Alterium European Tour with Fabio Lione – Recap (Written by Nicoletta Rosellini)

Join Alterium’s Nicoletta Rosellini as she recounts the highs and lows of their European tour with Fabio Lione’s Dawn of Victory – from long van rides to unforgettable crowds and priceless memories along the way.

Touring with Fabio Lione’s Dawn of Victory

To conclude the promotional cycle for our debut album and our summer EP, we couldn’t miss the chance for a short European run alongside Fabio Lione’s Dawn of Victory, a band that celebrates the legacy of Rhapsody, perhaps one of the bands that has influenced me the most.

Along with Fabio, who by now you all know is one of my absolute favorite singers (as you might have guessed from my vibrato!), the lineup also features some of the band’s historic members, such as Alex Holzwarth on drums, Patrice Guers on bass, and Dominique Leurquin on guitar, joined by the new member Justin Hombach.

It was quite an unusual tour, divided into two separate legs: the first one has just ended and took us through six shows in Spain, finishing in Paris, while the second will kick off in early November and take us to Switzerland, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Germany.

Life on the Road – Logistics, Vans and Endless Kilometers

Let me tell you a bit of “behind the scenes” so you can understand all the work that goes into a tour like this. Let’s start with transportation: since the tour is split into two parts, a dedicated tour bus would have been far too expensive (after Covid, the cost of renting a tour bus with a driver skyrocketed, reaching at least 2,500 euros per day for a medium-sized bus).

We therefore decided to travel by van. According to our initial agreements, we were responsible for providing the shared drum backline for both bands. Things got a bit complicated because Alex uses two single pedals, which means he needs two bass drums. This extra equipment required more space in the van, forcing us to add a second vehicle to move between shows, effectively doubling our travel expenses.

We evaluated all possible options, but renting a larger vehicle would have cost even more than using two. So we resigned ourselves to driving in shifts. Besides traveling (which I assure you wasn’t exactly short or easy on certain routes!), we also handled the stage setup: unloading gear, assembling the drum kit, and working with our trusted backliner Davide. I honestly don’t know how we would have managed without him; he was tireless behind the wheel, during setup, and assisting us throughout the shows.

We also brought along our brand new rack system that you helped us build. This system, essentially an independent stage mixer, made our setup and changeovers much faster and finally gave us the long-desired peace of mind of actually hearing ourselves while performing, since we now have full control of our in-ear monitors. After a couple of shows, we became incredibly fast; during one of the last concerts, we even timed ourselves: we set up the entire drum kit and gear in 27 minutes!

On Stage and Beyond – Energy, Fans and Unforgettable Nights

Our crew also included the one and only Irene Shapes, who this time took on the role of merchandiser (and also driver and stage assistant). I won’t lie: it was hard and exhausting work. Unfortunately, as we’re not a band with a big budget, we couldn’t afford more staff, which really would have been useful in this case. But we managed our tasks really well and worked as a solid team, even when things weren’t easy.

Now about the shows: I was really surprised by the turnout. Six dates in Spain is quite a lot, and I feared that might hurt attendance at individual shows. If it had been in Italy, it probably would have! But instead, it was amazing to see the venues full, even from the beginning of our set. During the 45 minutes we had each night, we gave it our all and, most importantly, had a great time. The audiences were super engaged and always responsive to our energy.

Overall, I think we made a good impression, showing a level of maturity not often seen in such a young band, at least that’s what several live reviews have said. Since we don’t yet have a strong fan base in Spain, most people were seeing and hearing us for the first time, and we hope we left a mark. We also have some beautiful live photos that we’re gradually sharing on our social media… we’ll definitely have content for a while!

After each concert, we went to the merch table to meet everyone who wanted to stop by. Once again, thank you for all the gifts you brought us!

Unfortunately, we didn’t have much time to visit places. We made a quick stop at the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona (which I had never seen before) and managed to enjoy a paella at La Pepica by the port of Valencia. On our day off, we had dinner in Tours, just outside Paris.

The rest of the time we spent at the venues, working hard, sleeping little, and eating at odd hours with even odder food deliveries.

By the end, most of us got sick, which happens very often on tour when many people “live” in the same space, like a van. Fortunately, I’ve learned how to manage my voice even in the toughest conditions. My motto is: “As long as I don’t lose my voice, I’ll make it work somehow.” And that’s exactly what happened!

Reflections and Lessons from the Road

The only not-so-positive note: since we had never played in Spain, I didn’t know what to expect for merchandising, and sales ended up being below average (for both bands), leaving us with some uncovered expenses. We hope to make up for that in the second leg, where we’ll visit countries that usually buy much more merch. In any case, after the tour, everything left over will be available in our online shop.

How much did this tour cost us? A lot. Please remember to support opening bands like us by buying even just a patch or a small piece of merch. We don’t earn anything from the ticket sales.

Would we do it again? Yes!! See you at the next shows!

All photos featured in this article were taken by Kill to Ian (José Manuel) during Alterium’s show in Madrid on September 26, 2025, and are shared here with his kind permission. Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kill_to_ian/