Sunday was the day of my first real gig in the year, Helloween with guest Stratovarius in Namba Hatch, Osaka.

Getting there was a bit troublesome, because i started out late and i also forgot my ticket at home so by the time i got there, Stratovarius were already in the middle of their first song. Shame on me.

The Stratovarius tracklist was pretty amazing. They played great songs, like Legions, Twilight Symphony, Forever and Hunting High and Low among others. The only problem was it felt way too short, they played “only” for an hour or so.

After a break came Helloween. I couldn’t really enjoy the first two songs (both from the most recent album), because some guy behind me was screaming into my ears like a madman. Later however i let a six-or-so years old little boy sit on my shoulder so he could see at least one song.

The Helloween tracklist wasn’t as good as i hoped, but it had many of their classics, and also a medley of their longer songs like Keeper of the Seven Keys and Halloween. Even after the so-so start with recent songs, later the show turned great. The japanese seemed unfamiliar with the “happy happy Helloween” chant, so i showed them that too.

To put it short: fun!