Sabaton / Epica

Sabaton Tour to End All Tours with Epica

***Sabaton – Stage AE, Pittsburgh, PA***

Sabaton brought their Tour to End All Tours to Pittsburg, PA on October 17th. The headlining tour had Dutch symphonic band, Epica, as direct support on the 6 week tour of North America.

Swedish power metal band Sabaton headlined a 6 week North American tour in support of their latest release, The War to End All Wars. The closest they were scheduled to play was Pittsburgh PA so we packed up and made the drive. Sabaton is one of those bands, if giving the chance to see, you should not miss. Sabaton are considered to be historians and mainly write about battles and war. They have a dedicated following both stateside and in Europe. Stage AE had a line forming around 4pm that went down and around the corner, on a Monday evening. It is safe to say the venue was going to be jam packed by the time the doors opened nearly 3 hours later. Most of the fans were showing their support by wearing the “Sabaton uniform” of urban camouflages. In fact, some even dressed in cosplay as a figure from historical wars.

Epica went on first and they were no stranger to most of the crowd. Vocalist Simone Simons, is a powerhouse. Mark Jansen & Issac Delahaye {guitar}, Rob Van Der Loo {bass}, Arien Van Weesenbeek {drums} and Coen Janssen {keyboards} complete the band. They have a classic meets death metal style that captivates an audience. One of the highlights of the evening was when Simons explained to fans that she was informed and understood that the venue had a no moshing/pit rule. So instead she instructed the giant crowd that she wanted to see a massive hug off. She began to instruct them to separate into 2 groups and pick a partner from the other side they were going to hug, then when she gave the signal they were to all hug as the band continued the song. It was all in good fun yet still managed to turn into a mosh pit, all be it somewhat more mellow than had she not given directions.

Sabaton took the stage promptly after playing a video reminding the crowd how and why it was important to remember and respect the people and stories of WWII. As previously mentioned, the band doesn’t just write songs about battles, they are in fact history enthusiasts. They have spent their 22 year career educating others about the importance of never forgetting history. Singer, Joakim Broden, becomes our narrator for the evening as he guides us through woes and fortunes of humanity throughout times of war. Sabaton – which also includes bass player/founding member, Par Sundstrom, guitarists Tommy Johansson & Chris Roland, and drummer Hannes van Dahl – goes all out when it comes to stage production. Hannes’ drum kit sits atop a full size tank, complete with turrets and treads. The rest of the stage is decorated with barbed wire, ammo cans, sandbags, camo netting and of course guns & helmets. The band is all wearing the Sabaton uniform of urban camoflauge. For a band that gets zero radio play, they really pack the venues full of people that know every word to every song, no matter how new or old the song maybe. No matter if they sing the song in English or Swedish..a choice they leave up to the crowd when it came to “Gott Mit Uns“.

The evening is full of entertainment and you almost forget you are being given a history lesson. Each song is a journey back in time. Catchy melodies combined with powerhouse choruses and tight musicianship make for a great live show. The band really seems to be enjoying themselves on stage with one another as well with the crowd. At one point guitarists Roland & Johansson stuck guitar picks all over Broden’s face while he was singing in good fun. A piano was brought out to perform the new ballad, “Christmas Truce”. When Broden decided he needed to take a vocal break the rest of the guys challenged Johansson to sign whatever song van Dahl decided to play. For this show it was Iron Maidens’ “Run to the Hills“, which he accomplished nearly flawlessly.