[slideshow_deploy id=’11047′]
On Monday Black Sabbath members Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, and Geezer Butler rolled into town to perform as a part of the “Final Tour by the Greatest Metal Band of all Time,” and IPR students and staff were there to see it.
Live Sound & Show Production students Zachary Rudolph and Kaia Duchenne, along with Program Chair Peter Greenlund and Campus Director Norbert Kreuzer had the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to be backstage at the show.
Norbert’s long-time personal friend and Black Sabbath tour manager offered IPR a set of tickets with backstage passes when he arrived in town this weekend. Norbert tapped Peter to nominate two of his students to join them in the experience. Before the show, the IPR group got to experience the front-of-the-house set-ups, walk around the stage to see the monitor set-ups and the band’s instruments, and check out the lighting rigs, pyrotechnics, and video displays.
“We were surprised, and thrilled, to see the new AVID console,” stated Peter Greenlund. According to the crew at the show, they are the first tour to use the new technology from AVID.
Black Sabbath is an English band, formed in 1968 and is often credited with being pioneers in the heavy metal genre. They are ranked number 85 in Rolling Stone magazine’s “100 Greatest Artists of All Time” list and MTV named them the “Greatest Metal Band” of all time. They are members of the UK Music Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and have sold an estimated 70 million albums in the five decades since their inception.
After the tour and some time spent backstage networking with the crew, the group retreated to their seats to enjoy the show. Star Tribune’s music reviewer Chris Riemenschneider called the performance “strong” and the atmosphere, a “party vibe.” Norbert called the backstage experience, “awesome,” and the performance, “an amazing show from music legends.” But…
“I’m glad I brought ear plugs.” He remarked.
It seems that Butler wasn’t the only Geezer at Target Center Monday night.