Concerts at Biebob are always a very nice addition to the agenda. The place is very jovial and inviting. Just big enough to still feel intimate and still big enough to really support the bands playing there. This night it was full house.

Starting off the evening was NEED form Greece. I reviewed their latest full length album "Siamese God" a few months ago and that was a pleasant trip to the technical Metal land. I did like the album but it felt like something was missing. Nothing I really could pinpoint really. Watching NEED live was different though. Everything fell into place when it came to the music, so much more intense and dynamic. "Soon" was a favorite on the album and that too sounded even better live. There's no doubt this band has genuine talent and extreme skills when it comes to handling instruments. Everything was flawlessly played. The thing though which I thought was missing a bit was the stage presence. Sometimes it felt like John was pushed to the back and then the band dynamic gets a little deranged. A few more live shows will probably take care of that. All in all NEED is a very good band, on record and live and I'm really looking forward to see more of them.

NEVERLAND or DREAMTONE & IRIS MAVRAKI'S NEVERLAND as they're listed on Metal Archives took the stage next. We hung out watching the mess of cables, cases and people running around thinking it was soundcheck for JON OLIVA'S PAIN when all of a sudden this seven piece orchestra started playing. I knew there were three bands on the bill but this seemed to chaos like and unstructured to be done for a gig. Even if NEVERLAND sounded really good it was a quite bizarre experience to see them play, it was really hard to figure out what was going on. This band is origin from Turkey and Greece, one thing they made quite a deal of, pointing out it was possible for these countries to live in peace. Nice messages for sure, let's just hope they can influence more people. But back to the music, NEVERLAND really glimmered at times. The more progressive parts sounded really good and dynamic and at those times the concert was really good. I guess this is sometime you need to get into before appreciating it to the full. For me this was a little too confusing and the impression was divided but at least the good parts took overhand. But also, like NEED, this band needs to be out on stages more to sort out their stage show.

The place was packed when NEVERLAND packed down and the tide of people entering the place was still steady. The cool thing with this place is that even if everyone gives everything and supports the band screaming and rocking the floor never gets foul. You're never pushed around so it's a very kind atmosphere all the time, nice yes, timid no. I was a little concerned with Jon's voice since he sounded extremely soar at the end of the DVD shoot the evening before this concert. That could still be felt but it wasn't at all as bad this evening. Just as if he relaxed and just let himself flow. Sure, the nature of this venue allows much more interaction with the crowd but in a way Jon seemed happier now. Perhaps because of the pressure of the DVD shoot being over or maybe because this was the last show of the tour. As usual everything sounded amazing. The highlights from the night before was repeated, and I'll be damned if Matt LaPorte and Jerry Outlaw managed even better with the solo in "Ghost In The Ruins", it was a little more innovative and no repetition this night. Absolutely amazing! "Death Rides A Black Horse" and "The Evil Within" seemed to go down well with the crowd as well. But of course it was the SAVATAGE classics that resulted in the biggest reaction from the crowd. "Tonight He Grins Again" and "Believe" always brings on some serious singing, no exception this night. Since the place is smaller the response of course got a lot more intense, one of the strongest support I've ever heard on a place this small.

If I should say something negative about this band is perhaps that they don't change their setlist from show to show. Now, that's common for bands today, that they keep the same songs throughout the tour. Maybe I'm spoilt because JON OLIVA'S PAIN has been changing their set on previous tours. Then also, as I've said before, I think it's a shame that the JON OLIVA'S PAIN songs don't get more room. Even worse is perhaps that most people think it's only SAVATAGE that counts.

The ending of the show featured a different touch. Apart from the regulars, "Gutter Ballet", "Power Of The Night" and "Hall Of The Mountain King", of course "When The Crowds Are Gone" too was a part of the set. This night though, with the stress of Jon's voice, John from NEED was invited on stage to sing the song instead. For uninitiated this might seem like a really odd guest appearance but to add that he's been a huge part of the Greek SAVATAGE fan-club it's not as strange anymore. A comment from him afterwards was "this is a dream come true" and damn this guy can sing! It's not that many who can pull this off but John did a great job. It was a really cool ending of the tour to have these amazing singers together. It was also great to see the massive support JON OLIVA'S PAIN got at Biebob, just as it shall be for a band as great as this.

JON OLIVA'S PAIN setlist:

1. "Festival"
2. "Hounds"
3. "Death Rides A Black Horse"
4. "The Evil Within"
5. "Agony And Ecstasy"
6. "Lies"
7. "Sirens"
8. "Warriors"
9. "Edge Of Time"
10. "Ghost In The Ruins"
11. "Tonight He Grins Again"
12. "Believe"
13. "Gutter Ballet"
14. "Power Of The Night
15. "Hall Of The Mountain King"
16. "When The Crowds Are Gone"

(photos from the hound Erika)