Ultra Beatdown Tour North America Fall 2009

Date: Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Location: House Of Blues, Chicago, Ill

Bands:

DragonForce (Headliner)
Sonata Arctica (Direct Support)
Taking Dawn


Time: 5:30 PM – 9:15 PM

I arrived at the venue late, only to my surprise to see a packed venue as Taking Dawn had just taken the stage according to the person who scanned my ticket. I made my way to the back where the merch was, walked right up up to the Sonata Arctica booth and bought their tour shirt. The shirt was $25 and I supplied the man with two twenty dollar bills. He fought relentlessly to get me to buy an album, poster, or another shirt. To his dismay, I didn’t want another shirt, and I had the two albums they had there. I walked to the floor, squeezed through some of the younger kids who were ready to go guitar hero once Dragonforce go on stage and that shall transition my way to my review:

Taking Dawn

A very upbeat band. They had lots of energy and they got the crowd to be interactive. While I would probably not listen to this band outside of seeing them live open, they were a pretty good compliment to the atmosphere that evening. Lots of positive energy from the band that would foreshadow what the rest of the night would behold with the remaining bands. I have no setlist from this band. Highlight was when the lead singer jumped off stage and ran around playing part of a song.


Sonata Arctica

The band that sold me on going to this show seeing as I have seen DragonForce a bajillion times now. Short setlist made for a disappointment, but nonetheless the band played their 6 songs with everything they had. It had been 2 years since I seen Sonata Arctica, and that was a headlining tour. The energy and entertainment was still evident in this band. They band came out on stage and opened with “Black and White” a track off their last album “Unia”. Immediately the band enforced they were there to play good power metal and to have a good time. They played one new song, “Flag In The Ground”, the single off the new album. It sounded really good live. Their staple in their set, “Fullmoon” was good as usual, and during the piano beginning, a mini cover of “Total Eclipse Of The Heart” was played.. They played one ballad, that being “Last Drop Falls” and surprisingly there was a lot of singing along to it. My highlights of their set were “8th Commandment” and “Don’t Say A Word”. Two of my favorite songs with lots of crowd participation for singing the choruses. Their set, in order:

1. In Black And White
2. Flag In The Ground
3. 8th Commandment
4. Last Drop Falls
5. Fullmooon (With “Total Eclipse Of The Heart” teaser)
6. Don't Say A Word/Vodka

Dragonforce

The band 96% of the crowd came to see. They always put on an entertaining show… as long as it is indoors in a small club atmosphere. The band played a solid two hour set,with a lot of good oldies in there that made seeing them again more pleasurable. My highlights were “Starfire” and “Where Dragons Rule”. My two favorites off of VOTD and to hear them live was truly sensational. It felt great screaming along to these songs. My personal opinion is that it was sad that the crowd was more of a Post-Inhuman Rampage/Post-Guitar Hero crowd because the response to these songs was not as strong as the newer ones even though they slay the shit out of the newer material. Henrik Klingenberg came on stage to do a keytar duel with Vadim. Herman Li stage dove into the crowd to play part of a song. The band drank, played exceptionally well, and pleased the near sell out crowd. Setlist:

1. Fury Of The Storm
2. Heroes Of Our Time
3. Reasons To Live
4. Disciples Of Babylon
5. Starfire
6. Keytar Duel
7. Operation Ground And Pound
8. Fields Of Despair
9. Where Dragons Rule
10. The Last Journey Home
11. Valley Of The Damned
12. Strike Of The Ninja
13. Through The Fire And Flames

I got guitar picks from Taking Dawn, and I caught a pick from Fred of DragonForce.