I was very excited once I learned that I was approved to cover this show headlined by Grammy Winning rock band Greta Van Fleet. I was even more excited once I found out the day of the show that Trombone Shorty was an opening band along with Ronnie Baker Brooks. Everything I have seen and heard about these incredible musicians was spot on. Get ready for this! Like I said in the opening paragraph, I didn't know that Troy "Trombone Shorty" Andrews was opening the show till hours prior to the concert. T.S. hails from New Orleans, LA and is an incredible musician as he specializes in the Trombone, duh, as well as trumpet, drums, organ, tuba and the dude can sing!! T.S. emerged on the stage with a ton of energy and his trombone in hand flanked by 2 drummers, 2 guitarists, 2 saxophone players, 2 singers and a bass player. T.S. sang, rapped, danced, played his trombone and entertained the masses as only he could. His 45 minute set was non stop and enjoyable. 2019 Grammy winners for Best Rock Album and the much talked about Greta Van Fleet surfaced right around 10pm as their silhouettes flanked the stage to the deafening shrieks from the ladies in the crowd, don't get me wrong the guys were rocking out as well. Kicking the show off with "My Way, Son" the guys in Greta lubed up the masses as vocalist Jake Kiszka trotted back and forth with the stage presence of legendary rock band front men who came decades before him. Jake strutted around without shoes while his brothers Jake (guitar) and Sam (bass) threw down some bad ass guitar rifts. A few songs in Greta Van Fleet gave us an 8 minute sick ass drum solo from Danny Wagner. We were given a one and a half hour, 14 song set that had it all from the bands two albums with "Safari Song", "Black Smoke Rising" and topped it off with "Highway Tune". Jake has a vocal range that has been compared to Led Zepplin's Robert Plant. We are witnessing the new generation of rock bands emerge and Greta Van Fleet seem to be taking the genre by storm. Sure they will be compared to many other bands before them but what band doesn't have some similarities from their legendary counterparts. I'm enjoying this "renaissance" of rock music as other bands like Joyous Wolf, Blacktop Mojo, South Of Eden, Crobot, Dirty Honey and lots of others are giving us that classic yet modern sound that you just feel from the get go and gets you bobbing your head. These are the bands that will be headlining arena shows and festivals. Rock on! RONNIE BAKER BROOKSTROMBONE SHORTYGRETA VAN FLEET
0 Comments
P.O.D., From Ashes To New, All Good Things on a Saturday night at The Forge in Joliet, IL was the place to be on another humid late summer night. The band Sleep Signals was supposed to have been on this tour but had to cancel after the band had a horrific bus accident just over a week ago. There were some bad injuries but the guys in Sleep Signals are currently recovering. Los Angeles, CA "newbies" All Good Things were the opening act and blew the masses out of the water to kick off the show with their energetic and entertaining set that included their hits like "The Comeback", "For The Glory" and a sick cover of Beyonce's "Survivor". It took me a few moments to figure out the cover after AGT vocalist Dan Murphy asked the crowd "you probably know this song so please sing along". I love it when a band looks like they enjoy playing and and having a good time and connecting with the crowd and AGT had it all tonight. One of my favorite current live bands, From Ashes To New were sandwiched in the middle of this lineup and came out on stage a blazing. I've had the opportunity over the past few years seeing and talking to FATN a few times and their stage presence is incredible. Vocalists Danny Case and Matt Brandyberry play off each other so well just like one of their favorite bands, Linkin Park did during their heyday. Donned in bullet proof vests and smoke engulfing them at times, Danny and Matt thrashed around the stage popping off "My Name", "Crazy", "Panic" and others. FATN has been releasing some bad ass songs to their ever growing catalog over the past few years that have become anthems. Get on the FATN bandwagon now because I'm telling you, they will become major headliners in a very short period of time. There isn't much to say about Nu-Metal stalwarts P.O.D. after 20 years of melting faces of MF'ers on a nightly basis. With Sonny Sandoval at the helm he puts every ounce of energy into the bands performance. P.O.D. brought the intensity along with sing a long anthem after sing along anthem like "Southtown", "Boom", "Alive" and many others during their 1 1/2 hour set. I've seen a handful of incredible lineups so far in 2021 and this night was one of the best. Each band brought their own style, their own brand of energy and for those who got to witness this amazing night it was a treat. With the pandemic still in limbo and not knowing what will happen with live shows all we can do is enjoy what is offered to us and on this night we did. Rock On! Follow Evan J. Thomas on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Twich & Snapchat. P.O.D.FROM ASHES TO NEWALL GOOD THINGS |
AuthorLook here for the newest releases and news in the Rock, Metal and Alternative genres! Archives
May 2024
Categories |