Review by Gaffa
gaffa.dk/anmeldelse/99641Countdown to Heaven
"Oh yes, they are Europe, it is surely very great ..."
That was a common reaction in a more or less gaping circle at the news that I intended to spend an evening in the company of a Swedish 80s reminiscence as Europe.
But listen here:
Europe's MEGA great!
No doubt that Joey tempests voice has sounded better in the opening and title track of the latest album from this year, "War of Kings". The voice was a little tired and hoarse after concerts, among other Saturday in Odense, Sunday in Copenhagen so shamefully neglected venue Kulturbolaget in Malmo - and so this wonderful Monday evening in Amager Bio.
But the good man who has long put the 80 puddelhår, came after it.
I could live with some success in some of the high notes of the show and band ensemble was so tight that there "just was not something there," as was said by a former prime minister - even when it was the case.
My own favorite track from the latest album "Hole in My Pocket" was almost kicked over the ramp with all the energy that this pounding and heavy case could bear. It was here 36 years experience in the same band (albeit with long pauses in the 90s) came into its own.
There is powered musicians who just WANT to make the hard rock that has matured like a good XO cognac.
After comeback album 11 years ago, it has been five albums, with the most recent, "War of Kings" is not an empty return to something that once was, but certainly something that points forward on the shoulders of all the good, musty treasures of the genre as Deep Purple, Thin Lizzy and Led Zeppelin with many more.
It was the kind of people that sometime in 1979, a group of teenagers from Hakusan in Stockholm direction in life - and then made them world famous with the-the-the-know in 1986-1987.
Here are the so and go unpunished away with it all - after career 10 albums.
From the hardest metal to sugar capital's song "Carrie" when I caught myself singing along because it just screwed so insanely well as a well-executed apprenticeship.
It was also great to see that the new and much tougher songs keeps the water alive.
"Nothing to Ya" and "Praise You" has the edge, variation, ambience and phrasing that good hard rock songs are made of. The Swedish quintet seem almost better than ever. Of course we also old hits like "Superstitious" and "Firebox". And then "Girl From Lebanon" with a great intro from one of the absolute super guitarists John Norum, who put a great sounding board throughout the evening, when not just to be fyrres tons of heavy ...
A drum solo by Ian Haugland was also the intro from Monty Python's "Sit on face ..." of Rossini's "William Tell Overture". Alternatively, cheerfully break from the usual rumble without direction on such occasions.
And so we had to it as the encore:
The inevitable final countdown joined the show - as shown by the hand always does: "The Final Countdown" let neither we nor the band. There were taken many I-saw-them-play-THE-track videos, but fair enough, now the number alone have all members a generous pension, like the kind of course do when you even have topped the world charts.
I'm not sure that they are doing it again. It's just that I do not hope so.
Where applicable, it would require some calculation and educational support and editing from a bank manager, and I do not think the music is getting better by the day. The entire concert was a long countdown to the sky, as shown all were in at the end of this evening.
Dubbed, perhaps even cursed countdown is really an excellent song that still makes people sing when they are not just concerned with getting the video. But FORGET now, when you come hear about Europe.
Europe works in the year 2015 as a band in harmony with themselves and the audience, and they do not change.
