Concert Report by Bastian B. MSG at Metropolis, Munich, Germany June 2, 2006 Added on 06/03/2006
Hi Ritchie,
I just returned form the MSG show in Munich and here is my review:
Munich was my third show on this tour. I had already seen the gigs in Stuttgart and Nurnberg about three weeks ago. To avoid Nikki Puppet, who I don't like that much, I planned on arriving a bit later. But it was almost too late. Just when I had bought my ticket, the band started with "Assault Attack" as usual. The setlist was exact the same as before but it was far from boring.
The band was even tighter than three weeks ago. Jari was much improved. He knew all the lyrics and seemed much more confident. His singing was very good and he interacted well with the audience. About 300 people showed up. Maybe it would have been more if the german soccer team hadn't played their last friendly before the World Cup at the same time. But the crowd was much louder and wilder than in Stuttgart and Nurnberg. Wayne, Rev and Pete all did a good job.
And how about the "Mad Axeman" himself? He was "on" right from the beginning. His playing was superb, he nailed every single solo. "Let it roll" was the first highlight, this solo is so beautiful. Other favorites of mine were "But I want more", "Attack of the Mad Axeman", "Lights Out" and "Armed and Ready".
The audience seemed more familiar with the three songs from TORR than the people in Stuttgart and Nurnberg. I really like the new CD and especially "Dust to Dust" which sounded awesome. During the next song "Love Trade" a string broke but Michael didn't miss a beat and performed the outro solo flawlessly with five strings.
After that he had to change guitars, of course, and then some problems came up. Michael didn't seem too happy with his second guitar (another black and white DEAN V not the Schenker Brothers V). He complained to his guitar tech and he had to switch guitars a lot after that without getting the results he wanted. He had to tune his guitars very often and he changed the settings on his Marshall amp as well. Furthermore he wasn't happy with his stage sound. Knowing how important it is for Michael to hear himself on stage, I already feared the worst. But surprisingly all the trouble didn't affect his playing at all. He still nailed every solo and smiled to the audience a lot. He even shook hands with some guys in the front row during (!) "Armed and Ready". I was relieved. There was one more minor incident when Michael wasn't happy with Wayne's pace during the intro of "On and On". He tapped or rather stomped the right pace with his feet and Wayne adjusted.
The regular set ended with a fantastic version of "Attack of the Mad Axeman". It took the band quite a long time to come back for the encores. But there was a simple explanation: Michael had to go to the bathroom. The audience shouted "Zugabe" which is german and means "Encore" the whole time.
After "Aracnophobiac" Michael picked up his Schenker Brothers V for the last two songs: "Doctor Doctor" and "Rock Bottom". I have to agree with Neil, this guitar sounds better than the regular Schenker Dean V.
Speaking of "Rock Bottom", it absolutely blew my mind. Michael's solo was even better and much longer than at the shows I had seen before. It was fantastic. I have heard this song so many times before but this version ranks among the best ever. Believe me.
When Michael returned after the show there was a surprise for him. The former Scorpions drummer Herman Rarebell was in the audience. He and Michael chatted a bit and Michael then went on to sign everything the people gave him for more than 20 minutes. Afterwards he went back to Herman and they had a beer. Even then Michael was so gracious to pose for pictures with fans who approached him.
Another great performance. Event though the setlist was the same again, I am not getting tired of seeing my favorite guitar player.