It’s hard to imagine that Sabaton get goosebumps anymore. The Swedish military-metallers have toured the world over, playing to massive festival crowds that live and die by their music. And indeed, when we spoke to bassist and band manager Pär Sundström, he was both thoughtful yet practical about his band’s history and legacy.
“When it comes to touring, very often, it’s just about, go there, play the show, get out of there,” said Pär when he spoke to The Pit from the road. “We don’t often get to experience a place. People are like, ‘Oh, you get to travel all the time,’ but it’s not about traveling, it’s about playing the show. And wherever people are, they are fantastic. Whether we’re playing in Chicago, or Germany, or Sao Paolo, it’s always great, and we still enjoy playing. But that’s the main reason we’ve done that — we’re not sightseeing.”
However, when The Pit asked Pär if there are any shows that remain in his memory as the ones that make his job worthwhile, he said, “There are a few…”
“The one that comes to mind is a show we did in 2009, when we played on the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Wizna, where we played on the battlefield in Wizna,” recalled Pär. “We were opened by a re-enactment of a battle we wrote a song about. Hundreds of soldiers, mortars, tents, that was the opening act — and then we played in a field where it happened!
“That’s something where you have to pinch your arm, because this doesn’t just connect to music only,” he explained. “This connects to what Sabaton is all about. The historical things we’re doing. That was something spectacular, and I don’t think any other band has played in Wizna, and I don’t think any other band will play in Wizna. And we played there, and it was a fantastic night. Legendary.”
Catch Sabaton on one of their upcoming European tour dates in 2022:
3/4 – Norway Oslo Spektrum
3/5 – Sweden Stockholm Avicii Arena
3/6 – Denmark Copenhagen Royal Arena
3/8 – Germany Hamburg Barclays Arena
3/9 – Luxembourg Esch zur Alzette Rockhal
3/11 – Germany Berlin Mercedes Benz Arena
3/12 – Czech Republic Prague O2 Arena
3/13 – Hungary Budapest Arena
3/15 – Italy Milan Lorenzini District
3/16 – Switzerland Geneva Arena
3/18 – UK London The SSE Arena, Wembley
3/19 – UK Leeds First Direct Arena
3/20 – UK Cardiff Motorpoint Arena
3/22 – UK Glasgow The SSE Hydro
3/24 – Belgium Antwerp Sportpaleis
3/25 – Netherlands Amsterdam Ziggo Dome
3/26 – Germany Leipzig Quarterback Immo.Arena
3/28 – France Paris La Seine Musicale
3/30 – Austria Vienna Stadthalle
3/31 – Germany Munich Olympiahalle
4/1 – Germany Cologne Lanxess Arena
4/2 – Germany Hannover ZAG Arena
4/4 – Poland Krakow Tauron Arena
4/6 – Estonia Tallinn Saku Arena
4/8 – Finland Kuopio Kuopio Hall
4/9 – Finland Helsinki Hartwall Arena
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Words by Chris Krovatin