Gotthard Esslingen Tickets, Burg Esslingen, 25 Jul 2026

On sale for 6 months

Event is in 1 month

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Venue

Burg Esslingen

Auf dem Schönenberg, 73728, Esslingen, Germany

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Additional details

Doors open: 19:15

Price: €69.50 – €72.50

Concert in your area for Rock.

Find out more about Rock.

Krokus biography

Krokus are a hard rock band hailing from Solothurn, Switzerland who formed in 1975. Since their debut in 1976 they have become one of, if not the most succesful Swiss metal band of all time, with a swathe of worldwide hit albums to their name released throughout the 1980’s.

Australian legends AC/DC are easily one of the most influential bands of all time, but Swiss hard rock heroes Krokus owe a bigger debt to them than most since until the band saw them live around 1977, they were a prog band through and through. One who came together in 1975 and released their self-titled debut album the following year in a limited release of 560 copies. By the release of their second album “To You All”, the band had taken in a concert from the Aussie titans and radically changed their sound to a more straightforward, heavy riffing hard rock style. They began building up a cult following in their home country, but didn’t see any mainstream success until the 1980 release of their fourth album “Metal Rendez-vous”. The record was a huge hit in their home country and Europe as a whole, and was eventually certified triple-platinum in their native Switzerland.

“Metal Rendez-vous”, was also the album that brought them over to the U.S.A on a wave of hype about their live shows and their records. Setting their sights on success in America, the band hired new management and released 1982’s “One Vice At A Time”, followed by their breakthrough hit in the states, 1983’s “Headhunter”. This signalled the beginning of a commercial purple patch for the band, which saw “Headhunter” certified Platinum in the States, and with their 1984 single “Midnite Maniac” they became the very first Swiss act to chart on the Billboard Hot 100. While they might not have been able to keep up their commercial dominance once the 1990’s came along, they remain active to this day playing some of the best live shows of their entire career and releasing the most acclaimed albums of their four decades as a band. For possessing the kind of longevity that most bands would kill to have, Krokus come highly recommended.

Live reviews

The lights were out and the entire auditorium was in darkness when the feedback from the lead guitar rang across the huge stadium, and everyone began cheering. Gotthard ran onto stage with their long hair and typically metal outfits, and began playing their heavy metal/ hard rock music right away. They opened with Remember Me, the first song with Nic Maeder as their vocalist, and they had the audience on their side from the word go. The atmosphere was incredible, and we were all cheering and dancing along right away.

With 11 studio album recordings under their belt, I didn’t know how they were going to be able to pick a set list to please everyone, but they made the great decision of selecting songs from all across their careers, and played some awesome fits. They opened with tracks from Human Zoo, and journeyed through Domino Effect, Firebirth, and loads of other albums, before reaching BANG!, which had everyone going crazy, as it’s only ben performed a few times since its release.

The band members are insanely talented, and hearing their improvisations and collaborations that don’t appear on their recordings was incredible.

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yazhow

It’s hard not to draw comparisons between legendary rock band AC/DC and Swiss heavy metal band Krokus, but I doubt that the group would be offended by this comparison. Krokus openly admit that their style was heavily influenced by the rock giants, and critic Chris von Rohr described their album ‘One Vice at a Time’ as "the album AC/DC never made."

Nevertheless, Krokus is so much more than an AC/DC tribute band and their music goes in their own unique direction. The almost déjà vu element of their similar but oh so different music is almost certainly what contributed to much of the band’s success in Europe and the US during the 1980s.

Seeing Krokus live is like taking a trip back in time. Their sound is so fantastically 80s and specific to the rock n roll of that era that just the opening bars of hits such as “Screaming in the Night” and “Born To Be Wild” bring a massive smile to the face. Krokus still rocks out hard. Seeing them in concert is face-meltingly awesome and I highly recommend you see them while they’re on tour!

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