The story of Stavanger gig from our Russian reader – Evgeny Perekopskiy.
It all started some months ago, when I happened to get one of the last tickets to the Stavanger gig. I was shocked at the price of postage (nearly 10 euros) and if you know how fast our Russian post is, then, without a doubt, you will understand me how nervously I was waiting for my ticket to arrive.
After one month (!) it arrived. But then Laura (an Argentinean fan) asked me if I could find her one more ticket, so I started to look for one for her. I found, here on RoxetteBlog, an advertisement from Csaba, a
Hungarian fan, offering a VIP ticket. So I contacted him and got it. Then all I had to do was wait for the moment to come…
On August 20th, I had to take four (!!!) flights to reach Stavanger and this I did 🙂 Csaba met me in Stavanger and gave me my ticket. Next morning I went to meet Laura who was staying at the Radisson Blue Atlantic Hotel. When I met her, she said that Marie and Per were also staying there. What a nice coincidence! 🙂 Later in the lobby I met two German fans, Tina and Anja, and three Argentinean fans, Silvana, Lionel and his wife Brenda. We were sitting and waiting for someone from rox related to come. Soon Oscar and Josefin came to the receptionist to order breakfast. Oscar recognized me and we chatted a bit.
Then it was midday. We needed to go to Randaberg to get in line. But prior to our departure to this village, we met Mikael Bolyos. He wished us a great time and to enjoy the gig. When we arrived in Randaberg, I found a lonely Roxette poster where Marie and Per’s faces were blue because the poster was a bit old. I thought that their faces had became blue because of the cold Norwegian climate 😉
When we reached the Viste beach, we noticed some Spanish and Norwegian fans. Some minutes later, the
security woman asked us to move to another area because Roxette were going to rehearse. When we moved, we saw Per arriving with his wife Åsa. Per was holding a bunch of red roses. They were for Åsa, of course, to celebrate their 17th wedding anniversary. Roxette started their rehearsal at around 4 o’clock. They played: ‘The Big L.’, ‘Opportunity Nox’, ‘Fading like a flower’, ‘Silver Blue’, ‘Church of your heart’, ‘7twenty7’ and ‘Dressed for success’. After they finished rehearsing, the security team made four entrances, two for VIP visitors and two for ordinary ticket holders.
At 5.30 pm they opened the gates and fans ran as fast as they could. Luckily, I was standing near the front of Marie’s micro. Then I went to see what they served for VIP guests. There were some salads; fruit, fried meat, delicious shrimp and other dishes. I had some food and took some bananas for my friends who were sitting on the front row 🙂 The support act – Paperboys – a Norwegian hip-hop band started to play at around seven o’clock. They played very well and I saw the audience liked them a lot and knew the lyrics singing along the whole session.
The clouds became grayer and grayer. It was damn cold and windy. I wasn’t thinking about myself, I was thinking about how Marie would manage to conquer the wild wind. Roxette went on stage at around nine in the evening.
The gig was wild, the surroundings were wild, the wind was wild, but the fans were wilder. When Roxette started to play ‘How do you do!’ proclaiming it a hit from back in 1992, it started to rain. The rain was so cold and so intense. We had no time to put on raincoats because we didn’t want to waste time on wearing useless raincoats. When Roxette played ‘Dangerous’, it was the rain which was dangerous for our health. But who cared? Marie was wearing a scarf. I don’t think it helped her to keep warm. Per was merely wearing a shirt. I was screaming: ‘Fuck the rain’, some other fans screamed it too. 😉
While Marie, Per and the band played ‘Fading like a flower’, the whole audience screamed: It’s such a cold
cold town! It was damn true… The show was so emotional because we, the fans, supported Roxette as much
as we could. I saw Marie concentrating on Laura’s eyes while Miss Bolyos was singing ‘Silver Blue’. She sang it perfectly, without changing words or forgetting the lines. Even if she did, who cared? Not me.
I think this gig was one of the most intense, if you know what I mean. After the gig finished, we went to the hotel to have our own non-pre-organised Meet&Greet with Per, Marie and the band. 30 minutes later Roxette came. The clock said 00.40 am. First Åsa came with her flowers, then Gabriel with surprise on his face when he saw us, the fans, in the lobby. Subsequently Mr. G came. I congratulated him and Åsa on their anniversary and asked Per for permission to take a pic with him. Per wasn’t against 🙂
Then Marie came with her kids and Micke. Micke asked me if I liked the concert and if I didn’t get too wet. I said that I didn’t care about the rain, and I really loved the gig. When Marie noticed me she smiled and hugged me. It was so nice of her. One couldn’t imagine when your fav singer herself wants to hug you! I asked her what we would experience in a forthcoming show in Moscow, and Marie told me that the Moscow gig will be surely a blast. A hot one! I trust her 🙂
Then I brought some pictures I had taken during the previous gigs; Stjärnklart show, Party Crasher gig in
Stockholm, and some others. The security told me that Marie could sign only one. But Marie turned to him
and said that she could sign them all. But I did not want her to sign. I wanted to give her these pix as a
present. Memories we shared together. Marie was surprised and she hugged me once again. Me, Marie and
Oscar were looking at the pictures and commenting them. It was a special moment. Marie was smiling all the
time. She thanked me once again for this small gift I asked her if I could take a picture with her and the kids, and Marie said: Of course! 😉 She’s such a nice lady.
Then I chatted with Magnus, asking if he liked the gig and he said that it was the best in his opinion. Then I asked if he got a Russian visa, he said he didn’t have it yet, but Clarence told me that he had already got it. Then Clarence told that his neighbours gave him a new fez after their visit to Turkey 😉 They also mentioned that they would love to try Russian beer with salted fish.
When Pelle Alsing saw me, he also hugged me. It feels like meeting good ol’ friends after a long pause. I gave Christoffer a banknote of 10 Russian Roubles so that he could survive in Moscow. Chris started to laugh and he said that it was his first Russian banknote. He also told me that his grandgrandfather served the Russian emperor in St.Petersburg. So he is excited about visiting the city.
The meet&greet ended on a high note. Vi ses i Rysland, I said to all Rox-related guys. I’m already looking forward to meeting them here, in Russia.
What a boring Story!!!! How you can write this and so long, people doesn’t care your experiences there.
Thanks for your nice comment.
@Magnus what a boring comment! 🙂
@Evgeny life’s tough on the top 😉
Pictures added!
Thank you, Tomasz, for your assistance! I do appreciate it. 🙂
@Tomasz: When you have nothing to say, you sholud stay quiet. It’s good you didn’t this time. Made me :D.
@Ivanych: You’ re lucky man, friend. Great pics.
F*ck… I wanna meet them too :O
It seems like every rox-fan on this entire world had a meet&greet,exept me :O
nice story 🙂
@Magnusjakan such comments are not welcome here. Thanks
Thanks for writing the story. I do like it a lot. I’m happy for you. Sounds like it was a perfect weekend 🙂
Thank you very much! 🙂
@Magnusjakan
Can´t believe you really wrote that!
@Evgeny
I loved to read your story! It´s so wonderful to read about the meeting. I still hope to meet Marie one day too.
I hope you now feel better, after missing the 14th, Ivanych 🙂
Much better!!! 😉
I have to admit I get a little (ok, a LOT) jealous when I read these kinds of stories…but I love reading them all the same – especially when we get to hear how gracious and kind the band always is.
thanks for writing 🙂
also, I think this is Marie’s best show of the tour vocally….maybe the wind gave her some extra charge? 🙂 I think she looks great with the scarf blowing around her too
@Judith: All personal comments are welcome. But I don’ like comments starts like ‘people (we all, everybody, me-you-Buddha)* doesn’t care….’. If you write – I don’t care – then it’s ok, but hey, you’re not *. ‘I’m not care…’ is better for the next time. Or the best. 😉
I hated reading that! Only cause i’m sooooo jealous now!!! 😉
Thanks for the story!
All I can do is to recommend you have a strong will to meet your favourite musicians. I am sure your ideas can be realized. 😉
I didn’t get to Halmstad, I was so sad – you can imagine it. And I didn’t expect much of a Stavanger gig. But I wanted this show to become great both for myself and for Roxette. And we both did our best. 🙂
I meant what I wrote. We already have TDR for negativeness 😉
And yeah, one should talk for oneself, not “people…” 🙂
Thanks for sharing, I’m so happy for you as I’m the one who experience that. Can’t wait for my very first full Rox concert one day.
Yeah.. this stories make me feel that everything is possible. That eventually, one day I´ll see Per & Marie live again and who knows, maybe a meet & greet.
I´m so excited about the tour and I really hope a tour in south america is on the plans.
Great story & pics… Josefine is sooo beautiful, just like her mother.
Hey Evgeny 🙂
It was nice to read it all…
It was really nice to be close to the band, and to you… and you… and you… AND YOU 🙂
Csaba
slowly uploading my videos.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HV9ecJAZBQM
All I can say is WOW!
Hope nobody got a bad cold afterwards! In Halmstad the rain was warm at least (well a bit). But we started freezing too of course.
Great story and proof that Roxette is not only the best but also the nicest band in this entire world!
Agree with Dominick, I think Marie looked extra gorgeous with all those wind blowing, and her voice sounded more powerful also.
Nice you met your idols Evgeny! definitely it worths your long trip from Russia