We’d been waiting many years! We’d be waiting patiently for Primal Fear’s return to Greece due to the fact that this is one of the best heavy metal bands that has ever emerged from Europe. And our expectations not only were met but they were surpassed as Primal Fear brought down the venue with an unbelievable and highly energetic performance. But let’s take things right from the beginning…
The two opening acts from Greece, The Silent Rage & Terra Incognita, warmed up the crowd although I must say that The Silent Rage were far superior and their melodic metal set proved to be far more in harmony with what the majority of the fans were expecting from them. On the contrary, Terra Incognita was not as tight as The Silent Rage and didn’t manage to win over the fans although they tried but the lack of energy and cohesion was more than obvious. Maybe next time…
At exactly 20:50 the Greek guitar virtuoso Gus G. hit the stage with a stellar solo band that was consisted of Dennis Ward (Pink Cream 69) and Felix Bohnke (Edguy/Avantasia). Naturally one could not expect nothing less than a qualitative performance as all three of them are well-known musicians with many years of studio and touring experience under their belts. Gus G. was once again impeccable and flawless on his guitar duties while his overall communication with the audience was really cool and easy. After all, this is a guy that has made Greece proud with his achievements Naturally, the set featured many songs of his latest record “Fearless” while the renditions of the classic tunes “Money For Nothing” (Dire Straits), “Cold Sweat” (Thin Lizzy) and “Bark At The Moon” (Ozzy) were really fitting with the overall 90-minute show of Gus G.
But the moment has finally come for the main act of the evening. It was a moment that we’ve been waiting for many years thus the atmosphere was electric when the lights went out and the first notes of “Final Embrace” rushed through the speakers of Kyttaro Club. The roar of the crowd was deafening when the band played without any pause the already classic “In Metal We Trust” and it was obvious that Primal Fear was absolutely on fire! Mat Sinner was imposing on the right side of the stage, the guitar duo of Naumann & Beyrodt was absolutely amazing, Francesco Jovino was perfect behind the drums while the one and only Ralf Scheepers was once again superb as he reached even the higher and demanding note while his overall performance was breathtaking.
As Primal Fear had a new album (“Apocalypse”) out, their set list was heavily based on it thus we were treated with excellent takes of “The Ritual”, “Blood, Sweat and Fear”, “King of Madness” & “Hounds of Justice” while “The End Is Near” and “When Death Comes Knocking” were sensational. But the highlights of the evening were undoubtedly “Under Your Spell” and “Nuclear Fire” that were presented back to back to us leaving this writer speechless and in tears. “Chainbreaker” at the encore took us back in 1997 as this was the first song that Primal Fear has ever written while the ballad “Fighting The Darkness” came down really well and especially the younger Primal Fear fans seemed to enjoy the most.
After an extraordinary 90-minute performance, Primal Fear bid us farewell and we left the venue with a big smile on our faces. Primal Fear came, saw and conquered Greece! The rocked us big time and we can’t wait for their return. After all, they promised us so…
Sakis Nikas
Photos: Lefteris Tsoureas
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