Yesterday’s H.E.A.T-show heated up maybe a bit more than anyone expected….

Friday night and a few good bands in town, seemed like a perfect combo. Went there with my friends Mari and Henrik and things were cool most of the evening (it was extremely “cool” outdoors too, with degrees below zero, Celsius…).

I met the three ladies that I had gotten to know at some of the Whitesnake-gigs last year – the rockin’ teachers! Was nice to see them, definitely dedicated music fans. Pontus from Rockmässan (The Swedish Metal Convention) came over, talked with him a bit but when the first band, The Gloria Story, went onstage it was impossible to have a conversation.

Never seen the Gloria Story guys before, just heard that they’re supposed to be good. They weren’t bad, but I guess I’ll have to hear them a few more times – they had all the poses you could possibly imagine at least. It was like a quick tutorial of the many stage-poses of the 80’s. :-P

They were followed by hometown heroes Crazy Lixx. It dawned on me how much they’ve grown as a band over the years. First time I ever heard of these guys was what feels like ages ago – maybe ten years or so when I received one of their demos to review for Sweden Rock Magazine. It was good even back then. Maybe like with most demos, there’s always stuff that can be worked on, but basically they were good.

They went out of their way to play EVERYWHERE, an extremely hard working band – they wouldn’t even say no to a gig at the local pizza-place, anything that could fit in a small PA would work. So, their name spread like wildfire. They were good at marketing themselves, because even if people hadn’t actually heard the band, you could be sure that everybody had at least seen their logo somewhere or their t-shirts that they definitely marketed well.

Guitarist and girly-magnet Vic Zino left the band to join Hardcore Superstar and was replaced by former Sharp-guitarist Andy Dawson – a great musician and songwriter. There have been a few more changes in the band, some additions, some departures, I don’t even keep track anymore – but basically, I had no idea what to expect when they took the stage last night.

I was pleasently surprised. They are not an enthusiastic amateur/demo-band anymore. They are a kickass band who’s paid their dues. They kept going and they seem to be in a good place right now. The crowd loved them, they were received like hometown heroes – and Heroes…. are forever. ;)) Awesome show! Really, all thumbs up for Crazy Lixx, they know how to entertain without props, they simply love what they do and it shows. That’s all they need.

After a changeover that felt like forever, it was time for the headliners of the evening,H.E.A.T to take over the stage.

The band is fronted by Erik Grönwall – the Idol phenomenon who is one of the few survivors of that TV-show. With that talent it would have been scandalous if he hadn’t continued on his path – and eventually reached the right kind of audience. He finally has. The guy has also grown from a punk kid, to a full-fledged frontman with his own distinct style.

[It started HERE….]

[From a show he did a few years ago at the Malmö annual street fest. I dragged Mari along to see him, today she understands why!]

[AND finally – Erik today – fronting H.E.A.T]

I was impressed by his voice (still) and was enjoying the show when suddenly, when they were in the middle of rocking like crazy, the sound shuts down, the whole place lits up and a digital voice says in English that we must leave the building. At first I thought it was part of the show, and I wasn’t the only one. It wasn’t until Erik tried to shout to people that they had to leave the place, it was the REAL fire alarm, that people got it…

However…. we were not allowed to pick up our jackets or anything, and it was FREEZING cold last night!! I’m so glad that I at least had a knitted dress instead of the thin blouse I had originally thought of wearing… So, the whole crowd was thrown out, security shouting to people to move because of course we all got stuck in the door and I was so pissed off.

At first I thought of just simply refusing to go out there. Not in the mood to catch pneumonia. But we tried to keep warm through a group hug. But FUCK it was COLD!! Some people were so drunk that they could have walked barefoot on the North Pole. I was sober though and didn’t appreciate the situation at all.

Saw Crazy Lixx bassplayer standing there wearing nothing but a tank top and those thin spandex-thingies, holy crap, I was freezing even more just seeing him in that…! I think you can even spot him in this clip somewhere:

I don’t know how long we had to stand there, felt like forever. We were finally let back in to everybody’s delight – and the show could recommence! The band just turned back the HEAT as if nothing ever happened and the whole thing was quickly forgotten. :)

All in all – a great evening, dispite the surprisingly scant crowd attendance.

[A few more pics from the show at www.facebook.com/intherearviewmirror ]