manowar_2017_11

» Manowar 2017 11 20

Reviewed by Krister
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Support: ---
City: Gothenburg
Venue: Trädgår'n
Date: November 11, 2017
Manowar set length: 130 min

Manowar

Manowar decided to do two gigs in one night on their Final Battle Tour and I went to the first show. As soon as I enter the venue there's a security guard that speaks loud about the rules that Manowar has asked for. Moshpits are prohibited but more important is the ban of cellphones and cameras - you can't even hold a phone in your hand or you will risk that they'll stop the show.

We went to get a good spot in front of the stage and I noticed how small the crowd was, I would guess that it was about one third of the capacity of the venue. I have seen Manowar before in this venue and it has been packed with people so this surprised me a bit but then again, the price for a ticket was more than 130 Euros (approx. 160 US dollars) so it's by far the most expensive ticket I have bought for a single band.

I was expecting them to start the show at 7 PM sharp since they had another show at 10 PM the same evening but it took until about 7:25 until they started and I was afraid that they would have to cut their set short, which luckily didn't happen. The set felt a bit stressful though and there weren't much talk between songs. Even Joey's speech wasn't that long, which was a good thing. Being so few people in the venue and just standing there hearing Joey justify the extremly expensive tickets with their big speakers and a 50 man strong crew felt a bit embarassing.

The performance of the band was pretty good but I still got a feeling that Eric Adams was ”saving” his voice a bit to be able to pull off the second gig. There weren't a lot of enthusiasm from the band, they didn't do anything special to make us feel that this is their final tour. Karl and Joey had their own solos but that was pretty much it.

The setlist was good for me even though there was a few songs that I haven't listened to that much. The crowd really came alive on songs like Brothers of Metal, Call to Arms, Kings of Metal, Hail and Kill and of course the song that I consider to be one of the best metal anthems of all time, Warriors of the World. The 2 hour and 10 minute set was just about right, not to much and not to short.

Performance: 6 chalices of 10
Stage sound: 9 chalices of 10
Joey's speech: 4 chalices of 10
Priceworth: 5 chalices of 10

Best: The ”hitsongs” and how the fans responded to this, and of course the sound! The intimate feeling because of the small crowd and the opportunity to be a few rows from the stage without any pressure at all.
Worst: Joey's speech. Solos. Lack of enthusiasm from the band. A bigger crowd would have made more noise and enhanced the atmosphere.

So overall this is a solid 6. I was expecting more and I will remember previous gigs as the better ones. I'm happy that I didn't book both gigs this night, the first gig was enough and especially since the second gig was identical from what I have heard.

Setlist:
Manowar
Blood of My Enemies
Metal Warriors
Brothers of Metal Pt. 1
Mountains
Fallen Brothers - Karl's Solo
Heart of Steel
Secret of Steel
Spirit Horse of the Cherokee
Call to Arms
Sons of Odin
Kings of Metal
Sting of the Bumblebee
Joey's Speech
Fighting the World
Kill With Power
Sign of the Hammer
The Power
Battle Hymn
Warriors of the World United
Hail and Kill
Black Wind, Fire and Steel
The Crown and the Ring (Lament of the Kings)