Live | Savatage [support: Induction] – Turbinenhalle – Oberhausen [Ger]

14 June 2025

For several years, rumors had been circulating that there might be a Savatage reunion. Actually, these already started after the one-off performance at Wacken in 2015. Due to various reasons it did not materialize. The announcement of their performance at Monsters Of Rock in Sao Paulo Brazil 2025 and a few more gigs in South America threw all hope open again and indeed, there came the announcement. Savatage would be touring Europe in 2025. Immediately after the announcement, arrangements for Oberhausen were made by me!!

QUESTIONS

And then the time came. After several months of waiting, I could go see another Savatage show. Or yes, actually several years [read 22 years]. Of course there was some doubt. Would they be able to put on a worthy show without chief Jon Oliva? Would the band be able to sustain their legacy after so many years of absence? The individual musicians had not been idle and were involved in the unprecedented success of Trans-Siberian Orchestra, but still. Do the men still know how to set a crowd ablaze?

OVERCROWDED

Let us say that on this Saturday, June 14, it was extremely hot and the Turbinenhalle was like a big sauna. Miraculously people did not have to be taken away by the conveyor belt due to overheating. In addition, it also seemed that the sold-out hall had allowed a few hundred more people to enter, because it was really overcrowded. If you were not already in the hall, after the start of Savatage there was no way through!!! I also noticed that one day after the start of this European leg of the tour, a large part of the tour shirts were already sold out and a lot of disappointed fans went home without a souvenir.

SUPPORT ACT: INDUCTION

Support act for this show was Induction. I had never heard of this Symphonic Power Metal band from Hamburg. But understood that guitarist Tim Hansen is the son of Helloween and Gamma Ray founder Kai Hansen. This band made a good first impression. The music was performed at a high level, the band was constantly moving and has a fine front man in Gabriele Gozzi. The daring performance of Europe’s ,,The Final Countdown’’ could count on a positive reaction from the audience.
A nice warm-up [not that it was necessary in this heat] for the evening.

MAIN ACT: SAVATAGE

And then at exactly 9:10PM there were the first tones of intro ,,The Ocean’’ with an excerpt from ,,City Beneath The Surface’’, with a beautiful visual of the famous Charvel guitar of the deceased co-founder, guitarist Criss Oliva on the big led screen behind the drums. The iconic drawing we know from the band’s ‘Streets’ artwork.

Immediately they moved on to the appropriate ,,Welcome To The Show’’. The sound was masterful and the stage lighting was also tastefully done. Singer Zachary Stevens was in top vocal form and it was immediately clear that the band meant serious business. If you then dare to play the classic ,,Jesus Saves’’ as the 3rd song, a song you would rather expect as an encore and on top of that also throw in überclassic ,,Sirens’’, you get the feeling that all assets are immediately up for grabs.

A TWO HOUR MASTER CLASS

Nothing could be further from the truth. The audience was treated to an almost two-hour master class in how a heavy metal show should be. Savatage is back with a vengeance. Hungry to say the least, this lineup showed how it should be done. A lion’s share of the setlist came from ‘The Wake Of Magellan’ [1997], but the setlist was mostly a cross-section of Savatage’s oeuvre.
,,Strange Wings’’, ,,Handful Of Rain’’, ,, Chance’’, ,,Dead Winter Dead’’, ,,Gutter Ballet’’, ,,Edge Of Thorns’’ and ,,Hall Of The Mountain King’’ were all on it.

All performed to perfection!!! Guitarists Chris Caffery and Al Pitrelli were banging out solo after solo, while bassist Johnny Lee Middleton and drummer Jeff Plate were there for a bellowing metal concrete layer of bass.
Actually, except for Jon Oliva, it was the lineup responsible for the ‘Dead Winter Dead’ and ‘Wake Of Magellan’ records. Evidently it takes 2 keyboardists to play the Mountain King’s parts, in this case Paulo Cuevas and Shawn McNair.

BELIEVE

Speaking of Jon Oliva. The beautiful ,,Believe’’ was started on the video wall with footage of him addressing the audience before playing the piano intro and sing the first verse. Quite a few rough metal followers then stood in the audience with tears in their eyes from emotion. The rest of the band then comes in and takes over from the founder of this band.
Perhaps in the future we will get a chance to see Jon live again. Right now, due to health issues, including a fractured spine and diagnoses of Multiple Sclerosis and Ménière’s disease, that is unfortunately not possible.

INSANELY COOL

This performance can only be surpassed by Savatage through a performance with Jon in the lineup. Other than that this performance was perfect and can go into the books as an insanely cool and successful performance. As an encore ,,Power Of The Night’’ was played and everyone could go home with a satisfied feeling after a 2-hour master class. Despite the overcrowded Turbinenhalle.

THE CONCLUSION

Should you still have the opportunity to go to a show of this European summer tour, do not hesitate because you won’t be disappointed. Furthermore, only hope remains for new work from the band and a tour with Jon Oliva in the ranks when his health will allow it again.

SET LIST

The Ocean [with ‘City Beneath the Surface’ excerpt]
Welcome
Jesus Saves
Sirens
Another Way
The Wake Of Magellan
This Is The Time
Strange Wings
The Storm
Morning Sun
Handful Of Rain
Chance
Starlight / I am
Mozart And Madness
Dead Winter Dead
The Hourglass
Gutter Ballet
Edge Of Thorns
Believe [Jon Oliva on piano and vocals on the screen]
Taunting Cobras
Hall Of The Mountain King

ENCORE

Power Of The Night

All photos by Raymond Helebrand