// IAN HAGULAND TALKS SONISPHERE TO 96.3 ROCK RADIO //

96.3 Rock Radio caught up with Europe drummer Ian Haugland at the Sonisphere Festival in Knebworth on Friday July 29th and discussed Ian's recollections of always wanting to play the prestigious rock festival.

The interview went something like this -

Europe drummer Ian Haugland is glad to finally make it to Knebworth Park. He planned to make the trip from Sweden in 1979 to see Led Zeppelin's legendary twin shows here – but his parents wouldn't let him go.

Haugland is delighted to have brought the band's brand of heavy rock to the Saturn stage on Sonisphere's first night, and is even more delighted that the UK perception of them as a "teeny-bop" act is fading.

He tells Rock Radio DJ Tom Russell: "That perception is changing. every time we play The Final Countdown it's like pressing a happy-button. There's not many bands who have a song like that. You've got Smoke on the Water, Bohemian Rhapsody, Stairway to Heaven.

"It's such an important song and we're fortunate to have recorded it. I think it's honourable to have made such a mark on people's lives."

Facing their perception issues head-on, Europe headlined the seriously metal Bloodstock festival in Derbyshire last year, appearing alongside Carcass, Arch Enemy, Cradle of Filth, Blind Guardian and Satyricon.

Haugland explains: "Some voices were raised when we did that, but we won the battle and got a lot of credibility.

"I met one of those death metal guys backstage, in the black leather and the white makeup. He looked like a killer. He came up to me and said, 'Are you guys going to play Carrie?'

Listen to the interview on Rock Radio: http://tinyurl.com/39g5f6k
Photo Credit: (c) Fredrik Etoall