On Saturday, January 10th, we had a concert kickoff to 2026 and judging by the success of MEDEN AGAN’s anniversary show, we’re going to have an explosive year. MEDEN AGAN along with their guests THE SILENT WEDDING and SENSES celebrated 20 years of career among dozens of their friends who duly honored them.
To be precise, the kickoff was done by SENSES who hit the stage just before 9 (the only problem of the show was the delay in its start which forced the bands to compress their setlists) to get the party started since glam metal is ideal for such occasions. I have to say that the intro was quite familiar…and yes!! It was “Sirius” from Alan Parsons Project which was the music theme in the home games of Chicago Bulls in th 80s (thanks Andreas for the reminder). The central figure was their singer, Manolis Papadopoulos, with his amazing voice and his very communicative character, who warmed up the audience for good. Some technical problems, which were there on all 3 sets, were not able to spoil anybody’s mood, on and off the stage. SENSES have the aura of the 80s, when Glam Metal was at its peak, but have manage to bring their their music to today’s standards, which is not at all easy to do. As expected, the setlist was based on the acclaimed “Out Of Line” that was released in the summer of 2024 and put them in the spotlight for good after receiving very positive reviews. Last but not least, we witnessed a very powerful duet of Manolis with Efi Evaggelinou from EUPHORSYNE We will certainly follow them in the future.
Setlist
- Intro – Sirius (Alan Parsons Project)
- Hard Action
- Out of Line
- Lonely
- Under your Spell
- I Know (ft. Efi Evaggelinou των EUPHROSYNE)
- Charlize
- I Might Lie (Andy Taylor cover)
- Silent Disco
After the necessary break, it was THE SILENT WEDDING’s turn, who have managed to become one of my favorite bands. The reason is because they ideally combine emotion with dynamism. They have songs for all occasions. From more dynamic and groovy ones like “Time Of Darkness” to emotionally charged and personal ones, as it turned out for Marios Karanastasis and the other members, like “Loneliness” which I think we all dedicated to those who are not with us any more. Besides, Marios’ emotion was evident and it took a few seconds after the end of the song for him to get back into party mood. Otherwise, THE SILENT WEDDING duly honored the excellent “Ego Path” and less so “Enigma Eternal” and even though they didn’t have the time they had calculated, no one was left unsatisfied in the end. Maybe only Marios who didn’t have the time to speak as much as he would have liked!!
Setlist
- Time of Darkness
- The Sea of Fate
- Point of no Return
- The Endless Journey
- Stealing The Sun
- Shadows And Dust
- Loneliness
- Catharsis
- Song of the Dead
However, the show was dedicated mainly to the 20-year old MEDEN AGAN who started their set just before 23:00 with a new line up. A new drummer, Babis Tsolakis, and a new singer, Elena Stratigopoulou with her wonderful voice, who joined forces with MEDEN AGAN for this particular live. We must acknowledge the extremely difficult task that Stratigopoulou had to accomplish since she had to embrace MEDEN AGAN’s songs but keep their identity intact. Together with the older members, they created an explosive mix that shook the club to the ground. As expected, they honored a large part of their discography with an emphasis of course on their last excellent album, “My Name is Katherine”, but also the two previous albums. An interesting touch were the guest singers such as Dimitris Giannakopoulos for the “Maniac” cover and Elias of KARMA VIOLENS, who gave a more extreme and “dirty” texture to the symphonic metal of MEDEN AGAN, which seemed very interesting to me. They also did a cover of the legendary QUEEN’s “Show Must Go On” which probably refers to the significant changes that have occurred in the band’s composition, which however do not seem to stop them. After 15 songs and the necessary group photo, MEDEN AGAN came off the stage to loud applause.
Setlist
- Awaken the Nightmare (intro)
- Moth
- Rejection
- Trapped
- The Purge
- Cleanse Their Sins
- Confident
- Manic (Michael Sembello cover ft. Δημήτρης Γιαννακόπουλος)
- No Escape
- Portal of Fear (ft. Ηλίας από KARMA VIOLENS)
- Sickness (ft. Ηλίας από KARMA VIOLENS)
- Beyond Any Suspicion
- Shedding
- Show Must Go On (QUEEN cover)
- Everlasting Pain
- Lustfull Desires
In the end, I think no one was left unsatisfied. We had the opportunity to see 3 amazing bands with great energy, emotion and passion. The metalheads had fun since all 3, as it seemed, have their own loyal fans. We must note that there were many kids in the venue, mostly realtives of the musicians and Karanastasis mentioned that all of us should be positive role models for them. An important remark, especially if we take into account what we have been experiencing in recent years worldwide.
As metalwar, we wish MEDEN AGAN and the other two bands, to continue doing what they love for many more years, mainly for themselves and for those who love and follow them.
Live Correspondent – Photos: Kostas Boudoukos
Video: Napoleon Gouvis, Kostas Boudoukos
