-
Part 2: KISS/Def Leppard Concert Review
- Date of Concert: August 26, 2014
- Location of Concert: Blossom Music Center in Cuyahoga Falls, OH
- Opener: The Dead Daisies
My cousin (more like little brother) Zachary and my best friend Jamie went to see KISS and Def Leppard at a venue we had not been to before.
The venue itself was nice, but the parking was atrocious.
It took us at least 2 or more hours to get out of there after the show.
OH MY GOSH!!!!
The show itself was great, EXCEPT, that there was also rain.
If we were under the roof (it was an outdoor amphitheater), it would have been fine, but we were on the lawn.
Now we thought there was not supposed to be any rain until after the show, but of course, the rain started IMMEDIATELY once Def Leppard took the stage and rained throughout their entire set.
They were awesome, but we were soaked.
I told Jamie and Zachary that if it’s still raining during KISS’ set, that we will leave after a few songs. Of course, the rain ended IMMEDIATELY once Def Leppard were done.
Again, we were soaked and never quite dried off for some time.
I was not going to buy any shirts at this show, but since we were so wet, I felt like I needed to, and I did.
OK negatives aside, the show itself was great.
The Dead Daisies, who I had never heard of at that point, opened.
They were a solid rock band.
I recognized their bassist, Marco Mendoza, who is a great talent.
Otherwise, I knew nothing about them (edit: I later knew a lot about them and saw them a few more times after that. Even met them once but that’s in another review. Read on.)
Then Def Leppard took the stage, playing an amazing set as always.
Like I said in a previous review, you really have to be great to go on after them.
But KISS is the band to do it.
And as always, they delivered another great set.
They always make me happy and feel like I’m 16.
I love these bands. So much so that this was the second time Jamie and I saw this tour (see previous 2014 review).
I hope I don’t get rained on like that again and the parking stunk, but otherwise, a fun time was had by all.
Def Leppard Band Members:
- Joe Elliott (Lead Vocals)
- Rick "Sav" Savage (Bass/Backing Vocals)
- Rick Allen (Drums)
- Phil Collen (Guitar/Backing Vocals)
- Vivian Campbell (Guitar/Backing Vocals)
KISS Band Members:
- Paul Stanley (Vocals/Guitar)
- Gene Simmons (Vocals/Bass)
- Eric Singer (Drums/Vocals)
- Tommy Thayer (Guitar/Vocals)
Def Leppard Set List:
- Let It Go
- Animal
- Foolin’
- Love Bites
- Let’s Get Rocked
- Two Steps Behind (Acoustic)
- Bringin’ On Heartbreak (Acoustic/Electric)
- Switch 625
- Hysteria
- Rocket
- Armageddon It
- Pour Some Sugar On Me
- Encore: Rock Of Ages
- Photograph
KISS Setlist:
- Psycho Circus
- Deuce
- Shout It Out Loud
- War Machine
- Hotter Than Hell
- I Love It Loud
- Lick It Up
- Bass Solo
- God Of Thunder
- Hide Your Heart
- Calling Dr. Love
- Cold Gin
- Love Gun
- Black Diamond
- Detroit Rock City
- Rock And Roll All Nite
Photo Gallery (click on thumbnail to view larger image)
-
Awesome Rock and Roll: Aerosmith/Slash w/Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators Concert Review
- Date of Concert: July 22, 2014
- Location of Concert: Riverbend Music Center in Cincinnati, OH
My best friend Jamie and I went to see Aerosmith and Slash Feat. Myles Kennedy and The Conspirators.
This my 3rd time seeing Aerosmith but my first time seeing Slash/Myles and the Conspirators.
Slash/Myles/The Conspirators opened the show with roughly 45-50 minutes of awesome rock and roll.
I love this group. This is the best band Slash has had since he was in Guns N Roses (edit: two years later, he would rejoin GNR but also continue this band too).
Myles Kennedy is one of the best singers of all time. Yes I said of all time. Trust me he’s that great. Seek him out. And he’s a phenomenal guitarist too.
The band itself is solid as a rock but Slash and Myles to me are the new Steven Tyler and Joe Perry of Aerosmith. They have such chemistry together. It’s magic.
In fact, I’ll say that they blew Aerosmith off the stage.
Yes they did!!
However, Aerosmith were good too of course.
They’re one of my favorite bands ever.
Steven Tyler still is an amazing singer.
Joe Perry and Brad Whitford are phenomenal guitarists.
Tom Hamilton is a great bassist.
And Joey Kramer is one of my favorite drummers ever.
You cannot go wrong with Aerosmith.
Again honest opinion: I (and Jamie too) think that Slash/Myles blew Aerosmith off the stage. We both said to each other we could go home after them because we were happy.
But of course, we stayed for Aerosmith and I’m glad we did.
Great great show.
Slash Feat. Myles Kennedy and The Conspirators Band Members:
- Slash (Guitar)
- Myles Kennedy (Lead Vocals/Guitar)
- Todd Kerns (Bass/Backing Vocals)
- Brent Fitz (Drums)
- Frank Sidoris (Guitar)
Aerosmith Band Members:
- Steven Tyler (Lead Vocals)
- Joe Perry (Guitar/Vocals)
- Brad Whitford (Guitar)
- Tom Hamilton (Bass)
- Joey Kramer (Drums)
Slash Feat. Myles Kennedy And The Conspirators Set List:
- You’re A Lie
- Nightrain
- Back From Cali
- World On Fire
- You Could Be Mine
- Anastasia
- By The Sword
- Mr. Brownstone
- Sweet Child O’ Mine
- Slither
- Paradise City
Aerosmith Set List:
- Back In The Saddle
- Eat The Rich
- Love In An Elevator
- Cryin’
- Livin’ On The Edge
- Monkey On My Back
- Kings And Queens
- Toys In The Attic
- Rag Doll
- Freedom Fighter
- Big Ten Inch Record
- Rats In The Cellar
- I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing
- No More No More
- Dude (Looks Like A Lady)
- Walk This Way
- Encore: Dream On
- Sweet Emotion
Photo Gallery (click on thumbnail to view larger image)
-
Two Favorites Together: KISS/Def Leppard Concert Review
- Date of Concert: July 15, 2014
- Location of Concert: Riverbend Music Center in Cincinnati, OH
My best friend Jamie and I went to see two phenomenal bands: KISS (our favorite) and Def Leppard (a favorite) in Cincinnati.
They had never toured together before so this was a great opportunity to see these band together.
It was a co-headline (meaning each band gets the same amount of set time) but Def Leppard would always go on first and KISS would close.
Def Leppard are always phenomenal live and put most bands to shame in concert.
You HAVE to be on your game to go on after them, otherwise, you will be crushed, because they’re that great.
Great discography, tons of hits, everyone sings great, awesome stage set, BIG!
This was my 2nd time seeing Def Leppard. Love them.
KISS closed the show, as I said.
This was my 5th time seeing them and even though I have many favorites, they are my number one favorite band.
They always make me happy and feel like I’m 16 again every time I see them (they were my first concert in 1998 when I was 16).
The current lineup of Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, Eric Singer, and Tommy Thayer always deliver the goods.
They dug deep a little bit into their catalog here and played a song they had not played in many years (Hide Your Heart from their 1989 Hot In The Shade album), along with Hotter Than Hell from the album of the same name, which they have played a lot, but I had not seen them play it before.
Great show from both bands.
However, this night was emotional for me in another sense that my Pawpaw 4 days before this show.
We had just had his wake and funeral service the previous few days, so I was going into this show with that grief still fresh.
And I did cry a little at this show because I was still feeling it.
I’m very sad that Pawpaw died, but what breaks my heart the most is seeing my Granny cry.
I had NEVER seen her cry in my life until he died.
They were together 67 years. Forever joined at the hip. From beginning to end.
(Edit: My Granny died 5 years later, in 2019. Beyond heartbreaking to me and I’ll never get over it.)
Life will never be the same in my family.
But having said that, he lived a long and great, full life.
Can’t ask for anything more.
I love and miss you Pawpaw (and Granny)!!!!
Def Leppard Band Members:
- Joe Elliott (Lead Vocals)
- Rick "Sav" Savage (Bass/Backing Vocals)
- Rick Allen (Drums)
- Phil Collen (Guitar/Backing Vocals)
- Vivian Campbell (Guitar/Backing Vocals))
KISS Band Members:
- Paul Stanley (Vocals/Guitar)
- Gene Simmons (Vocals/Bass)
- Eric Singer (Drums/Vocals)
- Tommy Thayer (Guitar/Vocals)
Def Leppard Set List:
- Let It Go
- Animal
- Foolin’
- Love Bites
- Let’s Get Rocked
- Two Steps Behind (Acoustic)
- Bringin’ On The Heartbreak (Acoustic/Electric)
- Switch 625
- Hysteria (w/Beth by KISS tag)
- Rocket
- Armageddon It
- Pour Some Sugar On Me
- Encore: Rock Of Ages
- Photograph
KISS Setlist:
- Psycho Circus
- Deuce
- Shout It Out Loud
- War Machine
- Hotter Than Hell
- I Love It Loud
- Lick It Up
- Bass Solo
- God Of Thunder
- Hide Your Heart
- Calling Dr. Love
- Cold Gin
- Love Gun
- Black Diamond
- Detroit Rock City
- Rock And Roll All Nite
Photo Gallery (click on thumbnail to view larger image)
-
What a Motley Crew!!: Motley Crue/Alice Cooper Concert Review
- Date of Concert: July 6, 2014
- Location of Concert: Riverbend Music Center in Cincinnati, OH
My best friend Jamie and I went to see Motley Crue and Alice Cooper at my favorite venue: Riverbend Music Center in Cincinnati, OH.
I’ve been going to this venue since the summer of 1999 when I first saw Motley Crue actually.
This was my 7th time seeing them and my 3rd time seeing Alice.
Alice started the night with an awesome show, as usual.
His songs are timeless (he’s still making awesome new albums) and his band is always solid as a rock.
There’s no such thing as a bad Alice show. It just doesn’t happen.
Go see him if you get a chance. He tours all the time.
Then later on, Motley took the stage.
They are one of my favorite bands of all time.
I’ve always thought of them as more of a gang than as a band.
Through all their ups and downs, they always come back.
This is their “Final Tour” (edit: they later returned in 2019 to record some new songs for their biopic The Dirt and started touring again in 2022) but truth or fiction, I always have fun at a Motley show.
Say what you want about singer Vince Neil (he tends to skip words when he sings live) but he really does sing live and every time I’ve seen them, he sings enough that the skipping of words never bothers me. And I’ve always loved his voice.
Tommy Lee is one of my favorite drummers.
Bassist Nikki Sixx is one of my favorite songwriters (he’s written most of Motley’s great discography).
Guitarist Mick Mars (edit: John 5 took over on guitar in 2023) is one of my favorite guitarists and he never gets enough credit for the great playing he always delivers.
I love these guys, through thick and thin.
Go see them if you can. They always put on a fun rock and roll show.
And at the end of the show, they played on a stage in the audience, which was really cool.
Alice Cooper Band Members:
- Alice Cooper (Lead Vocals)
- Ryan Roxie (Guitar)
- Tommy Hendriksen (Guitar)
- Nita Strauss (Guitar)
- Chuck Garric (Bass/Vocals)
- Glen Sobel (Drums)
Motley Crue Band Members:
- Vince Neil (Lead Vocals)
- Mick Mars (Guitar)
- Nikki Sixx (Bass)
- Tommy Lee (Drums)
Alice Cooper Set List:
- Hello, Hooray
- No More Mr. Nice Guy
- Under My Wheels
- I’m Eighteen
- Billion Dollar Babies
- Poison
- Dirty Diamonds
- Welcome To My Nightmare
- Feed My Frankenstein
- Ballad of Dwight Fry
- Killer
- I Love The Dead
- School’s Out
Motley Crue Set List:
- Moterfucker Of The Year
- Wild Side
- Primal Scream
- Same Ol’ Situation (S.O.S.)
- Looks That Kill
- On With The Show
- Too Fast For Love
- All Bad Things (Not sure if this was played)
- Smokin’ In The Boys Room (Brownsville Station Cover)
- Without You
- Saints Of Los Angeles
- Anarchy In The U.K. (The Sex Pistols Cover)
- Too Young To Fall In Love
- Shout At The Devil 97
- Don’t Go Away Mad (Just Go Away)
- Mick Guitar Solo
- Live Wire
- Dr. Feelgood
- Girls, Girls, Girls
- Kickstart My Heart
- Encore: Home Sweet Home (on B-Stage in the audience)
Photo Gallery (click on thumbnail to view larger image)
-
The Boss: Bruce Springsteen & The E-Street Band Concert Review
- Date of Concert: April 15, 2014
- Location of Concert: Nationwide Arena in Columbus, OH
My best friend Jamie and I went to see Bruce Springsteen & The E-Street Band!!
Neither of us had seen Bruce before but had wanted to for a long time.
The weather was still a bit chilly (some snow was blowing in the air while we were waiting in line) but otherwise, we had a great time.
Bruce and the band went on at 8 PM and played until 11 PM.
No opening acts.
Bruce took requests from the audience as he is known to do.
Sixth song in, he was crowd surfing.
This guy and his band give it their all every single time they play. Bruce even brought a lady out from the audience and strapped a guitar on her and let her play near the end of the show.
And if you’re a fan, you will always get your money’s worth.
Lots of songs.
And personally, I thought it was cool that guitarist Tom Morello (Rage Against The Machine, Audioslave) is playing with the band on this tour and the current album they are promoting, High Hopes.
He even sang The Ghost Of Tom Joad with Bruce, which was really cool.
Such a great night.
Band Lineup:
- Bruce Springsteen (Vocals/Guitar/Harmonica/Piano)
- Roy Bittan (Piano/Synthesizer/Accordian)
- Nils Lofgren (Guitar/Accordian/Backing Vocals)
- Garry Talient (Bass/Backing Vocals)
- Max Weinberg (Drums)
- Soozie Tyrell (Violin/Acoustic Guitar/Percussion/Backing Vocals)
- Charles Giordano (Organ/Accordian/Electronic Glockenspiel)
- Tom Morello (Guitar/Vocals)
- Jake Clemons (Saxophone/Percussion/Backing Vocals)
- Barry Danielian (Trumpet/Backing Vocals)
- Clark Gayton (Trombone/Tuba/Percussion)
- Eddie Manion (Saxophone/Percussion)
- Curt Ramm (Trumpet/Percussion)
Set List:
- High Hopes
- Adam Raised A Cain
- Death To My Hometown
- Hungry Heart
- Blinded By The Light (Audience Sign Request and tour premiere)
- Prove It All Night
- Trapped
- Wrecking Ball
- The River
- American Skin (41 Shots)
- Johnny 99
- Darlington County
- Shackled And Drawn
- Waitin’ On A Sunny Day
- The Ghost Of Tom Joad (duet with Tom Morello)
- The Rising
- Lonesome Day
- Badlands
- Light Of Day
- Encore 1: Backstreets (w/Sad Eyes Interlude)
- Born To Run
- Bobby Jean
- Dancing In The Dark
- Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out
- Shout (The Isley Brothers Cover)
- Encore 2: Dream Baby Dream (Suicide Cover-Bruce solo w/Pump Organ)
Photo Gallery (click on thumbnail to view larger image)
-
Overkill/Kreator/Warbringer Concert Review
- Date of Concert: November 5, 2013
- Location of Concert: Alrosa Villa Nightclub in Columbus, OH
It was great to see Overkill and Kreator in concert.
Both are awesome at what they do.
Warbringer, who opened the show, were quite good too.
This was a really heavy, heavy show, musically.
Great stuff.
Overkill Set List:
- Deny The Cross
- Bring Me The Night
- Electric Rattlesnake
- Hammerhead
- Rotten To The Core
- Hello From The Gutter
- Ironbound
- Necroshine
- Thanx For Nothin’
- Overkill
- Elimination
- Encore: Horrorscope
- Fuck You (The Subhumans cover)
Kreator Set List:
- Intro Tape: Mars Mantra
- Phantom Antichrist
- From Flood Into Fire
- Warcurse
- Coma Of Souls/Endless Pain
- Pleasure To Kill
- Hordes Of Chaos (A Necrologue For The Elite)
- Riot Of Violence
- Enemy Of God
- Phobia
- Tape: The Patriarch
- Violent Revolution
- United In Hate (w/Acoustic Guitar Solo)
- Civilization Collapse
- Flag Of Hate/Tormentor
Photo Gallery (click on thumbnail to view larger image)
-
Lionize Concert Review
- Date of Concert: October 22, 2013
- Location of Concert: A&R Music Bar in Columbus, OH
My friend Jamie and I went to see a band I had never heard of called Lionize.
He was a big fan, and even though I was not aware of them, I went anyway.
It was a fun show, in a very small venue.
We were right in front of the stage and we had a good time.
Not much more I can say about this one.
Photo Gallery (click on thumbnail to view larger image)
-
Rob Zombie/Mastodon/Machine Concert Review
- Date of Concert: August 9, 2013
- Location of Concert: LC Pavilion in Columbus, OH
My friend Jamie and I went to see Rob Zombie, Mastodon, and Machine Head in Columbus.
I was very excited to see Machine Head because I unfortunately missed them in 2007 when they opened for Heaven And Hell (Black Sabbath w/Dio) and Megadeth.
So, this was a long time coming.
They put on a great set of songs from their catalog and really kicked butt.
I’m glad I finally got to see them.
Mastodon played next. I only have a few of their albums but they were very good and solid.
Now Rob Zombie? He’s always AMAZING.
I love all of his albums and live, he and his band always deliver.
Also, Zombie likes to go out into the crowd sometimes, and when he did this night, he walked right past Jamie and I and I actually was able to touch his dust jacket. Ha.
Great night.
Rob Zombie Set List:
- Intro Tape: Theme For The Rat Vendor
- Teenage Nosferatu Pussy
- Superbeast
- Super-Charger Heaven
- Living Dead Girl
- Star-Spangled Banner
- We’re An American Band (Grand Funk Railroad cover)
- More Human Than Human
- Sick Bubble-Gum
- Drum Solo
- Meet The Creeper
- House Of 1,000 Corpses
- Dead City Radio And The New Gods Of Supertown
- Thunder Kiss ’65
- Guitar Solo/Thunder Kiss ’65 reprise
- Encore: Dragula
- Never Gonna Stop (The Red, Red Kroovy)
Mastodon Set List:
- Black Tongue
- Crystal Skull
- Dry Bone Valley
- Megalodon
- Octopus Has No Friends
- Stargasm
- Blasteroid
- All The Heavy Lifting
- Spectrelight
- Bedazzled Fingernails
- The Sparrow
Machine Head Set List:
- Davidian
- Ten Ton Hammer
- Imperium
- Locust
- Halo
Photo Gallery (click on thumbnail to view larger image)
-
Bad Company/Lynyrd Skynyrd/Black Stone Cherry Concert Review
- Date of Concert: July 24, 2013
- Location of Concert: Riverbend Music Center in Cincinnati, OH
I’m typing this in 2023 so it has been a little over 10 years since I saw this show.
Black Stone Cherry opened and played a solid set.
Lynyrd Skynyrd (Gary Rossington was the only original member left at this point. He sadly passed away in 2023.) were great as they always are.
But for me, Bad Company was the show stopper.
They were AMAZING!!
All were original members (Singer Paul Rodgers, Guitarist Mick Ralphs and Drummer Simon Kirke) except for Bassist Boz Burrell, who passed away in 2006.
Gosh they were great.
The were recording all of their shows on this tour so I got the whole show in a CD set. Sounds great too.
Bad Company Set List:
- Rock ‘N’ Roll Fantasy
- Live For The Music
- Run With The Pack
- Feel Like Makin’ Love
- Oh, Atlanta
- Burnin’ Sky
- Ready For Love
- Honey Child
- Movin’ On
- Shooting Star
- Can’t Get Enough
- Encore: Bad Company
- Rock Steady
- Seagull
Lynyrd Skynyrd Set List:
- Call Me The Breeze
- What’s Your Name
- Gimme Back My Bullets
- Down South Jukin’
- That Smell
- You Got That Right
- Saturday Night Special
- I Know A Little
- Simple Man
- Mississippi Kid
- Tuesday’s Gone
- Gimme Three Steps
- Sweet Home Alabama
- Encore: Free Bird
Black Stone Cherry Set List:
- Maybe Someday
- Change
- Yeah Man
- In My Blood
- White Trash Millionaire
- Blame It On The Boom Boom
- Lonely Train
- 30 Seconds of Death Metal
Photo Gallery (click on thumbnail to view larger image)
-
The Who Plays Quadrophenia
- Date of Concert: February 16, 2013
- Location of Concert: KFC Yum Center in Louisville, KY
After being a fan for 15 years (I’m typing this in 2023) I was finally able to see The Who.
Original members Keith Moon (Drums) and John Entwistle (Bass) had long since passed away by this point.
However, Singer Roger Daltrey and Guitarist/Main Songwriter Pete Townshend has kept the band going.
On this tour, they revisited their classic double album Quadrophenia by playing it in it’s entirety, along with some other Who classics.
It was a great show and honor to finally see them.
Set List:
- Quadrophenia Album (Tracks 1-17)-I Am The Sea
- The Real Me
- Quadrophenia
- Cut My Hair
- The Punk And The Godfather
- I’m One
- The Dirty Jobs
- Helpless Dancer
- Is It In My Head?
- I’ve Had Enough
- 5:15
- Sea And Sand
- Drowned
- Bell Boy
- Doctor Jimmy
- The Rock
- Love Reign O’er Me
- Who Are You
- Behind Blue Eyes
- Pinball Wizard
- Baba O’Riley
- Won’t Get Fooled Again
- Tea & Theatre (Roger & Pete Acoustic)
Photo Gallery (click on thumbnail to view larger image)
