On 7th June 2013, Europe took the stage in their home country Sweden for a very special occasion: celebrating 30 years of rock music. The Swedish rock band celebrated this event together with 30,000 people at the famous Sweden Rock Festival. The band performed a total 28 songs, selecting their personal favourite moments spanning from their earlier years up to their most recent songs taken from albums like Last Look At Eden and Bag Of Bones; plus songs they performed for the very first time.
Described as a Greatest Hits show at its bombastic best, Europe’s headline festival performance also displayed it’s more soulful moments, especially when the band sat down to perform an emotional acoustic set. This particular segment of the concert gave the massive festival atmosphere an intimate club feeling before Europe returned to perform the hard rock anthems their fans have grown to love and cherish.
To pay tribute to some of their biggest rock heroes, Europe invited two very special guests to perform with them – Scott Gorham (Thin Lizzy) for an electrifying version of “Jailbreak” and Michael Schenker (MSG, ex UFO and Scorpions) for their tribute to UFO’s classic “Lights Out”.
The set list is full of treasures and surprises. Europe were determined to celebrate and enjoy their long record of hit singles including “Carrie”, “Rock The Night”, “Superstitious”, “Open Your Heart”, “Last Look At Eden”, “Prisoners in Paradise”, “New Love In Town” and, of course, the ever-present and always electrifying iconic rock anthem “The Final Countdown”.
The DVD and Blu-ray were produced, directed, filmed and edited by Patric Ullaeus and this celebratory show is captured in stunning clarity of both audio and video. Clocking in over 2 hours, 40 minutes of footage, and filmed with state-of-the-art hi def cameras, the concert features behind-the-scenes material, plus an exclusive interview with the band, making “Live At Sweden Rock – 30th Anniversary Show” the definitive Europe live experience!
Fabulous value for money this highlights why Europe have proved to have such longevity, and again proves that they are so much more than a one trick (song?) pony. The crowd will never let them forget “The Final Countdown” (and nor should they) but it is clear that over the years they have brought us all with them as they have grown as musicians and songwriters. Even the drum solo is fun.
CD/DVD/Blu-ray Track Listing:
1. Intro / Riches To Rags
2. Firebox
3. Not Supposed To Sing The Blues
4. Scream Of Anger
5. Superstitious
6. No Stone Unturned
7. New Love In Town
8. In The Future To Come
9. Paradize Bay
10. Girl From Lebanon
11. Prisoners In Paradise
12. Always The Pretenders
13. Drink And A Smile
14. Open Your Heart
15. Love Is Not The Enemy
16. Sign Of The Times
17. Start From The Dark
18. Wings Of Tomorrow
19. Carrie
20. Jailbreak (featuring Scott Gorham)
21. Seven Doors Hotel
22. Drum Solo
23. The Beast
24. Let The Good Times Rock
25. Lights Out (featuring Michael Schenker)
26. Rock The Night
27. Last Look At Eden
28. The Final Countdown
“Europe: Live at Sweden Rock – 30th Anniversary Show” is released by earMusic on 2CD, DVD and Blu-ray.
Europe are special guests on Foreigner’s April 2014 UK tour with support from FM. The tour starts on Thursday April
3 at the Manchester 02 Apollo. Tickets: www.ticketmaster.co.uk, www.livenation.co.uk, 24 hr box office: 0844 844 0444 014
UK Tour Dates include:
Manchester o2 Apollo (April 3)
Newcastle City Hall (April 4)
Glasgow Clyde Auditorium (April 5)
Nottingham Royal Centre (April 7)
Sheffield City Hall (April 8)
Portsmouth Guildhall (April 9)
Bristol Colston Hall (April 11)
London Hammersmith Apollo (April 13)
Wolverhampton Civic Hall (April 15)
Photo credits: Denis O’Regan
You must log in to post a comment.