Stratovarius: new show at the Gates Of Metal festival in Sweden replacing Running Wild. Kotipelto confirmation.
Added Tuesday, June 22, 2004 Stratovarius will be replacing Running Wild at the Gates of Metal festival in Hultsfred, Sweden on July 31st. Running Wild had to cancel their show due to management problems.
Gates of Metal organizers commented: "Stratovarius is a very good band, it feels nice to have a replacement act of this size confirmed with so short notice. This is an exclusive appearance in more than one way. It's Stratovarius only show in Sweden this year and it might be their last show in Sweden ever. Nobody knows the future of Stratovarius."
Not everybody believed those news, mostly because Timo Kotipelto had a show scheduled with his solo band at Ankkarock in Vantaa, Finland also on July 31st. Fortunatelly, Timo Kotipelto posted an statement at his website that confirm his presence in this new show: "I can announce that I am talking to Timo Tolkki and actively trying to come to terms with what happened between us. Despite what many people would wish, I can not confirm that I am back in the band, but whether I do go back or not, at least I can say that we have some sort of dialogue now and that we all are trying to help solve all the many problems that his mental illness has caused. Recently Olof Wikström from Skrikhult had a real emergency when Running Wild dropped out of their commitment to headline Gates Of Metal. I have agreed to sing more show with Stratovarius, partly because I want to help Olof, partly because I want to help Jörg, Jens, Jari and Timo, and of course also because I love to perform live. This means that I will be at Gates of Metal in Hultsfred on July 31st with Stratovarius, and with my solo band at Ankkarock on August 1 instead of the previous day. So, hope to see you there on either concert!
