August 17, 2002 - Ringfest - Cologne, Germany
It was a perfect day for an open air show. Although it was a bit too hot for my taste, it didn't seem to disturb anybody else. Bright sky and shining sun catered for the good mood already during the afternoon and strengthened the pleasant anticipation in the awaiting of the evening.
On the afternoon I joined the MANOWAR crew and we all have been transported with a van from the Hilton Hotel to the backstage area of the VIVA stage, where at 9pm the MANOWAR show should take place. Presently the band stayed at the hotel and would arrive short before the actual show.
Arrived on the spot in order to kill time I at first started to discover the fascinating world behind the scenes of the show business.
The whole thing took me about 37.3 seconds, after that I've already managed to examine all the tracks with miscellaneous music equipment, the blue trash bags, the tents for the bands and the colorful latrines (without water and soap) - and I thought it was enough for the time being. Thereafter I more or less disported by watching the miscellaneus interviews which took place (especially it should be mentioned that Theo and Marjo Verdooren - the Directors of the World Wide Web Warriors - as well as Dawk, the genius behind MANOWAR's instruments and sound equipment and the lost 5th member of the band - have been interviewed by VIVA), by ripping beer bottles open with my teeth and thereby almost amputating my tounge and the forefinger of my left hand (that's the way True Metal People drink their fucking beer ;) and heavily concentrating on NOT gazing at the bosom of Marta, the female vocalist of the band Die Happy (and if I weren't a man I maybe would have suceeded).
Oh well, after Die Happy left the stage it was almost so far. Already short before and during Die Happy's stage performance some assiduos members from the MANOWAR crew have been busy with carrying MANOWAR's equipment out of the huge track and building it up on the stage. It rocked the boat because MANOWAR alone had more boxes than all bands who played before them together ;). I guess it's needless to say that bigger part of it had to stay in the track because the complete equipment would never in life fit on the stage ;).
Short past 9pm it was so far. Among loud calls "VIVA SUCKS! VIVA SUCKS!" from the mouthes of all the 27,000 fans assembled in front of the stage MANOWAR have been announced and stormed one heartbeat later the stage.
With breathtaking power and energy they opened the show with the classic "Manowar" and it took less than 30 seconds for the first victims to appear. Manowar took over the stage and fascinated everybody; both women and men big and strong as logs toppled down and fainted in the frontrow and needed to be carried out, shaken by the impressions. The crowd went crazy, the earth was shaking, the speakers played with an immense power, the complete area around the stage was electrical! I don't remember each single song which have been played, I was like in a kind of inebriation. I only remember that MANOWAR played "Warriors Of The World United", "Herz Aus Stahl" and in between Joey DeMaio once again proved to be unbeatable at his bass guitar by playing a several minutes long bass solo. As encore there was "Black Wind, Fire And Steel", but before that a speech from Joey which heated up the crowd at the end of the show so strong that I thought the people would storm the stage when MANOWAR wouldn't play for at least another 1-2 hours. I spent the 45 minutes and the encore like in a kind of trance, it was all over way to fast!!! What I take comfort in, though, is the fact that the Kings are coming back to Germany very soon to rough up our country once again and I am looking forward to the feasts they will bring us with their shows. I hope all of you will be present as well, stay metal! Hail and Kill!
Marcus
Official German Manowar Webmaster
www.metalkings.de
4.00 pm: The Rings of Cologne (Kölner Ringe / a place in the city of Cologne), 30 degrees in the shade-1 Million people distributed on only 3 kilometers of space, everywhere stages and speakers, dealers and little shops that offered drinks, places to eat and stores selling junk, girlies with perambulators that screamed out their lungs since about 9 in the morning, beergutted policemen, tennie tourists with orange painted plastics swags around their necks. Everyone sweating and drinking or dropping to the floor in front of the paramedics because the sun was shining down so merciless and it has been so warm for some days before.
And over all that a cloud of dreadful pop music and deep computerbasses.
Among that the regular population of Cologne and some metalheads.
6.00 pm, Cologne Central Statin: A lot of metalheads entering the town. Cowls, T-Shirts, flags!
Metalkids drinking and screaming, Metalheads that know each other for years shaking hands, Battle Hymn T-Shirts, Sign Of The Hammer Backpatches, Triumph Of Steel patches, boots, blanks, leather, long hair. Hundreds arriving with trains at the Dom. Slowly the city recognizes that this event will be special.
8:30pm VIVA/VIVAplus stage
There where during the day teenies were at the feet for pseudo musicians now metalheads and curious posers stood side by side. The stage stage still getting prepared and the sun still shining, the beer consumption and the fever still increasing. More policemen gathered at the place and the paramdedics prepared for some hard work.
9.00 pm: The sound of Miklos Rozsa from the soundtrack of Ben Hur sounded and the the words some of us have been waiting for for four years:
"Ladies and Gentlemen; from the united states of America: All Hail MANOWAR !"
Then suddenly four Metal Kings are standing on the stage starting with the song "Manowar" and the the ones who did not know them didn't know where their heads were at.
9.25 pm: MANOWAR play "Warriors of the World" and thousands of kids feel happy and appendant.
9.56 pm: The last parts of "Lament of the Kings" are blasting through the speakers and the concert is over. Jaded but happy the metalheads looked at each other knowing what special moment they were part of today.
The songs were chosen perfectly (MANOWAR, KINGS OF METAL, WARRIORS OF THE WORLD, HERZ AUS STAHL, KILL WITH POWER, HOUSE OF DEATH, STING OF THE BUMBLEBEE, BLACKWIND FIRE & STEEL), Joeys announcements were very amusing and the sound level reached 115 db though only 95 db were allowed. That was metal in it's purest form: wild, brutal and with no compromises in loudness.
A concert for the fans, a lesson for all newbies and kids, a lection for critics and a kick in the teeth for all those who beefed.
11.30 pm: The Cologne newspaper "Express" showed up and wrote:
"One band could not be beat: MANOWAR on the Viva Plus Stage. The for guys from New York blew the heads of their fans off and proved to be the loudest band in the world." and (next to it a picture of Joey) "The rockers of MANOWAR elated the crowd with guitar solos."
VAMPYR, Germany.
