The adrenalin is still flowing, the show was amazing, the energy extreme. The Scorpions played the Berlin O2 arena and I got the change to cover the event for Delo. Scorpions, for those of you who don’t know them, are a German heavy-metal/hard-rock band with first commercial success reaching to the 80s. Check out the Read more link below.
So, the Scorpions, I fell in love with Wind of change before I even understood most of the words (think Ken Li). Coincidently, Wind of change was the first song I performed live with my guitar, and the solo was the first solo I learnt on my guitar. If I had to pick my main pivot points defining my music taste and path it would be Mark Knopfler, Def Leppard, Muse (Bologne, Zagreb) and Scorpions. So as you can imagine, this was a major concert for me.
I had serious problems finding the right people to talk to – going from local organizers to management etc., but eventually I found the people I needed to talk to. So I booked my flights, hotel and I flew to Berlin on Friday so I had one day off before the concert since I wanted to be well rested :-). Met some really cool people in the process1 though.
Anyway, the first shock came when I found out that we weren’t allowed to carry our photo bags to the pit which was slightly a problem since I don’t have the belt-packs or two bodies (which seemed to be standard equipment in Berlin). After some careful improvisation it was time to listen to the support group – Edguy. Seriously impressive! The lead singer’s side project is Avantasia. Check out the video Dying for an angel with Scorpion’s Klaus Meine.
They were awesome! I’m now a fan, even though I’ve known Avantasia since the debut album in 2001 if I remember correctly, I never knew who’s behind it.
Followed not long before them were The Scorpions. And boy did they enter with a bang. This guys have a stage persona if I ever saw it. Rudolph was jumping around like crazy and Klaus looked 21.
The solos were crazy, the poses fantastic, the music awesome, the drummer insane. He had what had to amount to a 10 minute solo during which he proceeded to stand on his bass drums and undressed himself to reveal a “secret” message on his tattooed back.
After the allotted three songs we returned to the venue to listen to the rest of the concert – again, I was amazed.
One last thing I wanted to say before I conclude this blog post – the photographers in Germany are much more civilized than they are around these parts. When the promoter laid down the terms (e.g. no bags, no photos before the third song etc.), they all obeyed. In Slovenia there would always be one or two smart-asses trying to photograph the crowd during that time, or even the artist. They also have much more respect for others in the sense that they move away from your lens if they see you taking the shot…
Anyway, the experience was fantastic so … yeah, 3, 2, 1 are you ready to rock?
1We went to celebrate a friend’s birthday since she is studying in Berlin, so I met new people :)