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Inside Hardrock Haven:
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H R H - C O N C E R T - R E V I E W S
Gamma Ray with Avian
The band really pulled off their first live appearance, considering that they had very little rehearsal time. Lance King was really humble, meeting fans at his booth where he was selling Nightmare Records merchandise. After the show, Avian hung out and watched Gamma Ray.
Set List: Single Blade – Black Masquerade – Final Frontier – The Fear – Blinding Force – Time Is All We Need – The Depths of Time – City of Peace – Queen of the Insane - As the World Burns Gamma Ray Power metal forefather Kai Hansen and his entourage made a special trip across the border into the land of 10,000 lakes to deliver their music to the hungry American faithful. After a night filled with unknown bands reinterpreting and rehashing metal riffs, rhythms and solos the pioneers of speedy, melodic metal took the stage and showed that there is still much to be learned from the originators.
Kai Hansen will always be linked to the power metal band Helloween, but Hansen has steered the course of Gamma Ray for over 15 years or more. The band has seen a few lineup changes but currently Henjo Richter (g), Kai Hansen (v)(g), Daniel Zimmermann (d), Dirk Schlächter (b) carry on their fine metal tradition pushing forward on the their new studio release The Majestic.
Gamma Ray’s performance was spot on perfect. Both Richter and Hansen are extremely competent guitarists, whether playing rhythms, soloing or performing lead lines together in harmony. And they are fast! Both can burn up the fret board. They left Cellador’s lead guitarist Bill Hudson crying (this is no B.S.) with their rock solid performance. Hansen’s upper range vocals were really the only down side to the show. It didn’t seem like the vocals were up at a volume to be heard within the context of the total mix. It didn’t matter though, as the fans were there to see their heroes and their heroes were there to play for their fans.
Henjo Richter was a pleasure to watch as he was clearly enjoying himself throughout their set. He had a smile on his face the whole show. The tempo of most songs was simply, in a word, fast. Towards the end of the set, Kai Hansen performed some slower bluesy guitar solos which demonstrated that he isn’t always shredding away. It was nice change of pace with all the bombastic soloing that rocked the night.
Gamma Ray encored twice. This seemed staged. The fans ate it up, though. After their feverish set the guys took a short break and then came out and signed autographs. The band was very professional ‘til the end, Gamma Ray’s professionalism made the trip well worth it. Set List:
Welcome – Gardens of the Sinner – New World Order –
Fight – Blood Religion – Arma gehd dem, Alden!!! –
Heavy Metal Universe – Fairytale – The Silence –
Medley – Rebellion/ Land of the Free Honorable Mentions: Kwang – Hometown heroes, straight ahead rock n’ roll. Mirror Black - Throwback to early ‘80s progressive metal bands such as Queensryche and Fates Warning. Miles Beyond – Maiden style vocals merged with intense, flamboyant guitar playing. Cellador – Maiden style vocals, furious twin guitar work.
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