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In May 2009 Circle II Circle promoted Delusion Of Grandeur live, now they are back with Consequence Of Power. Zak Stevens and his band played a few shows with Primal Fear, then hooked up with Vicious Rumors for a couple of days, spontaneously played a show with Jon Oliva's Pain in Pratteln (Switzerland) and the day after they were scheduled to play in Essen. Tonight Steel Engraved should open for them - like at the shows with Vicious Rumors.
I can't tell you much about Steel Engraved, but the Bavarians did a good job cheering up the small crowd with their 80's heavy metal. Some might know Stainless Steel and Steel Engraved are the successor. The quintet is acting under the new moniker for 3 years now and have released their full-length debut called State Of Siege in 2009. I'm not familiar with their songs and actually an interview with Zak Stevens was planned, so I missed part of their set. But from what I saw, they guys did a good job and next time I will try to see the whole show.
Time for a change over and a quick line check by Circle II Circle who arrived late due to delays at the Swiss border. The band kicked off with the title track of their new album Consequence Of Power, followed by Symptoms Of Fate and Take Back Yesterday. Last time Circle II Circle had Bill Hudson on second guitar, but then they decided to continue with one guitarist - with Andy Lee who joined CIIC after the 2003 tour with Saxon. Behind the drum kit Doctor Butcher's John Osborn who already toured with Circle II Circle in late 2003, even if back then neither Andy nor bassist Mitch Stewart were in the band, the band sounded as they play together for ages. After a little travel back in time with Revelations and the catchy Soul Breaker it was for their latest power ballad - Blood Of An Angel. But before they headed into this one, tour manager Ingo entered the stage with some Jägermeister shots, he and the band clink glasses in memory of Gotthard singer Steve Lee who was killed in a bizarre accident just recently. This time the guys decided not to bring a keyboard and so they used playback for the keyboard passages of Blood Of An Angel and all other songs which use to have keyboard parts. After Anathema guitarist Andy Lee got time for a solo where he could show his talent without limitations - and he's always able to deliver an entertaining show, too. Lee and Stewart were always in action, but as usual the main focus was on singer Zak Stevens. The former Savatage singer delivered a great performance - but fans know what to expect from Stevens. They closed the regular set with Episodes Of Mania and So Many Reasons. But no Circle II Circle show without some Savatage tracks and this time they surprised the fans with Conversation Piece while Taunting Cobras and Edge Of Thorns have been played live before. But they had another surprise for their fans! For the last track John Osborn handed the drum sticks to Zak - who started as a drummer, even if most just know him as a singer -, Mitch Stewart took over the lead vocals and Andi Lee got joined by Steel Engraved guitarist Chris. Puzzled faces everywhere, nobody knew what to expect. The closer was Stranglehold, a cover of Ted Nugent's track off his self-titled album released in 1975. Obviously the guys enjoyed playing this tune, especially Zak who rarely has the chance to play drums on stage. At the end of the show Zak thanked everybody for coming out to see them and as it was the last day of the tour he had a special offer for the fans - everybody who bought a t-shirt after the show, got a 2nd one for free. They simply didn't want to take the shirt back to the US.
Unfortunately only about 100 fans came to see Circle II Circle live, but at least they enjoyed it and made noise like a way bigger crowd. Anyway, CIIC presented a great performance and everybody who didn't make it to a show really missed an excellent concert. And it seems they will return to Europe in spring 2011... So, next time make sure you'll be there!
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