PRIDE OF LIONS LIVE LOKERSE FESSTEHN

It's not often that I get the chance to see Jim Peterik in action, so when I heard that the Pride of Lions were performing in Belgium, I made plans to make the 2 1/2 hour drive from southern Holland to Lokerse Fesstehn. Greg Lutter another fan from the United States met me at the festival and we had a chance to chat before the show. We both felt we were witnessing history being made that night as the entire POL band was performing for the very first time on European soil.
I saw a great bunch of musicians who had gathered together to produce a powerful sound that brought out the right vibe for each of the POL songs. Seeing Toby live is an experience!!! He is just an awesome performer who exhibits so much passion into each song its unbelievable.

One of the biggest highlights of the evening came during the song "Black Ribbons." Suddenly the entire audience became very quiet and took a moment to reflect why that song was written for in the first place. As I watched Jim looking out into the crowd, I thought he must have been very moved knowing that something he had written a year earlier still had an important impact in everyone's lives.
The 90-minute show consisted of songs from both POL cd's (It's Criminal, Gone, Man Behind The Mask, Sounds Of Home, Music & Me, What Kind Of Fool, Unbreakable, The Gift Of Song, The Courage To Love Somebody), as well as three Survivor hits. It was apparent by the way the young audience was singing along to The Search Is Over and I Can't Hold Back, that Survivor music is still very popular and respected in Europe.
Another highlight for me personally was getting the chance to hear Vehicle. Even though this song isn't that famous in Europe, it was a great version with small solos from bass, keyboards, guitar and drums in it. It was fun seeing our American friends going crazy over this song. It shows how big this tune is in the US.

Unfortunately all good things must come to an end and what a way to finish the show by having 15,000 people singing along to the Eye Of The Tiger. It was a blast!!! With Jim's guitar solo and running all over the stage, he had the crowd in a frenzy. To sum it up, I saw a great performance from a top-notch band. The fun the guys had playing here and the response they got from the audience was fabulous. After the show the band came out to greet everyone and sign autographs.
Later we met the band at a local pub, had some beers and got to hear them jam some more. The jamin' in the pub was awesome and seeing how relaxed these guys were playing tunes on the guitar and an old piano really blew me away. They did some old Survivor tunes and even tried out some Journey, but those lyrics didn't come as easy as their own. Getting to party with the guys was just so cool, but when Jim sang Rebel Girl that made the whole journey complete.
At this time I want to say thanks to Luuk for bringing the band to Lokeren, you did a great job !!! TO Jim, Toby, Larry and the band, thanks for a great show, acoustic encore and just being there!!! I'm going to try and be there when you play again in Germany.