DORO (Live)

Doro Pesch finally made it to Finland with her solo project as a guest of a Finnish Metal magazine – Inferno. It’s been a while since Doro’s last visit on these shores … she was last seen here back in 1987 with Warlock opening for Judas Priest. The venue for this long awaited visit was set at the tiniest of clubs, more used to catering for the first shows for unsigned bands rather than major band productions. The small commotion that was caused by Doro’s visit to the venue’s only ladies room, which was also used by the public, crystallizes how small the club actually was. Most people only dream of seeing established bands play at such a small setting. Unfortunately, the attendance at the show was unusually low, which was most likely due to some sort of a breakdown in the jungle wires, along with lack of advertising. It could also be partly due to the fact that the show took place on a Sunday. Whatever the reasons for the low head count were, the fact is those who weren’t there missed a great show!

Since Doro the band haven’t played in Finland before, it was uncertain what sort of material would comprise the set list. It seems that even after releasing numerous solo albums, Doro still equals Warlock only with different musicians. Even though the band carries Doro’s name, it is very much a band effort with everyone living up to their roles and doing their best at entertaining. Although the band acted like a pack of hungry young musicians, they have all been in Doro’s camp between 4 – 14 years, which is saying something in support of a real band concept.

The set consisted of mostly Warlock songs … and those along with their cover tunes got the audience singing. Judas Priest’s cover “Breaking the Law,” the encore cover of Billy Idol’s “White Wedding,” and Warlock oldie “All We Are” were loudly belted out by the entire audience. The excitement and sea of raised arms did not rest for the entire set. The hands in the front row kept reaching for Doro throughout the set too. During “All We Are,” Doro handed out the mike to the audience to let them take turns at singing the chorus.

Since the stage was so tiny, and the ceiling was so low, the drummer could reach the ceiling with his drumsticks. The low stage also made for some major obstacles in the view towards the stage, and Doro being so short only made it more difficult to actually see her unless you were in the front row, but fortunately the sound was clear and loud so at least everyone could hear the show even if the visuals were somewhat limited for most.

Along with the expected “Fur Immer,” we also got to hear such Warlock favorites as “Burning Witches,” “Earthshake Rock,” “Metal Tango,” and “Hellreiser.” “Fur Immer” was followed by another ballad from Doro’s solo material, “Fall For Me Again,” and it’s safe to say that most of this night’s audience did just that, judging by the excited and adoring looks on most of the (male) faces in the audience during and after the show. Let’s just hope that it doesn’t take another 17 years until Doro’s next visit.