RWE-Halle Mülheim/Rühr, Germany
2011-06-18

Since our neighbors to the East bring such a big batch of up-and-coming sleaze and glam bands, a show of this magnitude was not far away...

With great joy, we undertook the journey to the first edition of Shout It Out Loud, headlining none other than Cinderella.

Hollywood Burnouts

Unfortunately, scheduling issues caused the doors to open rather late, and we missed part of the Hollywood Burnouts set by waiting to get in.

What we did see, was a more solid and mature version of their Roeselare show. Their first recorded material (see separate CD review) gave them a boost, because they sounded tighter than ever.

In the meantime, the crowd slowly started expanding in the large venue, and Hollywood Burnouts concluded a great set, setting the bar pretty high for the other pre-headliner bands.

Shotgun Express

Next up was Shotgun Express, who had just successfully concluded a mini-tour of Belgium. Since I missed them at that time, this was my first experience with them.

Very bluesy, very groovy yet not too sloppy, Shotgun Express deserved a bigger crowd than the one that was still dripping in. Combined with the charismatic lead singer, they got the crowd warmed up and continued on the pace Hollywood Burnouts had set.

Jaded Heart

It was at about this time that I decided to go get some beer, only to find out that there were 3 people to serve the few hundreds that had by now taken over the room. As a consequence, I missed Jaded Heart's entire set. A problem I hope the organizers will fix before the next edition...

Kissin' Dynamite

One of the bands we've had in Belgium on multiple occasions already, and a few very good albums below the belt, was next to take the stage.

Kissin' Dynamite got the ever swelling crowd moving to a point where this could only be a great party night. Their metal-influenced rock n' roll did a great number on the largely German crowd, and if you check the best songs of their albums, chances are they brought them on the Shout It Out Loud gig also. Awesome effort!

After Kissin' Dynamite, it was time for the international big guys to get it going a little more.

Crazy Lixx

When Crazy Lixx, a personal favorite of mine, came on, the venue was filled about halfway, and the rest of the time would show that this was the maximum number of people we would see. This had some effects on the sound, but could not dampen the spirit.

Crazy Lixx took Germany by storm, with a set filled with high-energy rock anthems, belched along by a large part of the crowd, confirming their underground cult status more than ever.

After hearing the bad news that their drummer calls it quits this year, we hope they can confirm their status in the future, because after this show, Crazy Lixx deserves more exposure.

Pussy Sisster

Unfortunately, Pussy Sisster only had my attention partially, since conditions at the food stands were as bad as at the bar. This is a name to remember though, because they sounded as good as it got from way back in the room. Admittedly, I had not heard any of their material before, but that's about to change. Recommended!

Bonfire

Bonfire was not my cup of tea musically, so I took my sweet time to prepare for the main event of the evening: Cinderella!

Cinderella

For a band of this size and reputation, they appeared to have an extremely shaky start of the show, with plenty of show stoppers like feedback in the mics, but once the Cinderella train got rolling, there was no stopping it.

Focusing mostly on the older material, Cinderella came out as the big winner of the evening, setting down a show that plenty of rock lovers should be jealous of.

Being the first time I saw them live, I heard a lot of rumors that they weren't all too interesting to watch, but what bullshit that was...

Okay, they're not jumping around or wowing everyone with fancy pyro work, but as one of the most blues-influenced classic great acts, they stood their ground hard.

Closing off with "Nobody's Fool" and "Gypsy Road", and "Long Cold Winter" and "Shelter Me" as encore songs, they topped off a great piece of German glam pie.

Shout It Out Loud fest, a name to keep in mind, with Crashdiët and Sister confirmed for the next edition in March...