
brimming paeans. In the words that characterised the Great Kosta Gouz.
They were Worthy !
Marauder - are a decent band - and they were quite well received by their
respective crowd - but I am not much of a fan - and since their command of
English is really laudable, I prefer to avoid commenting on anything other
than their good performance of un-watered down, uncompromising heavy
metal, that sent their fans into a frenzy. I have also been out of touch
with them for a while - From back when Michael was on vox, so I just
didn't feel much like making comparisons in my head.
Mystery came up next - the vehicle for Angelo Perlepes guitar histrionics.
The man is also a case of Dr Jeckyl and Mr Hyde. From sitting in a corner
- looking rather jaded and quite frankly washed up - when he got up on
stage - he was on fire - firing riffs and nice neoclassical solos away -
and possibly looking 10 years younger. Botox and Face cream makers eat
your hearts out.
The only paraphony - was Dimitris Syrgiannis, their current singer -
nowhere near as good as their previous lad - with his slightly out of tune
super melodramatic theatrics - that don't quite hit the nail on the head.
They played for about an hour - but the only song I really enjoyed was
"Worship the night" damn me if I know a lot more. I only have
kept that Tzanetatos boot of the first one, but rarely gave it a spin!
Riot showed up - with a slight delay - Mike Tirelli on Vox, and
tension mounting about how good he may or may not be. Mark Reale, appeared
n stage and without further ado - the band burst onto a very energetic
(and as it is an instrumental there were no vox) "Narita", which
was most welcome. "Johnny's back" - really dispelled any fears
with Tirelli sounding like a mix between Tony Moore and Mike Dimeo.
He'd be a perfect fit if Dimeo - decided that he wants to be in the
lizards more than he wants to be in Riot. "Twist of Fate" a
dimeo number that followed - was also done justice. But the time was right
for some serious head banging which - the "Altar of the King"
from the Mythical "Fire down under" brought. Frenzy-meters hit
red - as the band relentlessly launched into "Flight of the
Warrior" from Thundersteel. Woa!
"Tokio Rose", was a nice blast from the past - and "Rock
City" well - as early as you can probably get I guess eh ?!
"Through the storm" was rather indifferent, but still not
disappointing and "the man" kept the bands rolling as did
"Glory Callin ? DF?" Road Racing was extended to feature -
little tributes to the Beatles and more, and "hard loving man"
seemed a pretty cool choice after that.
Purple's "Burn" - was a rather unexpected cover and was followd
- by a great take on "Angel Eyes", The band - disappeared for a
moment and a very instant later were back for an atypal encore consisting
of the show standard "Swords and Tequila" and a storming version
of "Thundersteel" that shook Underworlds foundations for sure.
And just to appease their numerous fans that had been requesting the song
almost since the beginning - the band closed the show with another classic
- Warrior.
Everybody left the place totally spent - and well metallized for the next
couple of months. It simply doesn't get any better than this - and RIOT
should be headlining the summer festivals in Greece! Y'know !?
Dimitiros Fatouros
source: www.Metal-Invader.com
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