PRIMAL FEAR STARTS TOUR ON LOUD IN BUENOS AIRES!
3 years had passed since Primal Fear arrived in Buenos Aires; this time, they’re starting the Latin America tour in the city, playing at Teatro Flores. Every band always says that the first country of a tour tends to be stressful, I mean, the band is packing everything from home, saying goodbye to their families, and welcoming the ” airport life again”. But I guess that Argentine crowd is the best cure to it, cheering up every band and making them feel very special.
It was Thursday night, April 16th. Local bands selected to warm the stage were 2 legendary ones: Tren Loco and Jerikó. So it was a must-see show for every metalhead in Buenos Aires.
At 19.20, Tren Loco hit the stage. With songs like “Venas de Acero”, “Acorazado Belgrano”, “Pampa del Infierno”, and “Fuera de la Ley”, the first attendants enjoyed an outstanding performance from the local band. The singer, Aaron, remembered the late Gustavo Zabala, a former bass player who passed away in 2022. Saying that they were continuing his legacy.
“Creer en Vos”, “Barrio Bajo”, “Tierra Negra”, and “Tempestades” made people tune their voices from an early age!
At 20.20, it was time for Jerikó to show us how to do it! With an amazing and powerful sound and songs like “Libre Otra Vez”, “Sin Vos”, “Arrastrados”, “Desvanecidos” and “Tierra Violada”, Jerikó didn’t leave a single head without moving, and the first circle pits of the night started to appear!
“En Penumbras”, “No Pares”, and “Reventado” (with Aaron from Tren Loco joining on vocals). No more left to say, the stage was ready to meet the German legends.
At 21.30, the waiting came to an end, with lights out and a backing track sounding in the background, the band got onstage. Andre appeared sitting on the drums, as Thalia, Magnus, and Dirk walked to their positions.
They started playing “We Walk Without Fear”, Ralf appeared at the exact moment when the lyrics started being sung, like a king who let everyone wait for his arrival until the last moment.
Scheepers said, “We’re gonna make a Saturday out of this Thursday”, like pushing everyone to forget about tomorrow’s work schedule or anything else and just partying and enjoying as much as they could. And it worked!
Next songs were “Destroyer” and “I Am The Primal Fear”, were Thalia showed amazing guitar skills and made us know why Ralf picked her without a single doubt when he had to reform the band back in 2023 (when 4 member suddenly left the band and left him with 2 options: announce the end of the band or a rebirth from the ashes refreshing it with a new line up). Andre was smiling at the crowd the whole show, and even recording them while chanting in between songs!
“Final Embrace” and “Nuclear Fire” were the next songs on the setlist, followed by “Seven Seals” and “The Hunter”. Legendary Gamma Ray bass player, Dirk, was one of the most common names to be chanted by the Argentine fans; even though Mat’s wasn’t available to perform on this tour, and he was very missed, this crossover was totally unreal. Like seeing 2 ex-Gamma Ray guys (remember that Scheepers sang on the early records) back together on the same stage after decades.
The show continued with “King of Madness” and “The End Is Near”, and then Ralf took a time to give credits to Magnus for composing the following song: “Hallucinations”. Magnus came back to the band as a guitar player after years, and it seemed like their relationship between both of them hadn’t aged a single day. It really was watching a band of friends performing, always smiling at each other, putting themselves side by side, making faces, and just having a good time. I guess that this is the kind of beginning of a tour that every band wishes to have.
“Fighting the Darkness”, the epic song, was next. In the middle of it, where the guitar players fill the show with amazing guitar solos and harmonies, Ralf left the stage for a while, just to come back to sing the next verses with an Argentine football shirt, surprising all of us!
After that, they played “Chainbreaker” (the first song that Primal Fear ever composed, according to Ralf), followed by a question: “Do you like Heavy Metal? Do you love Heavy Metal?” Everyone knew what was next, ’cause they opened the circle pit even before the song was inducted. Of course, it was the classic “Metal Is Forever”, and then the end came with “Running in the Dust”, a mid-tempo song that made every fan headbang like there’s no tomorrow. Or should I say “like it’s a Saturday instead of a Thursday”?
Photos by Eliana Fernandez
Review by Agustin Lopez
Produced by Icarus Music
Press Marcela Scorca