EUROPEAN TOUR
September / October 2002
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Hi everybody, Peavy here!
After having released our new Unity CD on the unsuspecting metal world with - although I do say it myself - a great deal of success, we're now dying to present the new songs live. For this purpose we teamed up with our colleagues from Primal Fear and worked out this co-headlining tour. The story behind this: both bands had released their new albums at the same time and they decided to go on tour during the same period. Because both bands were booked by the same agency, Continental Concerts suggested consolidating the tour, to avoid making the fans having to choose which concert to go to. After endless discussions, we finally agreed to play first, as Primal Fear insisted on playing last. As far as the rest of the conditions go, we agreed to have the same conditions for both bands. So that should answer many of your comments and thanks to all those fans who have already been to the shows.
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14.09.02 - 1. DAY OF TOUR - NÜRNBERG - D
Nürnberg/Löwensaal.... As we already arrived the evening before the show we had enough time to get everything done without stress. Actually the first day of any tour is always chaotic. But in this case both bands' crews have known each other for ages so the work is pretty straightforward and the atmosphere is super. In the evening we played a great show and the crowd gave us great feedback. Unfortunately we hadn't timed our set beforehand so we played a bit longer than agreed. It wasn't much but we found it a bit much that the tour manager, "Fleisch" prevented us from playing an encore, even though there was no curfew that evening. That put a damper on our mood and a lot of fans couldn't understand what was going on. Well, forget it. In the meantime we sorted it out during some talks and the tour atmosphere is great again. |
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15.09.02 - 2. DAY OF TOUR - WIEN - A
Wien/Planet Music.... Went for a walk around town with my Viennese pal Thomas during the day and in the evening there was a great show at the Planet, (formerly known as Rockhaus). I don't know how often I played there with RAGE, the first time was in 1988, one of my most memorable shows. The audience liked Mike's drumsolo, especially as he entertained them during his song insert with his rendering of "sounds of jungle animals". Our cover artist Joachim Luetke, who lives in Vienna, was delighted to see our huge stage backdrop, which is based on his design. Of course we already discussed the cover of Unity's successor, which he will also create. After some drinks and lots of fun the night came to an end and we set off for Hungary. |
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16.09.02 - 3. DAY OF TOUR - BUDAPEST - H
Budapest/Wigwam Club.... Yes, this is a club to my liking: as the name suggests everything is designed Western style and the whole room is decorated with cow and horse skulls. Unfortunately I couldn't wheedle one out of the club's owner, but it was worth a try! The concert turned out to be great, the local fans had lots of fun seeing us live. In a great mood, we started the regular kick ass after-show party , which tour manager "Fleisch" (which means "meat" in German - but the guy is vegetarian!!) had announced in the afternoon. Because the next day was a day off we gave everything we had and were absolutely knackered. |
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17.09.02 - 4. DAY OF TOUR - DAY OFF
Day off.... Our drivers had to cover a distance of 1,200 lm (750 miles) so we took a rest in Regensburg during the day , and some of the guys managed to get some sleep. The others spent time in the pretty old town doing loads of shopping, beseiging sundry pubs along the way to recuperate. We're slowly thawing out ... |
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18.09.02 - 5. DAY OF TOUR - HAMBURG - D
Hamburg/Markthalle.... Here everything runs great and relaxed, because by now everybody knows his job well. Today we got a visit from our record company SPV in the form of Olly Hahn. After the successful show he invited us for an Indian meal. As this restaurant is located in Mike's neighbourhood, he insisted on going home for a shower ("now I´m a clean Schlagseuger"). Finally we went to the Headbangers Ballroom to get drunk. Otti, the boss, showed us Mike's private rehearsal room in the cellar of the pub, where Mike is part of the inventory... what can we say: Kick ass with leather boots!!
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19.09.02 - 6. DAY OF TOUR - BOCHUM - D
Bochum/Zeche.... Home game! But first I went home, where my girlfriend Manu was eagerly awaiting me (no comment !!). Victor also spent time at home until soundcheck time and we later met up again all nice and fresh to rock the Zeche. A lot of old friends visited us and so it was a super evening. Meanwhile we had become very well co-ordinated, it's great fun to play with Mike and Victor. The fans also felt it and they celebrated with us every way they could. We were only testing the setlist during the first shows, now it's perfect. The celebrations with girlfriends and friends lasted until morning. It seems to have particularly hit our manager Gerald (haha), because we had half his belongings strewn around our busses the next morning... Kick ass with adidas!!
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20.09.02 - 7. DAY OF TOUR - VOSSELAAR - B
Vosselaar/Biebob.... Woke up in Belgium with a massive headache. Thank God Aspirin was invented and after one of those and a long walk through a forest I felt ok again. We're happy to see the BieBob boss, Bob again, he's the one that had invitied us to the Graspop Festival. As usual he looked after us all well. Chicken and chips for dinner is almost a tradition there although Victor and I had to keep ours to warm it up in the microwave after the show because we'd be going on stage soon after dinner and didn't want to be sick into the microphone. We realised that the fans already knew the new songs so we're now sure that changing to an international company such as SPV was definitely the right move - only companies like this are capable of promoting their bands outside Germany. And it's working out well, so let's set off for England: Kick ass with Wellington boots !
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21.09.02 - 8. DAY OF TOUR - DAY OFF
Day off.... Super, a day off in London! I just had the difficult decision of where to go first. After hearing that the museum at the Royal College of Surgeons was closed I decided to visit the Highgate Cemetery, so that kept me busy for the rest of the day. The other guys drove to Camden market for another extended shopping session, whilst Victor visited the "We will Rock you Musical"... But a day off in such a city is always too short. |
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22.09.02 - 9. DAY OF TOUR - LONDON - UK
London/Scala.... The Scala is a beautiful club on the first floor of a building right next to King´s Cross. There's only one disadvantage: as a former theatre the acoustics for Heavy Metal is terrible. It has an echo and the sound bounces around from wall to wall so you can't hear anything clearly. Even with some of our new songs that's a tough situation, as they are more complex and unfortunately the details get lost with acoustics like this. Anyway, the English fans had fun at the show so we were not at all disappointed with our UK gig, the first RAGE show on the island in 12 years. The Primals also had a super gig so we headed back to the Continent in a cool atmosphere, but unfortunately not before a junkie had tried to break open the Primal's bus. But when he smashed the window, he woke up the bus driver and he managed to frighten him off. We were lucky ! |
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23.09.02 - 10. DAY OF TOUR - PARIS - FRA
Paris/Elysee Montmatre.... A beautiful sunny day in France's capital city. In the best of moods we drove through the region of Montmartre, and later on, the guys of Freedom Call, who had given a concert on the day before and having a day off, visited us. Drum roadie Ulsch Weiz is on the road together with that band, the guy who almost departed this life when the bus crashed on our first Russian tour. Today he's fine again and he had lots of fun with our show (I've never seen you from the front before, Ulsch !), as did the Parisian metalheads, who gave us a fantastic welcome. We also played with fire in our souls and we all had lots of fun. See you next time! Kick ass with Badeschlapp !! |
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24.09.02 - 11. DAY OF TOUR - BORDEAUX - FRA
Bordeaux/Kosslow.... Today we arrived in a dreary industrial area where there was absolutely nothing to do, so it was a pretty boring day. The Kosslow is quite an adventurous club, everything very narrow, so there was a real punk feeling. At this point many thanks to our crew guys, who performed miracles today. Beside Charly, our Front of House mixer and Skid, our drum tech, we now also have Sascha, our new backliner, who will take over from Thommy (who wants to spend more time on his private life) and Ian, our monitor mixer. Not to forget our merchandiser Jörg, who's already a well-known figure in the RAGE family. Nevertheless there was a real good atmosphere in the club and everything went well again. And now a day off. |
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25.09.02 - 12. DAY OF TOUR - DAY OFF
Day off.... As the distance was too long again to cover it in one go we took a break in a picturesque Spanish village in the mountains where there was a beautiful castle and an inviting lake, where we spent most of the day sunbathing on the sand shores (super weather here - just like on vacation). Charly and Sascha erected a kind of tent as a sunshade, made out of tree trunks and our stage backdrop, which looked hilarious. We got sunburnt and drank toasts to each other. Kick ass without shoes!! |
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26.09.02 - 13. DAY OF TOUR - GRANADA - ESP
Granada/Industrial.... The summer weather is still following us and so most of us spend time sunbathing. Apart from Victor, who takes a taxi to see the legendary Alhambra. Our show and that of Dio, which was booked for the same day, have been merged together which means a tighter schedule than normally and the doors open later, too. The sport centre which has an awful echoing sound, is well filled when weg o onto the stage after a Spanish opening band. The fans enjoy our show and that of the other two bands and show their appreciation in the way to which we have become accustomed in Spain (Ole !). We're especially thrilled to see our boyhood idol, Dio. The maestro has forgotten nothing over the years and sends out one hit after another. We have great fun and with this in mind, and lots of red wine in our stomachs, we set off again in the early hours. Kick ass Torero!! |
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27.09.02 - 14. DAY OF TOUR - VALENCIA - ESP
Valencia/Republicca.... The first signs of wear and tear on this tour are becoming apparent and so now and again you see a pathetic, coughing and sneezing entity in the tour party. But maybe it's because of the fantastic weather. The organiser has set up a bar for us outside, so we're more outside than inside. Then they serve us with this fantastic paella- Viva Espaná ! The show turns out to be very satisfactory with very loud olé choruses from the crowd. Before leaving the venue we sign loads of autographs - this place is really full of maniacs..
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28.09.02 - 15. DAY OF TOUR - BARCELONA - ESP
Barcelona/Razamatzz II.... Shit, it's got me now, this flu which has been sneaking around the tour busses lately. To cheer us up a bit, we (merchandiser Jörg and myself) are invited by our Catalonian friend Francesco to lunch in his new house. His wife, Eva has done us proud: Giant gambas roasted in garlic and calamares to leave my knees weak. It was the best food on the tour so far... Fortunately my cold hasn't affected my voice and so the show in the evening is absolutely great, what a great crowd! We really went all out and gave everything we had, especially Victor, who had to use an oxygen mask afterwards. That was a hell of a show and now I am really feeling my cold. So whilst the others are spending the evening in Pepe´s Bar, I'm going to bed. Kick ass with Wick's Medi-Night! |
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29.09.02 - 16. DAY OF TOUR - BERGARA - ESP
Bergara/Sala Jam.... That stuff really works and I'm feeling a lot better today, but now it's Mike's turn. So whilst he just wants to curl up in a corner, I go out into the super weather for a bit of physical activity. I borrowed a mountain bike and made the Basque mountain roads a bit unsafe for a while, although it was great fun. I bet there were some fans out there wondering who the hell it was who was cycling towards them. Tonight's show took more out of us than any other so far. Someone switched the air-conditioning off and the hall was terribly hot with hardly any oxygen left. The concert is great though but afterwards it looked like we'd just come out of the shower, we were all soaked. Victor had such problems with the lack of oxygen that the First Aid team had to look after him. He was as white as a sheet and couldn't speak a word for an hour, it was frightening. It's a bad day in other ways too, Half of the PA system, including the mixing disk went up in smoke and it took ages for the replacements to arrive, Victors monitor gave up the ghost and as if that wasn't enough, the toilet got clogged up (too much paella?) overflowed and suddenly our dressing room was under water. Great! Ah well - Kick ass with oxygen masks!!
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30.09.02 - 17. DAY OF TOUR - DAY OFF
Day off.... |
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01.10.02 - 18. DAY OF TOUR - LYON - FRA
Lyon/Ninkasi KO.... Our routing took us back towards the north and we're soon back in France. The weather is still beautiful and everything is easy. The club is small but nice, so you think nothing bad can happen! Wrong! Some of the local politicians have thought up something really great: A limit of the sound level allowed - of maximum of 105 dBA, which is what our bus produces when it drives off. This Sucks!! You can't play heavy metal at living room level! So the soundcheck is quite a tricky affair because Mike's drumkit alone is louder than 105 dBA and the PA is attached to some kind of electronic self-destruction trigger, which, being controlled by a sealed sensor microphone, switches the PA off when it's too loud. So you can't hear the vocals at all. We have no choice but to turn the sound of the drums right down and get Mike to stroke his drums like he was playing a waltz. During the show Victor can't stop laughing - the "tough guy" posing is impossible when you're having to hold back the power, and it is so quiet that we can hear what the fans in the first rows are saying to each other! But the fans seem to enjoy it and they make a lot of noise - poor buggers have probably never experienced anything else. We're not too impressed by the gig, as that's not the way we want to present our music, but what the hell - Kick ass with a hearing aid!! |
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02.10.02 - 19. DAY OF TOUR - PRATTELN - CH
Pratteln/Z 7.... The day of the tour when we all get pampered. Everyone eats to their hearts delight in the catering of the venue's Chef Atilla, the washing machine is going all day so we have some clean socks to wear at last and we're all happy about all the room on the stage on which we then give a real kick-ass show. All in all nothing else special happened, so off we go to Italy. |
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03.10.02 - 20. DAY OF TOUR - MAILAND - I
Mailand/Rainbow.... It's a day of chaos and improvisation and the crew is cursing the awful equipment and lack of room on stage especially after the luxury we experienced in Switzerland. We musicians enjoy the summer weather together with Martin, our fanclub president who joined our bus yesterday and who will accompany us until the end of the tour. Everything seems to take longer than it should, there's no dressing room so we're using our bus as a backstage area. But despite all this the Italian Metal crowd is the greatest and the gig is really good. We talk with the fans for half the night ourside on the street before we set off again homeward-bound. Kick ass with Rigatoni!!
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04.10.02 - 21. DAY OF TOUR - LANGEN - D
Langen/Stadthalle.... Our loved ones from home had warned us by phone about bad weather so we are really happy that the sun is still following us - that puts us all in a good mood. Everything is technically great in Langen, so mentally we are able to hand out "kick ass passes" which is an important ingredient for feeling as though you really belong. We enjoy our freedom by going for a walk or swimming at the local swimming pool. The relaxed atmosphere continues through the show, all the bands and the fans have a great time. After a booze up with some friends who have come to see the show, we drive down to Allgäu. Kick ass with Apple Wine!!
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05.10.02 - 22. DAY OF TOUR - KAUFBEUREN - D
Kaufbeuren/Zeppelinhalle.... It's a bit colder today but still sunny and most of us spend the afternoon outside. All the preparation gets done quickly, we're all used to it by now and that was a good thing because during the sound check we noticed that part of Victors system was faulty - it had probably been damaged during the journey. Our crew do everything they can to get it working properly again but Victor still has to do without one of his amps for the show. But despite his fears, that wasn't such a big problem for the show - he's a pro and adjusts the way he plays, accordingly. The concert becomes one of the best of the tour. Everyone's in a great mood, we're all having fun together and the fans are so loud and so enthusiastic, you'd think we were back in Spain ! Great! Andi Schöwe from Metal Hammer Germany and our tour manager Fleisch are having a boots contest, it seems, so today's motto is: Kick ass with Snake leather boots!!
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06.10.02 - 23. DAY OF TOUR - STUTTGART - D
Stuttgart/LKA.... The tour is at its end and it looks like the weather god is as sad as we are, because we had the first rain of the tour today, ah well, we'd better start getting used to the poor weather at this time of year. Normally, the last day of a tour sees the crew playing a few tricks on the band, and today was no exception. I mean, we have no problem when the entire stage is covered with soft porn photos, I mean we'll be going home soon to our girlfriends. It was funnier during Mike´s solo, when, during his "jungle" session, he had bananas thrown at him and his entire drumkit was decorated Chiquita-style. His "Frank Sinatra sound-alike" part wasn't exempt from tricks either, as the crew fed voice pitcher effects into his microphone making the whole part sound utterly grotesque, a bit like Mickey Mouse. So it was a great closing evening for the tour. The night ended in a Kick ass manner (after all, "Bacardi" was mentioned in part of the tour contract as " Special guest"). When I fell out of the bus next morning in front of our practise rooms, my Manu was there to meet me - she'd got the day off work so we were able to umm, celebrate at home.
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