Meat Loaf: One big disappointment
9:36am Tuesday 8th July 2008
FURIOUS fans of US rocker Meat Loaf have rounded on the larger-than-life star describing his headline Hampshire show as "one big disappointment".
Dozens of the 10,000 strong crowd, who had paid £37.50 plus booking fee for tickets, walked out of Broadlands in Romsey early after the concert was plagued with poor weather and sound problems.
Complaints included not being able to hear the singer, best known for hits Dead Ringer for Love and Bat out of Hell, above his backing band and poor sound levels towards the back of the arena.
The Broadlands date was the fifth night of Meat Loaf's Casa de Carne European tour.
Readers besieged the Daily Echo's website to criticise the show, which was one of the most anticipated music events in Hampshire this summer.
Lifelong fan Donna Smith took her dad, also an avid fan, to the concert but left after just half-an-hour.
The 29-year-old from Bishopstoke said: "I've been a fan of Meat Loaf for as long as I can remember and I was really looking forward to the concert but it turned out to be absolutely awful.
"The sound quality was horrendous and when he moved round the stage the volume got louder or quieter depending on where he was.
"I've been to see him perform before and he was brilliant, but this show was just one big disappointment.
"We left just as he was singing I Want My Money Back - how fitting."
Trina Eales took her 17-year-old daughter Sarah to the show, but they too ended up disappointed.
"Meat Loaf has a strong voice but it was drowned out all night by the backing band," said the 45-year-old from Old Netley.
"It wasn't just us who felt disappointed either - you could hear lots of muttering as the night went on.
"We stayed until the end in the hope it might improve, but it never did."
Meat Loaf's publicist, David Cox, said the high winds were to blame for the sound problems.
He said: "The sound at the front of the stage was fantastic, ask anyone who was there.
"Every now and then the wind got up and it distorted the sound.
"Meat Loaf is a great performer and he was up there giving it his all, but he can't control the weather."
David Heartfield, managing director of show organisers The Rival Organisation, responsible for the weekend's run of gigs, added: "I don't know why the sound would have been any different for Meat Loaf's show - it was exactly the same equipment used for the other shows.
"I was aware of 20 or 30 people who left early but we certainly weren't talking many.
"Obviously the weather was not great, but it had been like that all weekend."