Out Now: „LIVE IN EUROPE – THE ROCKWALL-TOUR“ on Blu-Ray, DVD and 3xCD! Only here: buy and get a copy signed by the members of the band!

Beschreibung

Shortly after the release of their fourth studio album “Rockwall” at the end of 2018, Piledriver started their European tour of the same name in January 2019, which ended about 12 months later with the show at the Arrow Rock Festival in the IJsselhallen in Zwolle (NL), because a few days later, Covid reached Europe. As a result, all planned concerts had to be postponed indefinitely, and the increasingly dramatic course of the pandemic, with no realistic prospect of being able to play live again in the foreseeable future, suggested that Piledriver had already played their last gig after more than 25 years of band history and would probably never set foot on the stage again. This fear became bitter reality in August 2020: keyboarder Rudi Peeters died tragically and far too early at the age of 42. Due to this stroke of fate and the travel restrictions caused by the pandemic, the show on January 25th, 2020 in Zwolle was not only the final concert they played together, but also the last personal meeting with Rudi before his death. The end of Piledriver seemed to be sealed.

During the Rockwall tour between March 2019 and January 2020, three concerts in three European countries were filmed for a possible later release: a show in Herne (Germany) supporting Ian Paice featuring Purpendicular, a concert in Minehead (UK) at the Status Quo Fan Convention and finally the concert at the Arrow Rock Festival in Zwolle (Netherlands). Over two years since the last show, the band reunited to sift through more than three hours of footage – and were keenly aware of the fact that these recordings were the last of the band’s longtime line-up. They quickly realized that these three shows represent a contemporary document that could not have better captured the band and all its facets. Hence it was decided to not only finalize the concerts for a release, but to bring Piledriver back on stage, too.

Demonstrating their musical and playing skills, Piledriver impressively illustrate why the band has become a fixture in the European classic rock festival scene. Enthusiastically and to the point, the band presents their own extensive repertoire of the previous four studio albums as well as numerous Status Quo classics with their rousing stage show. The three concerts on DVD / Blu-Ray reflect exactly the spectrum that Piledriver can bring to the stage today, both in terms of music and their visually varying presentation.

The band dedicated “Live In Europe – The Rockwall-Tour” to their friend and keyboarder Rudi Peeters; the product, designed in a very elaborate way and with great attention to detail, features three live concerts each on one CD and all three shows on DVD and Blu-Ray + bonus material including a 24-page booklet and a poster in a 10-page digipak.

With this release, Piledriver prove that despite all adversities and personal hardships, they won’t give up, but look ahead and keep on playing the music they love: “Ass kicking blues & boogie rock at maximum volume”! The new product impressively demonstrates that the band is a long way from shooting their bolt and that in 2023 they are still a force to be reckoned with. “Watch out!”