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In my life, it is often the case that the best things happen exactly when I actually thought the possibility of them happening was unlikely. Last Sunday was an outstanding example of this. POWERWOLF did the honors in Leipzig, supported by SERENITY and BEYOND THE BLACK. I had, of course, tried to secure my place at this concert in advance, unfortunately without success. But as always, things hardly turn out the way you imagined them and true to form, I received confirmation shortly before 16:00 on the day of the show that a place was available for me on the guest list – and even with a photo pass!
You can now read the result of this extraordinary Sunday evening below.
But first of all, I would like to express my deep gratitude to Fabio from SERENITY, who has really gone the extra mile for me here, to an extent that I don’t take for granted. It is an enormous honor for me to be supported in this way!
A huge thank you is also due to Stefan Bollmann, who stepped in as photographer at very short notice and did me a great service. As if that wasn’t enough, we’re all being rewarded with these great pictures!
SERENITY
But now it’s time to get down to business: The first band of the evening was SERENITY. The Austrian-Italian Power Metal band probably had the hardest job of the evening. At the start of their set at 18:50, many fans weren’t yet in the Quarterback-Immobilien-Arena and those who were inside didn’t seem as if the upcoming SERENITY gig was the highlight of their day.
But the group led by singer Georg was absolutely undeterred by this and opened their brilliant set with the song The Fall of Man from their recently released album Nemesis AD, which I can highly recommend to you!
I have been following the development of this band for a very long time and I like them more with every album. The reception of historical events in the guise of strong anthems with catchy tunes is simply something that can only be found in this form with SERENITY. The quality of their live performances, however, lies above all in the sheer fun the band has with the music and their audience. They convey an incredibly infectious energy that leaves you hungry for more. The gig in Leipzig was no exception to this rule! The addition of Marco Pastorino to the band has further refined the overall musical image.
Overall, I found the set to be a successful mix of current songs, such as Ritter, Tod und Teufel, and songs that simply belong to the iconic discography of this band, such as Legacy of Tudors or Lionheart.
The only, albeit minor, criticism I have is that the set could have gone on for another two hours. The latter is of course outside the band’s sphere of influence, but one has to be allowed to dream!
BEYOND THE BLACK
The second opener of the evening was BEYOND THE BLACK. It was only the second time I’ve seen this band live and the last time was five or six years ago. It must have been at Rockharz, but I can’t remember exactly when that was…
But it doesn’t matter, because we live right here and now!
Overall, I was pleasantly surprised by how much people enjoyed this gig. I didn’t remember the band being so energetic, so I would also attribute significant growth to them here.
Musically, the music is not to my taste, but in the overall impression of the evening they did well and were also a very adequate opener. After the evening, I also noticed that I liked the older songs, such as Shine and Shade or In the Shadows, much better than the newer ones, such as Reincarnation or Dancing in the Dark. I can’t exactly say why, but I thought that there was simply more power and energy on stage when these songs were played.
Nevertheless, I would still like to mention one thing that bothered me about the performance: There were simply too many props. It started with Jennifer coming on stage with a long coat and a neon tube, which she got rid of after the first or second song. Then suddenly there were masked flag-wavers on stage, then an additional drum was rolled onto the stage, then the backdrop changed and then those flag-wavers came back again. Considering that there were only nine songs in total, it was just too much for me. At a full headlining show, I think such accessories are more effective. If you use a prop, it has to have a purpose and, unfortunately, this inevitably gets lost if it is overshadowed by others. Here, less is definitely more. Especially as I thought the action with the drum was particularly cool, because on the one hand it got the audience involved and on the other it gave the drummer a bit more visibility, even if only acoustically. Unfortunately, highlights like this tend to get lost in the shuffle…
Overall though, the gig was basically satisfactory and I wasn’t unhappy that this band had performed, which is quite an achievement considering I don’t listen to the music!
POWERWOLF
Of course, I’ve already told you a lot, but I’m still nowhere near the highlight of the evening. If you’ve made it this far, respect! Is everything ok with you…?
If you’re not completely ignorant of the Metal scene, then you’ve seen POWERWOLF live at least once or twice. I’m no different, for example, the last time I saw them was at Rockharz 2022. What I haven’t experienced yet, however, is a POWERWOLF concert, so last Sunday I actually saw my very first one! Yes, yes, I know, dishonor on me and my cow and all that…
However, I did have certain requirements: A spectacular and well-produced show, good energy and lots of fun and entertainment. Ideally, all of this should be garnished with a touch of fire! And that’s exactly what I got!
Filling an arena with musical life is not easy and requires a high level of commitment and stage presence. In my opinion, POWERWOLF have proven here that they have rightly taken their place in the Metal scene and inspire above all with a stage show that is absolutely worth seeing. This is achieved by skillfully working with different heights to give each band member enough room to maneuver. The band’s interplay is characterized in particular by humorous interactions between singer Attila and keyboardist Falk Maria, which also lightens up the show.
However, none of the band’s shows would be complete without an exorbitant amount of pyros and fire. From the fountain of sparks on the POWERWOLF flag to the standard flamethrowers and the burning organ, everything imaginable is brought out here. Off the top of my head, I can’t think of anything that could have been made even more fiery! It’s actually a miracle that the fans in the front row go home without singed hair!
This is also where the gap to BEYOND THE BLACK’s use of props becomes apparent: While POWERWOLF’s props fit seamlessly into the show and give the whole thing a carefree, almost random atmosphere, BEYOND THE BLACK’s is still a little too forced and tense.
Musically, there was a lot to take in that evening and I was also a little surprised at how many songs I could sing along to. All those years must have left their mark!
The band presented a great mix of their songs and from Amen and Attack to Demons are a Girl’s Best Friend to We Drink your Blood and Armata Strigoi, there was certainly something here for all fans. I was particularly pleased with how good the sound was, which applied to all the bands of the evening. No matter where I was standing during the evening, I understood everything very well and for me this contributed significantly to the quality of the show.
You can definitely argue whether POWERWOLF make good music or not (questions of taste are always relative), but regardless of that, they filled the evening with very catchy melodies, a lot of fun and joy and a very well thought-out performance.
What I found exceptionally ingenious was the screen, which alternately showed moving motifs and the audience singing along. I haven’t been to a big arena show for a long time, so I don’t know if this is standard now, but it opened up a new connection between the band and the audience and that really impressed me!
To sum up the evening, I can only say that it fills me with great joy and awe that I am granted such opportunities as last Sunday. For all my criticism, which I always practice, you out there should not forget that there is actually no such thing as bad music, just different tastes. I just put my taste out there via this medium and I can never present you with a completely objective report. All the bands on the night did a remarkable job of giving the fans in attendance the best possible show and they more than succeeded. I for one am very grateful that I was able to experience this! I’ll leave it up to chance whether I’ll go to such a big show again so soon, because ultimately you never know what life has in store for you!
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