About last night as they say in America… Saturday night in late September and all roads led to the Crow bar to enjoy Jeff Scott Soto and his band live after 6 years. I arrived just 10 minutes before Danger Angel showed up thinking I would have missed half of their set, but it seemed that the schedule was running an hour late. I bet this was in the hope of gathering more people. What I didn’t tell you is that when I entered the venue the space was alarmingly comfortable as opposed to what I thought it would be.
As I mentioned in my special article about Soto just a few days before his arrival in Greece, this singer’s career is by no means accidental as he has sung for some of the biggest bands in hard rock, including Journey. Frankly, I couldn’t believe my eyes with such poor attendance. It really made me wonder did the hard rockers in Athens decided to stay at home or did they all turned into stoner and that’s why these shows are always sold out and not bands with such legendary names of the American hard rock scene, such as Jeff Scott Soto?
Danger Angel gave a decent high intensity performance and it was clear that the guys were tighter than ever. It seems that the familiar atmosphere of playing with old pal Soto helped them get closer to one another leaving the audience completely satisfied with what they saw and heard. BJ is undoubtedly one of the best choices Danger Angel has made all these years as their lead singer, without implying that Minas Tsigos was not great, maybe they lacked chemistry. I believe that their choice to part ways finally proved to be good for both sides, judging by their course in their musical careers.
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S.O.T.O. took the stage at 23.00, with an explosive entrance and playing Hypermania from the new album, and everybody in the club started to become one with the rhythm. Their sound has changed quite a bit to the new American hard rock with the pedal to the floor more than his solo albums and with the electronic sound gaining more ground. I’d say that they seem to be closer to Nickelback, rather than the 80s. Personally, I went to listen to the songs from his past and not so much of the present although I understand that this was a promotion tour of the new album so, I was patient until the end.
As expected, Soto is one of the best and most accomplished frontman you will ever have the pleasure to enjoy in hard rock. An iconic presence with great chemistry with his band and the audience. BJ, who previously sang for Danger Angel, has now taken over the guitar along with Jorge Salan. The band was firing with all cylinders. They were tight and their chemistry on stage was simply explosive.
While everything was going great with the sound, the mood and show I realize it’s past midnight and I still haven’t even heard half of what I was expecting. Right when I started to despair, I suddenly listen to the following lyrics from the Rockstar movie soundtrack “Get a ticket for a ride… Never stop until I’m satisfied” and immediately my mood changes. Soto picked up two of my favorite songs of this movie, and not by accident, since his voice can be heard only some of the best parts of the film’s soundtrack.
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He continued with Stand Up (Steel Dragon) accompanied by Minas Tsigos in an unexpectedly flawless result, and just when we thought the setlist was over for good, at least that appeared from the paper in front of them, suddenly the audience began to give in. A Sign.
Just in two minutes ‘the setlist was overthrown and all of Soto’s hits began to take over from the Crow’s stage as the band began to alternate with the Danger Angel members who also took to the stage and took their seats.
The last half hour was a real hard rock party and it was worth every minute. But let’s make it clear for all foreign hard rock bands that visit Greece: since such a live show is a luxury for us and we have the honor of enjoying it rarely, it would be a good idea to focus on the hits that made them famous and not so much on the new stuff. That’s my opinion, of course, but I think I represent the majority of the night’s audience.
The result is that Soto is and will be at the top in the frontmen league!
See you again !
Mariza “Crash”
Photos: Evelina Gerakiti
