19/2/2011 Europe @ Shepherds Bush Empire

Subject	Europe @ Shepherds Bush Empire
DateCreated	2/20/2011 1:43:00 PM
PostedDate	2/20/2011 5:43:00 AM
	I was never much of a Europe fan - I always saw them as cheesy 80's one hit wonders. However, a couple of years ago they put out a new album that surprised a lot of people - including me. Gone was the old keyboard heavy 1980's sound. This was an altogether harder and heavier sounding affair.  OK, it's not heavy metal and I wouldn't go as far as to describe it as raw or dirty, but it has a definite edge and sounds modern. As well as re-inventing their sound, Europe also wrote a bunch of good songs for their 'Last Look At Eden' album. Suddenly they sounded relevant. There were certainly a few lines in the songs that hit home with me personally, so I did something I never thought I'd do - I bought a Europe album. And I liked it. Now I've gone as far as actually buying a ticket to see them. Guess what? Europe are actually a very good live band. There isn't much cheese - although the keyboard solo seems a bit dated. There is a drum solo later too, although this is made more interesting by having a backing track (William Tell Overture I think?) that the drums actually form part of rather than standing on their own - a good way of doing it and certainly more enjoyable. It does leave me in fear that there might be a bass solo later, but fortunately we are spared this!  Ladies favourite Joey Tempest is a good frontman - he has some neat moves that I'd nick myself if I didn't have a guitar round my neck all the time. And I'd nick his jacket too if I got a chance!  The band give a tight and well polished performance as you'd expect. There is a nice tribute to the late Gary Moore in the set as well, and you can see how he influenced John Norum. The sound mix is quite decent, and the band sound much heavier than you'd expect from the band that gave you 'The Final Countdown'. The setlist contains quite a few songs from 'Last Look At Eden' as well as one or two from the previous album since the band reformed, and a few from earlier in the band's career like 'Rock The Night' - something to please everyone.  The encore opens with a promising new song which will be on their yet to be recorded forthcoming album - and of course Europe finish their set with that song. I guess the venue wouldn't be left standing if they didn't. The thing is, if you have heard Evil Scarecrow play that same song, it's never quite the same again.  Europe certainly provide a good value for money night's entertainment though, at a reasonable ticket price of £18 - a lot more reasonable the bar prices at this corporate venue.  I end up having a cheaper night out than normal and arrive home with exactly the same amount of cash in my pocket as I went out with - £20 for a T-shirt? No thanks!  I know you can sell T-shirts for a fiver and still make a profit, although to be fair the greedy venues usually take a hefty cut of merch sales and are one of the reasons the prices are so high.  I also refuse to pay £4 a pint for something that isn't even nice - therefore I decide to see how long I can hold out without going to the bar. Amazingly, I last through the entire show and leave the venue without having spent a single penny at their overpriced bar. I find I'm not even thirsty. I am now re-evaluating my whole drinking at gigs attitude due to the outrageous bar prices these Academy and other corporate venues are now charging. If it's possible to go for a few hours during the day without any liquid refreshment - alcoholic or otherwise, then it must be possible in the evening too without dying of thirst. Yes really. Maybe I'll start driving to gigs more often if I'm not going to drink. I'm thinking of getting another motorcycle - which would be an even better way of getting to gigs, and much faster getting home too! Don't get me wrong - I'm not going on the wagon or anything - I'm just sick of being ripped off at gigs.  I'll still be enjoying a few beers at venues with reasonable bar prices - assuming they actually serve anything I want to drink, which not all music venues do regardless of price. OK, that's my ranting over for this week. Probably.