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Reviewed by David
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Special guest: The Itch
City: Malmö, Sweden
Venue: KB
Date: 8 July 2008
The Itch set length: 35 minutes
Ted Nugent set length: 125 minutes

The Itch

As a kick in the ass worthy its successor on stage, local heroes (well, the members are actually spread out in Southern Sweden we were told) The Itch gave KB an intense half an hour warm up. The guys had fun, for real, and that almost always passes over to the audience.

Maybe they don't have the chart hits yet, but that was effectively covered with energy. Drummer Henrik Allbjer, borrowed temporarily from The Goddamned, gave an extra inch to the whole show with a swinging play and his characteristic hippie looks.

7 chalices of 10

(sorry, no setlist)

Ted Nugent

'If Uncle Ted doesn't turn your ass on, then get the fuck out of here!' These were, of course, the orders from the Motor City Mad Mouth himself. Ted Nugent was in an excellent mood this night. Not that I ever have seen him otherwise, but still. Ted had just arrived in Europe, since the gig in Helsinki the day before got cancelled, but didn't seem to suffer too bad from the jet lag.

The quite small crowd didn't seem to bother him at all. He was determined to give full value for the high priced tickets to those ones loyal. Actually it was a privilege to get to see this icon in such an intimate venue. Nugent was on fire, with energy like a nuclear reactor and playfulness like a child on a green summer field.

The set list was packed with a little for everybody, from most parts of Nugents solo career. I might have expected a couple of tunes more from the latest blast Love Grenade, but actually, Nugent is more about energy and skill, with the songs being secondary. Still I will point out the highlights as being Free-For-All, Klstrphnky, Love Grenade and the little cheesy but catchy Fred Bear.

Ted spared us most of the usual speeches about American politics and wars, but was still talking with no strings attached. We got to know that Detroit used to have the highest murder rates in the US, not because the citizens are more violent but because they are better shots … We also were told that his band, with 'Wild' Mick Brown on the drums and Greg Smith on bass, is the tightest in the world, almost too tight for their own good. That was actually not that far from true. The trio did a tight and excellent team work.

I have had one main reservation against Ted Nugent in the past and that is the tendency to stretch out the songs into endless solos and jams. That is still the main problem tonight. After almost two hours you change legs quite often as it is and then a Stranglehold longer than ever is not helping you to get going as finale (before the encore). I actually like a little blues jam now and then, but used in a moderate way and not as a recurring tempo dip in a rock 'n' roll show.

8 chalices of 10


SETLIST:

Snakeskin Cowboys
Wango Tango (incl. You Really Got Me /The Kinks)
Free-For-All
Stormtroopin'
Dog Eat Dog
Klstrphnky
Rawdogs And Warhogs
Need You Bad
Weekend Warriors
Wang Dang Sweet Poontang
Johnny B. Goode (/Chuck Berry)
Blues jam (incl. Lay With Me)
Love Grenade
Baby, Please Don't Go (/Amboy Dukes)
Soul Man (/Isaac Hayes/David Porter)
Hey Baby
Fred Bear
Cat Scratch Fever
Stranglehold
Great White Buffalo

Related links:
www.tednugent.com
www.theitch.se