© CPU – Peter Verstraeten
Subsequent yr the Scorpions’ farewell tour will have fun its fifteenth anniversary. It stays particular how these rock dinosaurs by no means cease and take to the highway yearly to carry out their legendary songs. The explanation for his or her tour of the festivals this yr is the fortieth anniversary of their album Love at First Sight, the album on which evergreen “Rock You Like A Hurricane” will be discovered. It’s no large shock that the Germans from Hannover have turn into much less virulent on the rostrum through the years. Did that stop them from placing on an honest present at Graspop? Completely not, because it turned out at half previous twelve on the South Stage.
The blokes from Scorpions are skilled gamers and you may inform by the way in which they divided their live performance into components. The grand gestures seemed a bit extra picket in comparison with about thirty years in the past, however musically you may hardly catch the band making errors. The one one for whom previous age is step by step beginning to play tips on him is frontman Klaus Meine. His stage presence seemed fairly stiff yesterday, which is simply logical given his blessed age of 76. His voice, however, sounded sovereign as ever, as we might see proper from the beginning throughout “Coming House”. For Scorpions, Belgium can be a nation the place they’ll come dwelling, as a result of the variety of visitor performances now stands at nicely over fifty.
© CPU – Peter Verstraeten
We might discover the youthfulness that Meine lacked in the remainder of the band. Founding member Rudolf Schenker performed with a giant smile and rapidly obtained his arms collectively throughout “Make It Actual”. Not a lot later, the band went again to the eighties, when the only “I am Leaving You” entered the charts. At Graspop it initially didn’t exude the magic as ordinary, however you probably did really feel that Scorpions systematically allowed the present to thrive. “Crossfire”, one out Love at First Sight, was one other candidate who sadly fell lifeless on the meadow. Musically you may hardly blame the band, however the track selection was maybe a bit too unlucky at that second within the set.
Scorpions do not want fireworks and confetti, as a result of the music stole the present anyway. For “Delicate Dance” they opted for guitar solos and each Matthias Jabs and Rudolf Schenker rocked them with a sure virtuosity. In any case that rocking, midway via the set it was changed by sentiment, and anybody who associates that with Scorpions will rapidly come to “Ship Me An Angel” and “Wind of Change”. The songs had been performed in succession and created a wave of untamed enthusiasm within the viewers. On the latter, Meine might, as ordinary, rely on the ‘angelic’ voices of the viewers.
© CPU – Peter Verstraeten
The Germans continued to rock surprisingly laborious in direction of the top. “Tease Me Please Me” gave the efficiency an applicable twist and was neatly adopted by the marginally quicker “The Similar Thrill”. As a band the gents performed fairly tight, however after that it was as much as Mikkey Dee to unleash his devils on his drum skins. The ex-percussionist of Motörhead went for a reasonably in depth variant. To shut the common set, “Huge Metropolis Nights” closed ranks. As a sing-along track, it is the proper approach to absolutely immerse your self within the meadow. And if the band did that!
The viewers’s plea for an encore was honest and confirmed Graspop is aware of the best way to honor its legends appropriately. Within the bis spherical there have been two absolute crowd favorites that Dessel might sing alongside to on the high of his lungs. “Nonetheless Loving You” made the romantic hearts race and finally the lights of the South Stage had been turned off whereas rocking with the traditional “Rock You Like a Hurricane”. How lengthy Scorpions will final is the massive query after a profession spanning six a long time, however the starvation for stage efficiency continues to be as nice as ever.
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You may learn our assessment of the primary day of the competition right here.
You may learn our assessment of Software right here.
You may learn our assessment of the second day of the competition right here.
You may learn our assessment of 5 Finger Loss of life Punch right here.
You may learn our assessment of the third day of the competition right here.
You may learn our assessment of Convey Me The Horizon right here.
You may learn our assessment of the fourth day of the competition right here.
Setlist:
Coming House
Gasoline within the Tank
Make It Actual
The Zoo
Coast to Coast
I’m Leaving You
Crossfire
Dangerous Boys Operating Wild
Delicate Dance
Ship Me an Angel
Wind of Change
Tease Me Please Me
The Similar Thrill
New Imaginative and prescient
Blackout
Huge Metropolis Nights
Nonetheless Loving You
Rock You Like a Hurricane
