The Poodles Ignite Gröna Lund's Small Stage: An Evening of Melodic Hard Rock

On July 27, it was The Poodles’ turn to take over Gröna Lund’s small stage – and they did so from start to finish. It is clear that this is still a rock band to be reckoned with. The band consists of Jakob Samuel – vocals, Pontus Egberg on bass, Henrik Bergqvist on guitar, and last but not least, Christian "Kicken" Lundqvist on drums.

The Poodles’ music is described as melodic hard rock with glam metal influences. They expressed their delight at finally playing on home ground again. The energy on stage was high, and they delivered one rock song after another.

The concert commenced with Echoes From The Past, the classic Metal Will Stand Tall and Cuts Like A Knife. During these three songs I mainly focused on photographing, since we then have to leave the photo pit. Nevertheless, I couldn’t help but notice the audience behind me and it was clear they made their presence felt when the concert kicked off at full speed from the beginning.

The concert then continued in order with the songs Shadows, Flesh & Blood, and the crowd favorite Thunderball. The Poodles then followed up with the slower song Crying, which is the band’s more emotional ballad.

The song Line Of Fire became a big hit in their collaboration with E-Type, but my hope that E-Type would appear as a guest artist at Gröna Lund was unfortunately not fulfilled. After that came Like No Tomorrow and Seven Seas, a beloved live track.

I felt that the band sometimes had to work a bit to get the audience going, to get back some of the energy they themselves offered. The crowd cheered and applauded when The Poodles came on stage. But after that, I found the audience’s activity fluctuated. It’s often the case with Swedish audiences in my experience – it can take a few songs, sometimes until the concert is almost over, before the crowd really warms up. There were calls for sing-alongs from the stage – and the audience did sing, but the response was a bit half-hearted at times. For the most part, they just stood and listened rather than giving themselves up to the music they had come for, but in bursts, they showed how a rock audience can surrender to live music. However, there was no doubt that the audience had chosen to come to see their idols.

Personally, I think the band should have performed on Gröna Lund’s big stage as their stage presence didn't quite come through in the small format. On the other hand, the small stage’s roof did provide the audience with shelter from the rain, which varied in intensity during the concert. The physical proximity between the band and the audience, though, added an extra spice to the concert. Singer Jakob Samuel stepped down from the stage into the photo pit, much to the delight of those standing closest.

The concert finally closed with the song Night Of Passion, which Jakob introduced by sharing how much it has always meant to him.

All the band members got their moment in the spotlight; Christian Lundqvist, perhaps better known as "Kicken," performed a drum solo, Henrik Bergqvist and Pontus Egberg delivered solos on guitar and bass, respectively. They all showed what fantastic musicians they are. Jakob Samuel handled vocals as usual, though he received solid vocal support from the others on stage.

The singer Jakob introduced the eleventh and last song Night Of Passion as the song that has meant the most to him personally. It is also the band’s biggest hit and signature track.

Before the final song began, they promised to come out to the merch stand after the concert to sign just about anything the audience wanted. I did not stay to see how imaginative today’s crowd was in that regard.

As a concert experience, I give it a solid three out of five. The reason it doesn’t get a higher rating from me is unfortunately mainly because they did not get the right conditions. They didn’t quite come into their own on such a small stage, which is not the band’s fault but still affects the concert experience. Certainly, the atmosphere is more intimate, but these guys need space on stage to fully express their energy.