Concert Review: Aerosmith and ZZ Top 07.27.09

You can rock at any age by D. Marcher

 

Check out the Concert Pictures here: ZZ Top, Aerosmith

 

I have to admit, even though Aerosmith and ZZ Top are from my parents’ era… their performances are timeless.  In fact, these two bands performance outshined some of the recent shows I have been to!

 

Perhaps it is the years, well, decades of tour experience.  Or just the fact they really are that good, this concert is not one to be missed.

 

ZZ Top, the trio of Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill and Frank Beard, started off the night with the no frills performance, letting their music take center stage.  Don’t get me wrong they were very entertaining, but what is just how good their music is, no frills needed. 

 

Their fans were not disappointed as they played their classics “Legs”,”Cheap Sunglasses,” “Sharp Dressed Man,” Gimme All Your Lovin’” and “Tush.”

 

As the night progressed, the Cricket Pavilion Lawn tripled in capacity as Fans prepared for Aerosmith.  I had to admit, I was slightly concerned about their performance, due to all the recent injuries the band had sustained.

 

I was not disappointed as Tyler and the rest of Aerosmith kicked off the night with “Eat the Rich”.  As a complete side note, I had to admit I was slightly taken back by Tylers’ appearance and it slightly resembled that of Janice

 Dickerson.  Regardless of the outfit, which did improve during the evening as he lost the hat, glasses and coat and became the Rock God we all know so well.

 

Aerosmith kept the night rocking performing their hits “Sweet Emotion,” “Walk This Way,” “Dream On” and “Train Kept a Rollin’.

 

As I looked around, I realized I had never seen such a diverse crowd.  I was sitting next to a 20 something on one side and I am guessing a 70 something (no I didn’t ask) on the other, and they were both screaming their heads off, often conversing about the performance as the night progressed.  Where else would you see that?

 

Both agreed that the highlight of the night was when ZZ Top guitarist Billy Gibbons joined Aerosmith for “Rattlesnake Shake”.

 

It just proves, you can rock at any age!

Mastodon Concert Review 04.16.2009

By Melanie Nelson, www.FromTheCrowd.com Concert Columnist

 

After a venue change from Martini Ranch to the Marquee Theatre, Mastodon was set to headline an evening of progressive/experimental metal with Kylesa and Intronaut opening. This genre was definitely a new one for me, but I was heading in with several preconceived notions of what I would be facing.

We did arrive and walk into an exclusively black-shirt clad, male dominated room. Every individual somehow arranged themselves to stand perfectly still in two foot intervals - all respectively listening to Via Vengeance. Via Vengeance was loud, exceptionally loud when you consider that he’s a band of one. This individual remarkably covered drums, guitar and vocals all on his own.

During the set change, I took the opportunity to peruse the crowd. There was a surprising range of ages and types: many parents were attending to stand guard over their high schooler and friends, there was the expected beer drinking twenty-something crowd and a large portion of thirty to forty year olds. I suspect (this is supported by many logo t-shirts) that several of the latter began as Pink Floyd fans and simply updated their genre.

Chatting with the crowd, it was clearly a night for Mastodon fans. Rick and Cindy W. have been Mastodon fans for 5 years. Leviathon easily stuck out as their favorite album, but Rick was also well informed on their latest album, Crack the Skye.  To ensure the vision/story/message of this album was relayed, Rick forewarned me to expect the entire album played cover to cover. The band would then return for a second set of some of their older hits. Mastodon’s new album appears to have some mixed reviews with their departure from a usual style; Rick mentioned having to listen to it a few times to fully appreciate it. This wouldn’t be the first time I heard this from the crowd.

Mixed in the fanbase of such Mastodon knowledgeable people as Rick were people like Gary S. and his friend Mero K., who had simply been dragged to the concert by a friend and were only hoping for a good show.

Intronaut began their set checks and the drummer and guitarist had some truly impressive practice riffs, demonstrating promise for a great show. In fact, drummer Danny received a large deal of applause before the show had even started. Once Intronaut did get underway, their music had the expected hoarse howling vocals of a metal band but their skilled ability with their instruments was well demonstrated and included some interesting lyrical moments. The more I considered their one particular song, the more I realized that the musical interlude woven into it really did resemble the soundtrack from the movie Labyrinth. I can’t imagine David Bowie’s thoughts on that one.

One of my main thoughts during Intronaut’s set was that for a supposed metal concert, this was a remarkably still crowd. Where was the head banging, the mosh pit, the crowd surfing?  Did my toes really have nothing to fear?

When Kylese took the stage next, their vocalists were determined to add to the metal atmosphere with the head banging and swinging hair, which made for a much more active band to watch compared to Intronaut’s interesting but physically stiff performance. 
The challenge with Kylese is that it really was just ear bleeding noise. While the drummers (two!) were perfectly synchronized and had a rhythm, it was just methodical noise with timed yowling from vocalists Phillip and Laura. Overall I really did prefer Intronaut’s instrumental intricasies.
While I can’t say that I enjoyed the music at this point, it did offer me an opportunity to watch the formation of a mosh pit. With honorable mention of Intronaut’s single Australopithicus, I give you:

 

The Evolution of Mosh

·         A large crowd begins creepily head bobbing in unison

·         Participating group inches forward together

·         Shoulders are added into head bobbing motion

·         Hand and arm slowly raise with “rock on” symbol

·         Legs begin to shake in time with head bob

·         A small hop is added

 

Now this hop appeared to be the signal to the surrounding crowd to clear out a large circle to make room for the beginnings of the mosh pit. Sadly, I lacked the ability to interpret this signal. The perils of shortness almost continued, but thankfully this mosh area only numbered three. Everyone seemed hopeful for future crowd participation though.

 

Mastodon fans were everywhere at the end of Kylese’s performance.  Folks such as Matt G. had smartly decided to wait outside or arrive late in the evening to save their ears.  Again, Matt was a longterm Mastodon fan who still listed Leviathon as his favorite album.  He had no particular expections out of the set beyond wanting to hear some “crazy ass” drumming and guitar riffs. 

 

It was a very different crowd when you reentered the stage area.  Twice as many people had come out of the woodwork and were much more energised, chanting the band’s name and randomly cheering for Mastodon’s perforance to begin.  Even with the huge crowd, the Marquis’s sloping floor ensured a great view for everyone, including those of us guarding their toes at the back.

 

For all the Leviathon fans, they were indeed going to have to wait.  The first set was the entire Crack the Skye album played cover to cover.  A huge screen was onhand to help illustrate the band’s story of an out of body celestial journey with images of the cosmos intersperced with movie clips and stills.  

 

Mastodon fans should have absolutely no complaints over getting their full ticket value because Brent, Bill, Troy and Brann played for two hours.  This wasn’t a lazy, ballad ridden two hours either.  These four men were getting full body workouts with the crazy ass drumming and guitar riffs I was told to expect.  The crowd’s energy stayed with them the entire time through until their ending set of three songs from previous albums.  It was a great performance - compared to Kylese’s noise, this was music.  It was loud, it made the whole floor and room vibrate, but these men knew how to play and perform.  And if your skin wasn’t numb from all the vibrations and your ears weren’t ringing even with your earplugs as you left after that long evening of performances, you were probably one of the very few.

Tempe Music Festival Saturday Concert Review 04.04.2009

by Melanie Nelson, www.FromTheCrowd.com Contributor

I made it through the gate in time for Mute Math on Saturday at the Tempe Music Festival.  Their very electronic style rock was a welcome addition to a healthy dinner of Ben and Jerry’s and cherry Diet Dr. Pepper.   It was still relatively early Saturday evening, but a healthy crowd had already gathered and were in already dancing and partying. 
Today was the day of superfans.  I had an opportunity to meet very devoted dad, Larry Norton.  Larry’s son Wyatt had been a huge fan of the All American Rejects, for five years and was here to hopefully get a poster signed.  Once the band had completed their Tempe Music Fest TV interview and signed the sofa for charity, they began heading past our area back to their bus.  While their wrangler was keeping everyone back stating “no signing”, Tyson did stop for Larry to sign Wyatt’s poster.  As he stated, ‘You can’t resist a dad getting something for his son’.  Wyatt got even luckier later with dad getting his pass signed by 3 Doors Down.
Tom Morello: The NightWatchman was up after Mute Math and while I’m not a Guitar Hero player, I can see why he reached guitar god status.  His songs (I’m thinking particularly of “Shake my Shit”) had everyone dancing, beach bouncing in the crowd and even those sitting at tables were coming up with creative shoulder bobbing.  As an extra treat, it really did seem as if Tom was on stage much longer than the listed one hour.   His cover (uncensored) of “This Land is My Land” on the acoustic guitar was also one of many memorable moments.
The crowd had swelled to a massive sea of people by the time All American Rejects took the stage.  Starting off with some familiar crowd favorites ‘Dirty Little Secret’, they had everyone singing along in one of the best singing crowd moments I’ve ever heard.  Instead of the vague mumbling that precedes and follows the choruses everyone knows, this was clearly a group of fans who all knew their stuff perfectly.  The new waving lighter of the ages, a lit cell phone, was apparent in everyone’s hands in beat to the music and Tyson had the crowd eating out of his hands with his magic trick (though apparently it’s the only one he knows).
Between the bands that evening, winning High School and College garage bands were invited to play and both were excellent and talented additions that easily kept the crowd engaged.  Congratulations to both SRP prize winners.
By the time 10:30 rolled around, the event was a blend of the hard core 3 Doors Down fans, the hard core partiers, the hard core posers and the simply exhausted.  The latter group was determined to hold out as long as we all could as everyone huddled together for warmth and to keep one another upright.  Now IF I had any energy left, 3 Doors Down would have been a great band to stay to the very end for, but after a hugely long day we had to call it quits after their first six songs.  From that six though, I can say that lead singer, Brad Arnold has a voice that translates as brilliantly clear as if you were listening and rocking out at home.
All in all, a great event - I was exhausted, full of Mentos and ice cream, had several new songs to seek out and download at home and fully intend on returning to the Tempe Town Music Fest next year where I’ll definitely be springing for that VIP ticket.

Foxboro Hot Tubs Reviews 05.29.2008

Stage Photo Credit: Chris Dugan (used with permission)

Two reviews for your reading pleasure!

Concert Review by Nathan Dobson, From The Crowd Contributor

Many people will say things of Green Day’s new, shall we call it style? They’ve been called posers, sell outs, and bandwagon jumpers. But last night’s show at the Brickhouse had nothing to do with the men behind American Idiot, or even the boys behind Dookie for that matter. Although The Foxboro Hot Tubs are technically Green Day in the most literal sense, this performance featured a whole other kind of beast.

The show could essentially be summed up in one phrase. Limitless Energy. Perhaps it was the fact that the audience was comprised ninety-percent of fans who were crazy enough to stand in the blazing sun for six plus hours (I myself being one of them), but front man Reverend Strychnine Twitch, also known as Billie Joe Armstrong to those of you less educated in non de plumes, held no qualms to get in the thick of it with the audience. Presenting the kind of alcohol fueled sin and debauchery that is rarely found in modern rock, Reverend Twitch left no member of the audience unloved. Where as most stars of their level would have cringed at the thought of fans getting close to them, Foxboro welcomed the love, turning half of the songs that night into an onstage dance party.

That was probably the most beautiful part of the entire show, that these performers, who had played music for crowds of over one hundred thousand people, could just as easily throw down in 500 maximum club. And through out the entire night, only one Green Day song was played, and that being the extremely deep cut track “Blood, Sex, and Booze.” I had personally expected to hear more Green Day material at the show, seeing as Stop Drop and Roll is only around 40 minutes long, but even without hearing a single mainstream Green Day song, the show was still fantastic. The Foxboro Hot Tubs songs are so well crafted, that even despite most people knowing none of the songs, the crowd was still singing along before the night was over.

I hate to sound as if I’m blindly worshiping Foxboro like some pre-pubescent fan boy, because their were a few minor problems to the show. One of course would have been the opening band, who didn’t even step onto the stage until nine o clock. I’m not sure if Girls With Guns usually puts on a performance like they did last night, but overall it felt as if they were purposely being bad to make Foxboro look better. Their singer was drunk beyond reason, and their sound tech had the kick drum so loud you could hear nothing else, but such is the way of things.

Overall, Foxboro puts on a show that should not be missed. While Green Day has become the arena rock juggernaut, the Foxboro Hot Tubs will remain the crazy after party that everyone really wants to be at.

 

Now, for Stephanie’s Review of the Foxboro Hot Tubs

Sometimes you find yourself in the right place at the right time, even if it takes 10 hours to get there. This was the journey for many, on Sunday, May 25, 2008 at the Brickhouse in Phoenix when they got into line at 12pm, for the 10:30pm performance of the Foxboro Hot Tubs.

The faithful had gathered to hear, Reverend Strychnine Twitch (Billie Joe Armstrong) and the rest of the Hot Tubs (Mike Dirnt, Tré Cool, Jason Freese, Kevin Preston and Jason White), lead them through a pilgrimage of 60’s garage band rock, reminiscent of Anthony & the Sophomores, The Monkeys, The Kinks and other greats of that era. The congregation, ranged in age from seven to 67, perhaps even older, but one thing was clear, it did not matter what age group you were in, everyone was prepared to rock and have the time of their life.

“Come closer to me” beckoned the Reverend, decked out in a 60’s era wardrobe of a sheepskin jacket, bleached hair and Jackie O white sunglasses, “Come closer, that’s what we’re all here for tonight”. The crowd exploded with screams in response, as they rushed the tiny stage. The band erupted into the title track of their release, “Stop Drop and Roll!!” which was followed by “Mother Mary” and “Alligator”.

For the next song, the Reverend requested to have people come on stage, a rare thing during any concert, however, a common theme through the entire evening. For some, this was a chance of a lifetime, as they interacted with the band, dancing and signing along. After the first massive rush of the crowd on stage, the Reverend paused between songs, “Hold On”, he said, “everyone that was up here didn’t get kicked out right?” The Reverend continued, “Raise your hand if you were just up here”. About 15 people raised there hand, once he was satisfied, he moved onto the next song.

The evening progressed with the Hot Tubs playing tunes from their latest release (Stop Drop and Roll) and even covered a song, as the Reverend put it “By a band we hate, The Network” (a speculated side project of Green Day).

There was a raw energy in the air that was almost palatable. Perhaps it was created when the Reverend grabbed a small boy from the audience and carried him on his shoulder around the stage while belting out a tune or the first time the Reverend dived into the crowd himself. While it may not be possible to pinpoint the exact moment it was created, everyone in attendance realized that this was one of those once in a lifetime experiences, that could never be recreated again.

Don’t be fooled, the Foxboro Hot Tubs, are not just another side project for the boys of Green Day, rather the Hot Tubs are their own persona, and I have a feeling, they are here to stay.

If you have the opportunity to see one of these shows, don’t be an ‘American Idiot’, get there 10 hours early and prepare to have the time of your life.

Presidents of the United States of America at Tempe Marketplace for Third Thursday

by Matt LaFever, FromTheCrowd.com Contributor

The District at Tempe Marketplace was packed for Third Thursday, as thousands had shown up due to the free admission.  Nothing could contain my excitement for the Presidents of the United States of America and I wasn’t the only one who felt this way as it seemed like the bodies in he crowd were attracted on a sub-atomic level.

 The heat rose by nine degrees as I stepped further in the crowd, turning my overshirt into an oven. Whilst sipping at my Cola, the ambient chatter stopped. Tim Virgin from The Edge 103.9, the station that set this whole shindig up, walked up to the front to advertise the next Third Thursday event. After his spiel, but before the words his lips let loose, I knew that the Presidents of the United States of America were coming up next.

A hundred cheers erupted. Screaming like a schoolgirl, I forced myself through the crowd. “Just a bit closer.” I promised. PUSA let loose with a storm. As I felt the bass pounding through my pant legs, I finally experienced music Nirvana. They blasted forth with “Kitty”, a hard rock tune full of angst and kittens.  I loved every second of it, after this is a band I’ve loved since my childhood. In ‘95 or ‘96 I remember them kicking down ninja’s to their “Peaches” music video. The place surrounding me erupted in a cachophony of lyrics as the fans joined in for a sing-a-long.

Between songs Chris Ballew, the lead singer, joked about moving to Arizona to escape Daylight Savings Time. “You’re free from the mans control over time” he bellowed, to a thousand cheers and a few nervous chuckles. Before I knew what had happened the last song was playing, “We’re not going to make it”, they wailed. The irony didn’t end there, they finished the song with an additional verse from the intro to the “Mary Tyler Moore Show”, “We’re gonna make it after all”. The band thanked us, the station thanked us, and we all headed home wishing that those two hours had approached a black hole’s event horizon and existed infinitely.

Want to give us your review?  Comment below or email: contribute(at)fromthecrowd.com

Vayden at the Last Exit 03.14.2008

On March 14th Vayden performed at the local music venue Last Exit.  Taking the stage close to 11pm, it was apparent that the diverse crowd in the bar had gathered to see them.

The audience had a wide range of people in attendance, from the young preppy college student, to the aged hard core rocker.  At first, the mix of individuals did not seem to make sense, however, once Vayden was midway into their set, the attraction for all of these varying groups was apparent.  While labeled, as an alternative band, Vayden was able to provide unexpected musical depth and energy to their performance.

It wasn’t the same song, just arranged differently, over and over again,  that is often witnessed in today’s music.  Each song seemed to have a different personality, but fit perfectly into the set.

Lead vocalist, Curtis Casey delivered a sincere performance, full of all of the energy appropriate for each song while Bruce Weitz commands attention with his skillful drum playing.  All of the members of Vayden exude a unique energy from their music that the crowd automatically responds to.  If your looking for a unique rocking experience, check them out for yourself on March 22, at the Last Exit.

Set List:

Want to give us your review?  Comment below or email: contribute(at)fromthecrowd.com

Matt Costa Live at The Clubhouse 01.30.2008

By Steve Shugg, FromTheCrowd.com Contributor

As I was driving up to the Clubhouse Music Venue on Jan 30^th, I wasn’t really sure exactly how the crowd was going to be. Was it going to be packed, or had the word not gotten out yet as to just how good a musician Matt Costa was? Well I was pleasantly surprised to find out that people in Phoenix not only know who he is, but brought their friends to what turned out to be a great show. The place was packed. It was very refreshing to see, especially since the last time that Matt Costa played in Tempe, the venue just was not that crowded, which was disappointing because he’s a great artist.

Costa is currently on tour with his new album, “Unfamiliar Faces”, and his latest single, “Mr. Pitiful”. The album is pretty good, but the single is just a lot of fun to listen to; Upbeat, catchy lyrics, just a song that you can really get into. When Matt busted out this tune live, although the album had only been out a few days, there were plenty of people that knew all the lyrics and were dancing and singing along.

It was also pretty cool to see that Costa brought with him his collection of older songs from the “Songs We Sing” album, his most popular. When he played songs like “Astair” and “Cold December”, the crowd couldn’t get enough. Neither could I, as “Songs We Sing” is one of the albums that not matter what mood I’m in, I can always put on that record and just listen. I’m looking forward to doing the same with “Unfamiliar Faces”.

Overall the show was fantastic, the crowd was really into it, and Matt seemed to have a great time on stage. And although he didn’t really interact with the crowd that much in between songs, it was still a great concert.

Ben Lee at the Clubhouse 12.11.2007

By Steve Shugg, FromTheCrowd.com Contributor

There are certain shows where the lineup of artists simply gets put together because of either record label politics, or favors to friends bands. These said shows always seem to go the same way; first band plays, leaves; next band, gets off stage; finally the main act and shows over. As good as these shows might be, its always more fun to see the artists interact with each other. At the recent Ben Lee and Cary Brothers show at the Clubhouse, the listeners were in for an experience. All three artists, Kate Voegele, Cary Brothers and Ben Lee jumped on stage with the other acts, got the crowd involved, and just seemed to be having a great time on stage.

The show started with Kate Voegele, an up and coming artists who recently was signed to Myspace records. She did not hesitate to give everything she had, and it showed; she put on a great show, and with her voice and songwriting ability, she’ll be around for a while.

Next up was Cary Brothers. Here’s an artist that has put in the time to become a talented musician, and celebrates that with his songwriting and crowd interaction. Playing crowd favorites like “Blue Eyes” and “Honestly”, Brothers has the stage presence that seems to be missing from so many live acts these days.

Closing out the night was of course Ben Lee, an Australian musician who puts on one hell of a show. Mixing in witty jokes with some amazing tunes is a great way to feel welcome in this country. Playing songs off his latest album “Ripe”, he sounded great. He also played a tune off of his cover album, where he covered the entire Against Me! album, “New Wave”.

The night would not be complete, however, with a sing a long, and these three did not disappoint. Before they finished, Lee brought everyone back on stage to not sing one of their songs, but instead covered Rush’s “Surrender”. It turned out to be a great song that everyone that was old enough to know the lyrics, sang along to. Overall a great night at the clubhouse, and makes one look forward to the up coming Hotel Café Tour, where some of these artists will be back for another great show.

Goo Goo Dolls Concert 12.08.2007

By D. Marcher, www.FromTheCrowd.com Contributor

I anxiously rushed to the Scottsdale Civic Center on December 8, in fear that I was going to miss my opportunity to see the Goo Goo Dolls free, courtesy of Alltel Wireless.  After all, I had been warned that there were only 2000 tickets by my editor, and Goo Goo Dolls have played Cricket Wireless Pavilion and the Dodge Theatre within the last year, both holding obviously more than 2000 fans.  To my surprise, there was no line when I arrived and I had no problem getting a ticket to the event, the first of many surprises for the evening.  

The show kicked off at 5:30, to relatively small crowd of about 700, with the Goo Goo Dolls taking the stage by storm and launching into the classic rift of their hit “Slide”.  It was in that instant that everyone in attendance knew this was going to be a fantastic show.  Lead Vocals, Rzeznik and the rest of the Goos’ seemed to truly enjoying themselves on stage and it showed through their performance and sound.  Rzeznik, spent a great deal of time interacting with the crowd, sharing stories about the songs, in addition to the fabulous music.

One of the more entertaining stories of the evening, focused around the weather, as is typical for most artists visiting the Valley; however, this was a little different.  Rather than mention, how terribly hot it was, Rzeznik, looked out into the crowd, after the second song, “Let Love In”, and could see the crowd wearing heavy coats, jackets, and wrapped in sleeping bags.  Gazing into the crowd, in almost disbelief, he said, “Is this cold for you guys?”  The crowd responded with a tremendous “YES!”, after all it was 60 degrees out and the temperature was falling!  A sly smile came over Rzeznik’s face and with a large grin he responded, “You should trying being in Buffalo (the Goo Goo Dolls hometown in New York) sometime!  This is summer weather there!”  Everyone laughed, as I think it was refreshing to hear an artist compliment our weather rather then mention the all too obvious “Man its hot here!”

The Goo Goo Dolls set consisted of all of the crowd favorites and the songs that had made them popular, most of which can be found on their latest release, “Goo Goo Dolls, Greatest Hits Volume #1”.  Rzeznik, mentioned this recent release and thanked the crowd for their support in allowing the Goo Goo Dolls the opportunity to release a greatest hits album. 

As the evening progressed, the bands energy never died and the crowd was truly engaged, with many participating in the performance by bouncing around to the music or singing along.  It was refreshing to see as the crowd grew larger the age span of those in attendance, proving that the Goo Goo Dolls could reach out to more than just Generation X.

After an hour of playing and an encore, the event came to a close.  It was one of the most intimate concerts to hit the valley this year and all of those in attendance were extremely satisfied by experience.  Thank you Alltel for making this event possible!

Tell us what you thought about this show below, or submit a review to contribute@fromthecrowd.com

Bloodsimple Concert Review 11.11.2007

By David Hopper, FromTheCrowd.com Contributor

The Marquee Theatre played host to Bloodsimple and Hellyeah on November 11.  If you’ve never been to the Marquee, it doesn’t appear to be a very big looking venue until you get inside.  People were lined up fairly early to get in and see the concert, a show that I was personally was not impressed with.  When Bloodsimple finally hit the stage, the crowd was sparse and docile. 

They opened with their song “Ride With Me”, a song where the beginning, seems to me, to be an obvious rip off of The Doors song “The End”.  It has been changed in a few ways so as not to seem that way but any Doors fan would immediately notice.  The lighting accompanying the show was mediocre at best and the bands stage presence was uninspiring.  Bloodsimple lived up to the Heavy Metal sound with loud screaming and heavy guitar licks, but in all the band did not seem to act as one.  Every member was doing their own thing instead of trying to get the crowd into the music.  As the concert continued, more people made there way in a small mosh pit that had formed in the center of the venue, but it never seemed to get very far.  Even as they continued their set, the crowd just did not seem to be getting into their performance or the music all that much.   It wasn’t all bad news though; a few people I talked to seemed to enjoy themselves.  Three friends who had come to the show Brandon, Julio and Dave all said they enjoyed Bloodsimple for putting on a good show but like many others were waiting for Hellyeah to get onstage. 

Overall, as I said it was an uninspiring show, nothing jumped out at me as extraordinary.  The band just did not seem to be energetic or excited, few words were spoken to the crowd to get them into the performance, and after all was said and done Bloodsimple did not seem to distinguish themselves apart from any other heavy metal band.  I feel like I could go to any heavy metal show and see and hear the same thing as I did last night.  To anybody who considers themselves an aficionado of heavy metal perhaps you can pick up on something that I did not however, I wouldn’t count on it.  Perhaps of I were to go and the lighting was stepped up a notch and the band tried a little harder instrumentally and energetically it could be a good show.  However, something tells me not only will that not happen and even if it did, I would not go see it.

Next Page »