Whitesnake, 24 July 2006, Skopje, Macedonia Aug 04 '06 (Updated Aug 07 '06)    Write an essay on this topic. Tweet Popular Products in Music The Dirtchamber Sessions, Vol. 1 by The Prodigy From $11 Jersey Boys [Original Broadway Cast Recording] by Original Broadway Cast From $8 The Bottom Line Wow, what a great show. I recommend anyone who hasn't seen Whitesnake live, especially the sceptics, to do so as soon as possible. Prologue I believe it was somewhere in April that I was browsing through the local papers when I read the news. It was an insignificant article, only a few sentences long, tucked away in the forlorn back pages of the Entertainment section, mixed in between articles about Macedonian Britney and Justin talentless wannabes but who enjoy the full support of the mass-media tasteless and talentless quasi musical journalists. As usual I skimmed through the headlines and sometimes the subheadings, when all of a sudden a word had stuck in my mind although I had turned several pages to revel in the exciting world of sport and wonder at the magnificent achievements of Macedonian sports (cough, cough or lack thereof cough, cough). It was a familiar word and the article had looked interesting as if it wanted to encourage me to go back and read some more. The word was Vajtsnejk as transliterated into Cyrillic. Alas, the article just briefly announced the impending concert of Whitesnake, one of hard rocks greatest names, in Skopje on 24 July 2006. This was simply amazing and unbelievable. As a great fan during the late eighties, this was terrific news for me and I immediately notified my brother who was also very eager to go. The Long Wait The days slowly but relentlessly passed by. At first I was not so excited but as time went by my inner anticipation had grown proportionately as the date came closer. The tickets were released on 3rd of July and a couple of days later I went and bought three – for myself, my brother and a friend. Additionally, another five friends would be coming along, amongst which the same group of people that went to the Metallica concert in Belgrade two years prior. So, we would be the old experienced concert goers getting another chance to experience in what was to ultimately be a breathtaking spectacle. Great Expectations and Arising Concerns Naturally, with the passage of time our expectations grew. We were anticipating one hell of a concert but some troublesome questions started arising. Considering David Coverdale’s age, has his voice stood the test of time? With a completely new line-up would this 21st century Whitesnake sound like the good ole Whitesnake that we grew up with? Would Steve Vai or Adrian Vandenberg play? Are they coming to Skopje at their zenith of their careers to pick up a modest sum and just routinely play without any energy or passion? All of these questions would be answered sooner or later. Namely, the new line up consists of experienced and prominent musicians. Reb Beach – lead and rhythm guitar, Tommy Aldridge – drums, Doug Aldrich – lead guitar, Uriah Duffy – Bass, Timothy Drury – Keyboards and Mr. Whitesnake himself, the legendary David Coverdale – vocals. All are proficient musicians and most importantly, all of them have committed to the Whitesnake spirit and gelled quite remarkable to feel like they have been playing together for twenty or more odd years, despite being a super band of sorts. The Coming of the Day This concert was, I will emphasise again, very important for me and my close knit of friends. A band of such legendary stature does not come to Skopje very often, hence meticulous preparation was required to make sure that we enjoyed and absorbed the concert and the atmosphere to the fullest possible extent. There are only two things that can boost the listening experience to come: beer and barbeque. Therefore, right after work I met my brother and went to a cheesy little barbeque place where they served draught beer for a very respectable price. We were soon joined by some other friends and before you knew it our audial senses were amplified and visual senses considerably modified to suit the occasion (remember kids if beer can’t help you, just have another one). This only encouraged the gradually increasing ranter and constructive dialogue on all things musical and especially all things rock. I just wonder how I could not persuade one of my interlocutors that Kurt Cobain was NOT the most influential rock musician ever, but some discussions never end. But, I digress back to the beer… I mean the pre-concert thrash up. Fortunately, we had just enough of the nectar for mortals to enjoy it without having been officially drunk. It was time to go to the Skopje Ice Hockey Rink, the venue of the concert. The Venue and the Warm-up Band The ten minute walk along the banks of the River Vardar from the little tavern in the City Park to the venue did me a great lot of good. It helped my body recuperate and recover from the excessive amounts of draught. The fresh breeze cooled by the river’s waters was a welcome delight, helping me clear my head in anticipation for David Coverdale and Co. Pretty soon we were at the entry gates and without too much of a fuss and without any hassle from the orderlies we were inside. The crowd inside had amassed and were waiting in cheer for the warm up band. The audience itself was a motley crew of people from all generations: you had the young teenagers amazingly, eager to see what they had come to see, you had people mainly my age who remember Whitesnake in their fill glory at a time when MTV actually aired them and the old rockers who probably remember David Coverdale as a young lad taking on the role of lead singer of Deep Purple, filling the shoes of the legendary Ian Gillan, back in the early seventies. In the meanwhile we swiftly found an excellent spot on the one grand stand that was available for sitting, as the stage was installed in front of the other grand stand of the venue. No sooner were we seated when the warm up band Steel Temple opened the evening’s ceremonies. I was very surprised at the fullness of their sound and the proficiency of their musical abilities. They are a Macedonian heavy metal outfit that sound something like a mix between Iron Maiden, Helloween and Blind Guardian, with a touch of keyboards and surprisingly female backing vocals. They did their stuff and the audience really accepted them, cheering loudly after between songs and encouraging the band to play more energetically. Considering that the 5,000 plus strong crowd is probably the biggest gig they have every played, Steel Temple showed themselves in a wonderful light. They served their purpose and warmed up the crowd for the main attraction. Again a great gig, too bad the people didn’t know their songs. The Main Attraction The members of Steel Temple made their way off the stage and a terrible lull of silence overcame the arena, which lasted only a few minutes until the organisers put on some background elevator music to fill in the void. This was not to last long of course and the crowd reacted to the happenings on the stage. The stage itself was very primitively setup I must admit. I mean it was fairly large and had all the instruments and amplifier walls, which looked very impressive, but there was no backdrop allowing us to see right through to gaping empty seats on the stand behind the stage and the lighting was basic I suppose but it provided the necessary nuances required for the show. Between the two amplifier walls was a drape hanging off of something that was elevated about a metre and a half and it dominated the stage. The crowd went wild when the drape was dropped to find that it is actually Tommy Aldridge’s drum kit. Soon after, at precisely 9:00 pm, six silhouettes stormed the stage and quickly put on their gear and blasted the first very powerful riff of the night. “Here’s a song for ya!” yelled David Coverdale and the crowd obliged with a unified roar as we all could identify the song immediately that it was Burn from Coverdale’s days as Deep Purple frontman. The sound was amazing, it was so loud, the playing was precise and the energy coming from the stage was overwhelming. We couldn’t keep our excitement and as David Coverdale did his microphone stand flips, turns and pelvic push-ups we sang the chorus back at the band. I must admit that I have only heard this song playing on the radio but the rawness of the live performance made me realise what a great act Deep Purple had been (even though I did see them live with Ian Gillan last year – but that’s another story) and that this song has probably one of the most memorable and enduring hard rock riffs in history. In the same key, the band suddenly intertwined Stormbringer for about thirty seconds and then returned Buuuuurrrrrrn to finish this mini-medley off. As the drums hit the last beat the audience jumped in the air and produced probably the loudest raw that I have heard from only 5,000 people. It was an emotional experience, especially because Whitesnake really surprised everybody with the fullness, richness and power of the song. They had us in their clutches with this opening number as they simply lifted and grabbed the audience and wouldn't let go until the last note of the dying seconds of the gig and beyond. The next song started with riff that resembles AC/DC’s Highway to Hell, a medium paced beat and the mature words You Talk Too much, and we all jumped around helping Mr. Coverdale sing Slide it In right to the top and I ain’t never gonna stop. The feel good sound of the song simply appealed to the Macedonian public as we enjoyed the stage antics of the ever-young but physically aging frontman. Who knows where the cold wind blows asks Coverdale while the audience roars and sings back the accompanying I ask my friends but nobody knows, thus started Love ain’t no Stranger, again a very nice song from the Slide it In LP. With this song over we were Ready an’ Willing for some Sweet Satisfaction to soothe my soul. This song was an excellent digression from the set hard rock formula of the previous numbers because of its bluesy, easygoing and funky mood. One thing I noticed is how full and complete it sounded compared to the studio recording. Pre 1987 Whitesnake albums had excellent songs but they always felt like something was missing, like they had been played in a tin shed, a sort of hollow feeling due to bad or inappropriate post-production and sound engineering I suppose. However, this live performance remedied all that and made the songs sound richer as they were played with the apposite mix of energy, maturity and distortion level. Add to that the energy from the audience and the reality of listening to skin on strings directly in front of you and the songs become improved renditions than were originally recorded or intended. So far all the songs were around the same level, similar beats, same keys same energy levels. With band more than having warmed up it was time for a gear change. They were about to manifest an energy absorbing shock. As I said previously, Coverdale and friends grabbed the audience from the very first beat, the very first and the very first vocal screech, they were about to elevate us higher as they started playing Give me all your Love Tonight. The powerful opening riff sent shockwaves through the public and the energy resonating was bouncing and feeding off each and every one of us. Later in this song I yelled to my brother “This isn’t happening! This can’t be Happening”. He looked at me but couldn’t quite clearly make out what I was saying because although we were sitting at the far side of the venue the music was so loud that I had to repeat myself several times. So the band further progressed in the song when the music died down with only the drum beat remaining when Coverdale suggested that we take over the singing duties. The audience obliged and yelled back the chorus to the stage. By the looks of things, they were impressed. At this point I started feeling a pain in my throat, something that always happens to me during good concerts. I had temporarily lost my voice after Metallica, Deep Purple and Apocalypica, which was funny enough because Apocalyptica are an instrumental act, therefore I knew where my vocal cords were heading, straight to the swelling stage, but I didn’t care. I was enjoying the moment and relishing the atmosphere. It was time to take a breather now and Coverdale introduced the song as one in which you would “play with your boobies and rub your private parts,” or was it for some other song. Nevertheless, Is this Love started playing and instantaneously all mobile phones were waved in the air, with a lighter here and there only adding to the mood of this great ballad. I didn’t really rub my boobies because quite frankly I don’t have any, but I sang along with the rest of my friends again with the impression that they played the song impeccably. “He sounds the same as on the CD’s, he hasn’t lost a bit of his vocal abilities,” yelled one of my companions. I nodded with acknowledgment but I didn’t totally agree with him. ‘It sounds better than the CD,’ I thought as I sang out is this the love that I’ve been looking fooor. The band accelerated a notch but not too much. It appears that one of Coverdale’s favourite songs in this tour seems to be Ain’t No Love in the Heart of the City and for a good reason. It really is a very audience friendly song. The repetitive chorus and the lack of too many words creates a great atmosphere for the audience to join in, even for those people who haven’t heard the song before. This was followed by Fool for your Loving one of Whitesnake’s most enduring songs. First recorded in 1980 and then rehashed in 1989 and included in the LP Slip of the Tongue. The main difference between the two renditions is the solo which was radically different especially because Steve Vai played the latter version and the small drum fills in the chorus of the original were missing in the rehashed rendition. This time the band played the Vai version and they even attempted to improvise a similar solo. They couldn’t quite nail it but Beach’s and Aldrich’s attempts still have their merits. Immediately after the song, Coverdale retired behind the stage leaving the two guitarists to show their guitar playing abilities. The guitar solo has become a taboo in the past decade and a half. People have criticised guitarists for being too self-cantered, ego centric and spotlight hoarders. Some even go as far as too call it musical masturbation and even boring. I never adhered to that point of view. I have always enjoyed when a musician would take the centre stage and like Atlas would take upon the burden of the world on his shoulders. It goes without saying that I admired Aldrich for his showing off. He was complemented by Reb Beach who took over the second part of the guitar solo. Then the band joined in with a slow bluesy riff to end of this spot. The two guitarists were rewarded warmly by the audience. But, they did not take a rest as Coverdale came back to dominate proceedings as the band started playing in what was later to be assessed as the highlight of the evening. A black cat moans when its burning with a fever yelled Coverdale as Crying in the Rain started. What was to come was a perfectly executed, the most energetic and immaculately sung song that I’ve ever had the privilege to have witnessed live. It was now that I realised that these guys weren’t mortals, but were rather giants living among us mere mortals. It was now that I realised that Whitesnake do not nor have ever deserved the unfair criticism they have received from the press, the publishing houses and so called music critics. Apart from David Coverdale’s voice which simply dominated everything within sonic range of the sound equipment Dough Aldrich ripped through one of Whitesnake’s most epic guitar solos. I simply couldn’t believe it. He did it note for note identically to the way John Sykes I believe it was how originally recorded in 1987’s version (I stand corrected of course). When, the guitarist finished weaving through the solo everybody ran off the stage except for Tommy Aldridge. Still donning his 80’s hair do, the man continued the beat and started improvising with various fill and beats. The double bass was very prominent flooding off the other parts of the drums. After a very energetic three to four minutes he slowed down and threw the drums sticks at the audience. Too bad it’s over, I thought to myself, I really enjoyed that. Hold on, what’s he doing. He sat back on the stool and started beating the drum with his bare hands. Ha, ha what a show – or is it a cliché as one famed British music journo would state. Regardless, the man poured his heart and guts out, let alone his hands which must have been bleeding to the bone, especially because those cymbals really took a beating. The rest of the band came back on and with a fury finished off the song. The crowd went wild. That was so good, so massive. Whitesnake finished off the gig with one of their biggest hits in Here I go Again and ran off the stage. After a brilliant show and only an hour and ten minutes of course we were going to call the back for an encore. They came back with a wild interpretation of Bad Bad Boys. I was almost depleted of energy but I was ready anticipating the last song of the night. This was the song that I learned to love Whitesnake’s music. Still of the Night is one of those epic songs that defy time limits and musical affinities (but please don’t judge it from its film clip). It’s just a very strong, potent and intoxicating number. Once again it was impressive seeing the band perform this song. David’s voice dictating the flow, the band members complying. The song ended with a barrage of echoed voice effects giving the impression of a coming storm and that’s what it felt that had hit us for the past memorable hour and thirty-two minutes precisely. As the crescendo ended abruptly, the crowd howled in appreciation and then it was over. We weren’t given a chance to negotiate another encore. It was over. Epilogue We made our way home, each our own way as I took the lonely taxi-ride home. The next day I was able to clear my head, although my ears were still buzzing and I am not going to start about my voice, it was almost totally gone. Thank God by noon it had recovered some of its clarity. Neverthless, my impressions of the concert are wow, wow all I can say is wow. Wow, what a great show. David Coverdale hasn't lost a single bit of his vocal abilities, he is still comfortable on stage and his performance was awesome. The band that he has managed to put together has gelled excellently and you get a meatier and much deeper live sound than the studio albums. All in all, add several beers and mix it in with nostalgia and you get a perfect concert - almost too good. Seriously, this has to be the best concert to have been held in Macedonia, eclipsing Deep Purple last year and even Apocalyptica, earlier this year, who kicked serious backsides. They just blew the roof off the house - oh wait it was an open air venue.

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