Tonights evening had to offer two main events: Bullet For My Valentine - Lacuna Coil at Philipshall Düsseldorf and ALICE COOPER supported by WHITESNAKE at Grugahalle Essen. I decided for the latter one, since I didn’t see ALICE COOPER playing live for ages, and also WHITESNAKE knew how to touch a string long forgotten ;)
Anyway, with the announced and expected snow chaos it could have been that nothing at all would have happened. Good thing: no snow chaos on the way to Essen ;) Bad thing: many extra charges to already expensive ticket prizes (cheapest one for 50 Euro). Here I have to confess that I’m downright happy to have the possibilities of a journalist.

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Actually… the beginning was set on 7.30pm with WHITESNAKE opening. Non-actually the kick off was pushed back a half hour due to the snow, but then… surprise, surprise… get the lights turned off at 7pm and a band started playing. Scared listening people in the foyer made them quickly scurrying into the hall (especially photographers) to have a look what’s going on…

Surprising act was the Ulm-based, German act :: FIVE AND THE RED ONE :: which were happy to open for handful of gigs on this tour. Looking into a hall hardly half filled the youngsters didn’t care and played an enthusiastic show. Especially fronter Dave seemed to enjoy his role. The cats supported their brand new album Mother Bomb Phoenix, which was just released on this Friday. Very busy I’d say, the band’s sophomore Universal Masterplan dates back just a half year. Musically speaking FIVE AND THE RED ONE offered innocent and straightforward Rock, nothing spectacular but nice and live much crunchier than on CD.

With :: WHITESNAKE :: entering the stage everything seemed to be in time again. Frontman David Coverdale did it big right from the start, but too stagy, too affected, sometimes just lame in the hips. What was supposed to be sexy I guess, was quite dowdy and a turn-off. Fortunately his crew could make up for it again. Reb Beach and Uriah Duffy on one side, and of course Doug Aldrich on the other with his own (female) fans wearing Aldrich shirts in the first row. Keyboarder and drummer mostly disapperead behind their superstructures.
Every now and then one got the feeling that the singing wasn’t that live as it should be. But later I realized that the micro was on all the time, also hearing stuff Coverdale said to his stage crew and what wasn’t destined for the audience’s ears. Additionally key wiz Timothy Drury has a similar voice and takes over many parts. After the tearjerker Is This Love a breathtaking guitar duel followed by Reb and Doug. Fans were absolutely thrilled frenetically applauding. Really amazing! Apropos tearjerkers… It wasn’t difficult to realize that it were the old classics still electrifying, setting the fans on fire and make them sing along perfervidly. Besides… does anyone has count the “loves” in the WHITESNAKE songs? Actually every tour and setlist of them must be called “Love” ;) Nice, but have seen better performances.
Setlist: Intro, Best Years, For Your Lovin’, Can You Hear The Wind, Love Ain’t No Stranger, Lay Down Your Love, Deeper The Love, Is This Love (guitar duell), A Fool In Love, Ain’t Gonna Cry // Ain’t No Love, Give Me All Your Love, Here I Go Again, Still Of The Night

Time has come for :: ALICE COOPER :: Before it need around 40 minutes to change the backline. No wonder, he really had unbelievably many requisites on stage. Costumes, dolls, equipment, things and thangs and others ;) Even his daughters were involved in the show, next to other artists for theatrical performances. Let me just mention the gallow, buggy, baby, straitjacket, guns... ya know, the entire arsenal. Grandiose scenery, unbelievably professional. There was hardly to notice the change between the dolls and the “living requisites” ;) Tooooo bad, that we just had the usual 3 songs for taking photos, even worse: that we had to give away our cams afterwards *hmpf*
Just to mention… Mr. Furnier turned to 60 in February, an age he can’t deny, but as for that he is still rocking the stages of this world, spry and lively as ever before, delivering a much better and most of all an authentic performance, as Whitesnake did. And… yes, this man is downright charming, nonchalant and charismatic. Ace! Of course, also ALICE COOPER played a best-of setlist, spotted with just two new tracks from his current album Along Came A Sprider. About the songs chosen one may debate, but who want’s to play always the same stuff over decades and generally spoken: to get all highlights ALICE COOPER would have to play at least a five hours show. Despite of a guitar duel, drummer legend Eric Singer delivers an incredible drum solo, leaving the fans with open mouths. Wow! Breathtaking! Stunning! Awesome!
And again it was to realize that fans aren’t that used to newer stuff, instead they freaked out at the old classics.
Setlist: Intro, It‘s Hot Tonight, No More Mr Nice Guy, Under My Wheels, I‘m Eighteen, Is It My Body?, Woman Of Mass Distraction, Feed My Frankenstein, Be My Lover, (In Touch With Your) Feminine Side, Dirty Diamonds, Vengeance Is Mine, Halo Of Flies (Drum Solo), Welcome To My Nightmare, Cold Ethyl, Only Women Bleed, Steven, Dead Babies, Ballad Of Dwight Fry, Devils Food/Killer/I Love The Dead // School‘s Out, Billion Dollar Babies, Poison

Yes, it was a wonderful concert evening! Pure nostalgia! No matter when and where ALICE COOPER is playing, it’s always worth its journey. Audience was motley, stylistically as well as regarding age, from kids, just allowed to enter a concert, up to the old league, already grown up, when ALICE COOPER was a young guy ;) Only thing unpleasing was the fact that a few of the “old boys” didn’t know how to behave after two beers.
The outside afterwards surprised with a 3 cm fresh-fallen snow, and it was fucking freezing. Oh, I forgot… it’s winter… ;)

story & pics © Dajana