09/25/2009 Sixpin, The Fated Grey, Five Point, Do Driver (Buffalo, NY @ The Tralf)
By Eric | September 25, 2009 11:59 pm
I trucked down I-90 to see two of my favorite local bands, as A Thousand Shades of Cold were supposed to be on the bill, but apparently canceled at the last minute. This left the Sixpin guys scrambling for openers, and yet they managed to find three! Do Driver and Five Point didn’t really catch my fancy, but thankfully I had Adam and Kristen to talk with. The Fated Grey, however, were much better. A solid alt-rock band that I wouldn’t mind seeing again. Good songs, good singer, band sounded good, enjoyable to watch. We said hi to Andy and got ready to watch Sixpin do their thing, which they did impeccably. It’s always better to go see “local” shows when the bands are GOOD. And Sixpin is. They always sound tight, Andy can sing very very well, and the songs are well crafted. On this night, they ran through most of their “new” catalog, some highlights from the Made to Bleed album, and ended the show with their awesome cover of Lady Gaga’s “Poker Face”, which brought some of the members of the other bands up on stage, plus some of the ladies!
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Tags: 2009, Buffalo, Do Driver, Five Point, Sixpin, The Fated Grey, The Tralf
09/12/2009 Tonic (Verona, NY @ Turning Stone Casino Showroom)
By Eric | September 17, 2009 3:20 pm
Tiff and I made a mini-weekend out of this show, as Tonic is one of the handful of bands we can both enthusiastically agree on. We made sure to remember the BYOB aspect of Turning Stone’s showroom, and had a good time because of it! I was shocked that Tonic was even touring again, but apparently they released a greatest hits album, with plans to have a new studio album out next year. Anyway, the band came out and started right into Open Up Your Eyes, much to the delight of the crowd. The showroom didn’t look sold out, but the folks that did attend were die-hards, singing along with most everything. Take Me As I Am was next, followed by Liar. The latter song surprised me, as their live take on it was a bit more raucous than it sounds on the album! Guitarist Jeff Russo is more than just a competent player, and the improvisation on most of the songs was top-notch and served to make the songs even more interesting than their recorded counterparts. The band went back to the hits with You Wanted More, followed by Sugar, and then our consensus favorite Tonic song, Mountain. They completed the Lemon Parade two-fer with Wicked Soldier, and then played Come Rest Your Head. Tiff remarked that for the most part, they picked the more rockin’ songs out of the catalog, rather than play a bunch of ballads. We were then treated to a new song, also “rockin'”, that I’ll call Not The Same. If that’s the direction the band is taking, I’m down with that! After playing a song no one knew, they followed it up with the one song *everyone* knew, If You Could Only See. They closed up the main set with Queen, Soldier’s Daughter, and a hell of a take on Casual Affair. So as if that wasn’t enough, they came back out for an encore, which started with a nod to Emerson Hart’s solo album. The entire band took on If You’re Gonna Leave, which I thought was pretty cool; the other band members supporting each other’s solo efforts. Next was a song that was on our Buffalo setlist back in ’03 (that didn’t get played that night), a cover of Fleetwood Mac’s Go Your Own Way that had the entire place singing, and quite a few dancing. Tonic ended the evening by dedicating the last song to a couple from Buffalo they’d been conversing with online, finishing with Love A Diamond. Overall, I can’t say enough about the show, the crowd, Jeff Russo’s guitar playing, Emerson Hart’s singing, and the venue itself. A great time and a great show!
Setlist:
Open Up Your Eyes
Take Me as I Am
Liar
You Wanted More
Sugar
Mountain
Wicked Soldier
Come Rest Your Head
Not The Same (new song)
If You Could Only See
Queen
Soldier’s Daughter
Casual Affair
Encore:
If You’re Gonna Leave (from Emerson Hart’s solo album)
Go Your Own Way (Fleetwood Mac cover)
Love A Diamond
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Tags: 2009, Tonic, Turning Stone Casino Showroom, Verona
A day late, but I did my metal duty and picked up
By Eric | September 17, 2009 12:00 am
A day late, but I did my metal duty and picked up @therealetid ‘s New Junk Aesthetic and @ShadowsFallBand ‘s Retribution, both with DVD’s!
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And the final leg of the journey… Turning Stone
By Eric | September 12, 2009 12:00 am
And the final leg of the journey… Turning Stone to see Tonic tonight!
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Got way too full & fat at MacG’s with Karen and Da
By Eric | September 12, 2009 12:00 am
Got way too full & fat at MacG’s with Karen and Dan, and now I’m rockin out at the Penny Arcade watching Sixpin!
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09/05/2009 Crue Fest 2: Motley Crue, Godsmack, Theory Of A Deadman, Drowning Pool (Darien, NY @ Darien Lake Performing Arts Center)
By Eric | September 11, 2009 10:46 am
I carpooled with Scott and Michelle to this one, where we promptly were met by Adam up on the hill for a little pre-gaming. We wandered down to the PAC, where Michelle and Scott promptly turned around and headed back to the car. On the advice of another woman who was turned back at the gate for too large of a purse, Michelle decided her’s probably wouldn’t fly either. Adam and I continued on in, and wandered over to the second stage briefly to say hi to Andy from Sixpin, as they’d played earlier on. We hiked up to the lawn, grabbed a beer, and settled on a decent spot. Scott and Michelle came in soon after, and we caught the second half of Drowning Pool’s set. Now on their third singer, they haven’t changed much. Of what we caught, I recognized three of the songs, that being “Step Up” from the Punisher Soundtrack, and then Tear Away (off of Sinner), and the obvious closer, Bodies.
Bodies
It was around this set break that I hit the restroom, only to come back at the tail end of one of the more amazing concert displays I’ve seen in awhile. A girl apparently just dropped her shorts and underwear and popped a squat right in the middle of the lawn! I missed the beginning of this, but apparently she had a bit of stage fright at first. Needless to say, there was a nice big puddle around her by the end of her run. Yay for drunkies on the lawn!
Anyway, Theory was up next, and they ran through what I’d guess is a usual festival set for them. None of the slower ballad songs, so that was good, but it was readily apparent that they’ve been on the road for awhile, as Tyler’s voice was showing a bit of strain. It actually got a little better as it went on, but you could tell he was pushing it. The band sounded fine, and the crowd was into the set for the songs they knew. In order, TOAD offered up: Crutch, Nothing Could Come Between Us, So Happy, By The Way, Got It Made, Not Meant To Be, Hate My Life, Bad Girlfriend.
Hate My Life
Easily the highlight of my night (Crue was just a bonus), Godsmack was the direct support. They got quite the crowd pop, and started out with Straight Out Of Line. Sully kept mentioning how they took this tour to prove that not only had they not broken up, but the band was “back and better than ever”, and they certainly sounded like it. They ran through the usual host of favorites, brought out the second drum-kit for the Sully/Shannon Larkin dueling drums, and even played the new Whiskey Hangover single. Good times all around for this set. Setlist: Straight Out of Line, Re-Align, Awake, The Enemy, Keep Away, Speak, Batalla de los Tambores (Drum Battle), Whiskey Hangover, Voodoo, Whatever, I Stand Alone.
Here’s a short clip of the dueling drums:
Time for the headliners. The schtick for this edition of Crue Fest was since it was the 20th anniversary of Dr. Feelgood being released, they played the album in its entirety. Great for me, since that’s the Crue album I know the best. While it was awesome to finally see Motley, it’s readily apparent that Vince Neil can’t sing anymore. The stage theatrics were cool (considering we were on the lawn, so what little we could see looked good), and the music was as you’d expect. After running through all of Feelgood, the band took a short break, and came out to do an abbreviated “Greatest Hits” type set. We got Wild Side, Saints of Los Angeles, and Shout at the Devil before the encore break, which was followed by Home Sweet Home and the finale, Girls Girls Girls. Judging from other setlists, we got gypped out of Live Wire and Primal Scream during the second set. No matter, we had a good time with the set, a great time the whole night, and as to be expected at a show like this, the crowd-watching was off the charts!
Shout At The Devil
Motley Crue Setlist:
Dr. Feelgood
Slice of Your Pie
Rattlesnake Shake
Kickstart My Heart
Without You
Same Ol’ Situation (S.O.S.)
Sticky Sweet
She Goes Down
Don’t Go Away Mad (Just Go Away)
Time For Change
#
Wild Side
Saints Of Los Angeles
Shout At The Devil
Encore:
Home Sweet Home
Girls, Girls, Girls
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Tags: 2009, Crue Fest, Darien, Darien Lake Performing Arts Center, Drowning Pool, Godsmack, Motley Crue, Theory of a Deadman
HOW LOW CAN YOU GO? That’s just disgusting. RT @ch
By Eric | September 11, 2009 12:00 am
HOW LOW CAN YOU GO? That’s just disgusting. RT @chrisspicuzza:The girl next to me is bragging about hooking up with one of Dope’s roadies.
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RT @deathoftheparty: At “The Gathering” juggalos s
By Eric | September 8, 2009 12:00 am
RT @deathoftheparty: At “The Gathering” juggalos should play Insane Clown Bocce.
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09/04/2009 Cake (Buffalo, NY @ Town Ballroom)
By Eric | September 5, 2009 10:28 am
We shuffled off to Buffalo with Matt and Lisa to catch “An Evening With Cake” at the Town Ballroom. I’m liking this somewhat-recent trend of bands playing with no openers! We ended up camping out on the left side of the stage on the first raised tier, almost behind one of the tallest kids I’ve ever seen at a show. When I can’t see over someone, you know we’re talking tall! Anyway, after the cheesiest 80’s synth intro ever (something out of a Rocky training scene maybe?), Cake made their way onto the stage. John McCrea was in his unibomber get-up, with a tan coat, tan hat, and sunglasses. Classic. They opened with the cover of Black Sabbath’s War Pigs, and the crowd went nuts. The sold-out audience was hootin’ and hollerin’ all night, and that alone made this show even better than last years at the Rochester Armory. They went through Comfort Eagle, Frank Sinatra, Mexico, Wheels (one of my favorites!), and then a new song which I’m guessing is called It’s Been A Long Time. Switching from a song nobody knew to one that everybody knew, Short Skirt/Long Jacket was next, and McCrea did the “us vs. them” sing-a-long between the two sides of the venue. The place got loud! They ended the first set with Guitar, and took a short break.
After said break, Opera Singer was next, followed by another definite crowd-pleaser in Stickshifts and Safetybelts. They followed up with Shadow Stabbing, and then after describing Motorcade of Generosity as being released “before anyone here was even born!”, we got a double shot of Comanche and Rock ‘N Roll Lifestyle! They played Love You Madly next, and then gave away another apple tree. This time around, the band invited a bunch of teachers up on stage (self-proclaimed), and made them all do push-ups on stage! The last man standing (pushing?) won the tree, and was referenced and mocked for the rest of the night. Another new song followed, which we’ll call I’m So Sick Of You, which prompted another McCrea-led singalong in the crowd. Again, very loud! The second set closed with Never There.
The crowd never quieted during the encore break, and the cheers only got louder as the band came back on, and McCrea mentioned that the next song was the biggest issue facing the country right now. Pentagram! Another Motorcade song followed, with Jolene, and then everyone left happy after The Distance. Wait, check that. The band wasn’t quite done yet, although they faked out a good number of people, including us! We’re milling around in the lobby, and the band appears on the big screen, busting out Arco Arena! We piled back in and saw the end of that and then the for-real closer, Sheep Go To Heaven. This was definitely one of those shows where the smile never really leaves your face, and its a good-time vibe throughout. We had a blast!
Set 1
—–
War pigs
Comfort Eagle
Frank Sinatra
Mexico
Wheels
It’s Been A Long Time (new)
Short Skirt / Long Jacket
Guitar
Set 2
—–
Opera Singer
Stickshifts & Safetybelts
Shadow Stabbing
Comanche
Rock N Roll Lifestyle
Love You Madly
I’m So Sick Of You (new)
Never There
Encore 1
——–
Pentagram
Jolene
The Distance
Encore 2
——–
Arco Arena
Sheep Go To Heaven
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Tags: 2009, Buffalo, Cake, Town Ballroom
Just got inside at Crue Fest!
By Eric | September 5, 2009 12:00 am
Just got inside at Crue Fest!
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