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Events and Reports - Pretty Maids - Live with Nice Try at Hollywood Hard Rock - Fredericia, December 17. 2004
Nice Try (Michael)
Nice Try is a perfect match for Pretty Maids, since their self written material is close to Pretty Maids' combination of melodies and heavy edged Rock. Rooted in the 80's Nice Try recently began to wear wigs to obtain the image that supports their musical style. However, the band has to be careful not create same associations as The Darkness did - namely whether they are a joke band making fun of the style or a serious hard working band. Since I know the guys personal I know they are the real deal and love everything associated with Hard Rock.
Bringing in a bunch of their hometown supporters the band looked thrilled to share the stage with their childhood heroes. The band opened with Your Life -, excellent choice because of the catchy refrain. The venue's sound system was good and by second song Nice Try got more heads nodding with their cover of Europe's Rock the Night.
In my opinion the band really took the venue by storm with their "triple track treat" Searching for Answers, This Love and Cleopatra's Eyes all from their latest demo "Liberation". Singer Thomas Nissen really looked comfortable on stage and he is the main showman along with bass player Martin Borg, whose visual appearance had an 80's Glam feel to it. Guitarist Troels Brosboel progressed during the set and really let himself loose on the evenings highlight track Living a Lie. Living a Lie certainly has that raw feel and most important live energy to reach new audience.
The band closed their good performance with Twisted Sister's anthem We're not Gonna take it and received applause from a satisfied crowd. Hopefully we'll see Nice Try opening for other bands in near future since they are one of the few Danish bands that actually are true to the Hard Rock style.
Pretty Maids (Steen)
A Pretty Maids concert is always a good time and this one was no exception. It had been several years since I had last seen Pretty Maids live so I had been looking forward to this concert for a while now. After the Nice warmup I was Pretty much ready to go crazy. Pretty Maids went directly into Future World and that was as good an excuse as any. Besides a few people in the middle and Borg on the left side the audience was pretty static during most of the show. I took care of the right side where I had a wide area right in front of Ken Hammer to go nuts in, so I headbanged, sang very loud and generally had a good time. It looked like Ken felt the same. A second guitarist had been added to the live ensemble with Rene "Shades" who I've also seen live with Mike Tramp. Ken still handled all solos.
Future World was a good opener and the show really kicked into high gear with Destination Paradise. The whole concert pretty much peaked right here. This also triggered several audience members to start singing Hell on high heels during the next few breaks. Ronnie Atkins made some fun of them, but we unfortunately never got that classic. Instead we got another one with the cover of The Boys are back in town, which went down pretty well after the first chorus.
Wouldn't miss you is impossible to stand still to in a live situation and in the end we got a short and sweet sing a long. Natural high got my already torn vocal chords even more ragged. After these two ultra melodic songs I was hoping for something heavier and faster, but the band proceeded with Live until it hurts, which is also a good live song, but I have just heard it so many times by now. Another sure fire concert hit Yellow Rain went down extremely well with the audience and the band played a pretty energized version.
The band seemed in high spirits and joked around through most of the show and didn't take things too serious. My favorite parts was when bassist Kenn Jackson used his squeaky girl voice to send the harmonising right through the roof.
After Sin Decade Ken Hammer strapped on an acoustic guitar and we got a great version of Queen's '39. A very cool part of the show. It would have been nice if this had been expanded into a short acoustic set, but back went the electric guitar and the band swooped into the melodic Clay. The absolute highlight for me came with Virtual brutality. This song has so much power and works extremely well live. By this time I had left my spot in front of Ken Hammer, which was probably good because now he could concentrate on the music instead of the guy who was screaming in his face all the time, and moved into the middle where I proceeded to do exactly the same thing to Ronnie Atkins.
We got another old friend with The Danish band Gasolin's classic Det bedste til mig og mine venner, before the dreaded Please don't leave me. This one has become the low point of every Pretty Maids show, Yawn... But I guess they would never leave out their biggest hit. When the band went into Love Games I really started craving something heavier, and fortunately it was Back to back which ended the first part of the show and the band went of stage.
Ronnie Atkins came in wearing a pixy hat and the band played a pretty cool Christmas medley. Obviously Red, hot and heavy ended a good show which definitely got me sweating. At the end of Red, hot and heavy the band proceeded to lift the roof of the small Hollywood Hard Rock bar with a full on attack with all their instruments. I felt the floor shaking as they rocked the house.
Overall it was a good show with a strong emphasis (too strong for my taste) on the melodic sing-a-long anthems Pretty Maids are known for. Personally, I missed a few more songs from Scream or Spooked. All in all the show was a definite proof that Pretty Maids are still very much alive.
Hollywood Hard Rock was a nice and comfortable concert place. Unfortunately I was driving this day, but I see myself back at the very long bar in the near future without my drivers license...
Setlist:
Future World
Destination Paradise
The Boys are back in town
Wouldn't miss you
Natural High
Live until it hurts
Yellow Rain
Sin Decade
'39 (Acoustic)
Clay
Virtual Brutality
Det bedste til mig og mine venner
Please don't leave me
Love games
Back to back
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Christmas medley (In Santa's Claws & A Merry Jingle)
Red, hot and heavy
| You can click all pictures for a bigger version
All pictures taken by Michael (Pretty Maids) & Steen (Nice Try) | Written by Michael & Steen
Sunday, December 26, 2004 |
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RevelationZ Comments
| Comment by Ben@metalreviews.com (Anonymous) - Monday, December 27, 2004 | Cmon Steen, Please Dont LEave me is a pretty damn good ballad. Although if I was there and they really did go into Hell on High Heels instead of teasing or wahtever Ronnie did Id have such a huge assgasm that youd have to pick me up off the floor
Ben
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| Comment by Steen (Staff) - Monday, December 27, 2004 | 
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Comments: 518 | | Yeah, I agree it's a damn good ballad. I just have this kind og love/hate relationship with it and find it to be a boring live song. Probably because I have seen PM live so many times and know that it is bound to come at some point. I feel the same way with Mike Tramp's "When the children cry". Good on album, but not very exciting live...
Posted by Steen (Staff)
Monday, December 27, 2004 |
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| Comment by Ben (Anonymous) - Monday, December 27, 2004 | hahah well seeing as how I dont have the problem of "having seen them too many times" theycould go onstage and play hell, for twenty minutes and my panties would still be soaked. It is my mission in life to see them and Bonfire live, you seen Bonfire or Jaded Heart?
Ben
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| Comment by Steen (Staff) - Monday, December 27, 2004 |
View Profile
Comments: 518 | | I've never seen Bonfire, but have a pretty bad recollection of Jaded Heart when I saw them in Germany several years ago. I'm sure I am biased because the reason why I went there in the first place, Enuff Z'nuff, who had flewn in from Chicago were to play next, but Jaded heart just kept on playing encores. As I remember it we got 10 encores and they played 45 minutes past their scheduled time and Enuff Z'nuff had to cut their set way short and played a pretty mediocre show. Being a huge Enuff Z'nuff fan I of course blamed everything on Jaded Heart so I have a weird relationship with that band now. I'd heard one of their albums prior to going and liked it, but since then I have kind of shunned them, even though it was the organisers fault. I know Michael is a pretty big Bonfire fan though, maybe he has seen them live.
And on the topic of assgasms...
Just so you know, if they did play Hell on High Heels and you went rolling on the floor having one of your assgasms next to me I'm pretty sure that Steen "the pogoing machine" would just jump all over you instead of picking you up. So beware, don't have an assgasm next to me man! Haha
Posted by Steen (Staff)
Monday, December 27, 2004 |
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| Comment by liridon (Anonymous) - Monday, July 11, 2005 | hi i am liridon , i like your songs to much and your group too
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| Comment by maral (Anonymous) - Thursday, November 17, 2005 | i luv ur piktures okkkkkkkkkkkk!!!!!!!!!!
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