David Bowie: Happy 60th!

I initially planned on publishing this on David Bowie's 60th birthday on January 8th. Then I planned on posting it on the third anniversary of his last stop in Chicago. Best laid plans...either way, I'm getting it in under the wire and at least it's still officially published in his birthday month. A live performance of this tour is documented beautifully and can be purchased for a steal here. Here's to another 60 to arguably one of the most original artists of the last forty-years.

xTony

Rosemont Theater
January 16, 2004
Rosemont, IL (just outside of Chicago)

I'm screaming that I'm gonna be living on till the end of time
-“Never Get Old”

Artists live in a world where their commercial worth is usually only as good as the sales of their most recent release. Most artists who are blessed to achieve a level of success in the music industry usually fall into a trap of attempting to recreate that perfect record time and time again. Even when acts branch out with determined optimism to reinvent themselves, the past is never far behind and everyone from their record company to their manager to their fans is there to remind them of this. Every once in a while an artist emerges who redefines themselves album after album and no act on planet Earth has done this better than David Bowie.

David Bowie is a chameleon and an artist I have always held in the highest regard. Yet until three years ago, I considered myself a casual fan. Bowie has changed his sound and look more times than any other act in the history of rock. He’s never one to rest on his laurels and since his commercial hey day of the 1980’s, he’s turned his back on pleasing the masses, instead seeking personal gratification from his music. For most of the 1990’s and into the new millennium, David Bowie has made numerous albums die-hard fans hold in high regards while the casual fans scratch their heads wondering when he’s going to write another “Let’s Dance”. I was one of these casual fans until a chance encounter gave me a date with destiny.

In December 2003, I met my future wife and while perusing her cd collection, I noticed she had a David Bowie cd (“The Best of” of course…but it was the two-disc version so she immediately received bonus points). When I mentioned this, she responded enthusiastically with “I L-O-V-E David Bowie”. Luck had it that the chameleon would be in Chicago in a few weeks for three sold-out shows just outside of Chicago at the Rosemont Theater (whose capacity is a mere 4,500 people). I couldn’t think of a better date and I was lucky enough to score a pair of tenth row tickets for the third and final show on Friday January 16th. I surprised my now wife with the gift by merely driving to the theater without dropping any hints. She was ecstatic with joy when we drove by the theater and David Bowie’s name lit up the sky. This was the night that I feel in love. My wife sung her lungs shaking her body out to almost every song and was all about giving back to the performer never resting on her laurels. What I loved about her reactions was they came from a fan who appreciated this artist and his talents. Not only did I fall for my future wife, but I also feel under David Bowie’s musical spell.

Destiny granted me tickets to this show. Bowie had just begun his American leg of the “Reality” tour one month earlier and it was receiving some of the best reviews of his career, but the final Chicago area show would prove to be anything but ordinary and prove to be a defining concert experience for me. Bowie’s standard shows were approximately twenty-five songs, but this show came in at thirty-one songs which was one of the longest of the tour and of his entire career.

The intimacy of the theater setting fit this show perfectly as the building enhanced the music. I was able to delve into Bowie’s latter day modern material with gusto because I could see the emotion and expressions with which he was performing these songs. From the opening chords of a reworked “Rebel, Rebel” to the finale of “Ziggy Stardust” Bowie entranced the Chicago faithful with a performance that showed he was not only commanding of the material, but that he still had something to prove. When it came time for “Life On Mars”, after the piano opening, Bowie called off the band. Three years later, I’m not quite sure why, but my gut feeling is because he wasn’t “feeling” it and did not want to call the performance in. The band cheered him on, specially the brilliant bass player Gail Ann Dorsey. Bowie returned to the microphone and proceeded to belt out a tour de force vocal performance I will never forget. It was as if he wrote the song earlier in the day and not thirty-years earlier. Many male singers tend to lose their range as their approach their mid-thirties, but shockingly Bowie sounds as good as he’s ever sounded from a live perspective and the man was a few years shy of 60. Everything about this evening was taken to another level from a driving “Under Pressure” to a smoking “Suffragette City” to the spellbinding extended encore, the night hit on all cylinders.
More than anything else, what I loved about witnessing Bowie live in 2004 was the joy and exuberance with which he gave each performance. He appeared to be at peace with his legacy, his place in the music industry and who he is today. The most spellbinding aspect of this concert was that I didn’t just go home wanting just to buy “Ziggy Stardust”, “The Man Who Sold The World” or “Aladdin Sane” but “Heathen”, “Reality”, “Earthling” and “Black Tie White Noise” as well. The electrifying live performance did not rely solely on hits but what truly was the best of Bowie. While the performance of “’Heroes’” was tour de force, it was preceded by the equally prevailing “I’m Afraid of Americans” (which was recorded with Trent Reznor) which in essence is the flip side to “’Heroes’”, two decades later. “Sunday” and “Cactus” seemed as essential to the set as “Sound & Vision” and “Hallo Spaceboy”. What Bowie managed so beautifully on the “Reality” tour was partnering the new and old meticulously so to the average fans ears, they sound like forgotten favorites. Many people I speak to have no desire to see Bowie unless he plays his hits and I told them that if they saw the tour in support of “Reality” they would have witnessed one of the most invigorating performances of their life. The truth is that David Bowie did not get experimental in the 1990’s. He merely continued to do what he has been doing for nearly forty-years; grow. The only difference is that we weren’t listening as closely as we had in previous decades.
I’ve seen a hundreds concerts and for some reason when people ask me the best that I’ve seen; David Bowie is one of the first to enter my mind. Not just because of my beautiful date, but because of the extraordinary performance. I went expecting to see a good show but walked away seeing a chameleon change colors in ways I never thought imaginable. The truth is that Bowie was more adventurous on this tour than he had ever been in his entire career. Even when he pulled out “Blue Jean” in the encore for the first time this tour, it didn’t seem like throwing the audience a bone, instead if felt like Bowie truly wanted to play it and share it with the 4,500 in attendance. Bowie is an artist who understands his fan base, both the fanatical and the casual. He intersected the past and present with flawless precision. He kept momentum throughout the entire concert even fooling many casual fans who believed that certain songs from “Heathen” and “Reality” were from his 70’s masterpieces which helped dismiss the notion that everything post “Never Let Me Down” had little pop flair. The only regret I have is that I was not able to see more shows than the two I saw.

One other item no one gives Bowie enough credit for was how impeccable the routing and staging of this tour was. He very easily could have performed one night at an arena in Chicago but opted to spend an entire week, in January no less, in Chicago performing close to fifty-unique songs and showing that he embodied one of the songs on “Reality”, “Never Get Old”. He went from theaters to arenas and late in the tour he hit a few sheds. One of the most amazing aspects of the theater tour was that with few exceptions, all tickets including services fees ranges from $40 to $90. This is a steal to see someone of Bowie’s caliber in such a small setting. Compare that to the $125 Bon Jovi charged for their top tickets in stadiums in 2006 and it’s even more impressive. In recent years, as bands have seen their audiences dwindle they have overpriced their tickets to maximize profit, many times taking advantage of their core audience. What most acts don’t realize is that by doing this they will never expand their core base. If Bowie tickets had been $150 a piece, I wouldn’t have even considered going, but they were affordable and I found myself walking out not just a fan but a believer. Before that show I owned two David Bowie compilations, three years later I own well over twenty albums by the most adventurous musician of the rock era.
A few months later I scored front row tickets to the Milwaukee show and I was astonished as the passion put forth by Bowie during “The Loneliest Guy”, an ominous philosophical track from the recent release “Reality”. Bowie sung each note with his eyes closed as he gripped the microphone as if he was holding on for his life. When he finished the song, he wiped away what appeared to be tears from his eyes. It was a profound moment which left me speechless and it inspired me to go back to “Reality” to rediscover this gem. Once again, here is where a concert performance can send you back to the record demonstrating you missed something on previous listens. . “The Loneliest Guy” is one of those deep album cuts that will probably get lost over time, but when he performed it with an intensity few bands can muster today. The somber piano driven song is subdued but when Bowie sang the lyric, “I’m the luckiest guy, not the loneliest guy in the world….not me”, he stepped away and cleared his eyes with what appeared to be a few tears. To this day, “The Loneliest Guy” has more pays on my Ipod than any other Bowie song. This is the power of the live performance. Here was a song I consistently passed by on “Reality” and the performance made me look at the song in an entirely different light.

As I watched the little blonde to my left sing along with Bowie word for word, I knew she was a keeper and I walked away with a deeper admiration for David Bowie and his eclectic catalog. It’s been three-years since this show and almost every moment of it is still vital in my mind. As my future wife and I watched Bowie roar through an encore heavy on material from “Ziggy Stardust”, even though this was our first concert together, we knew it was more than just a mundane performance or date. It was on this night that I realized I would no longer be the lonely guy, but more so the luckiest guy.

All the pages that have turned
All the errors left unlearned, oh
Well I'm the luckiest guy
Not the loneliest guy
In the world
Not me
-“The Loneliest Guy”

Jan-16-04 Rosemont Theatre Chicago U.S.A.
Setlist
01. Rebel Rebel
02. New Killer Star
03. Let's Dance
04. Reality
05. Hang on to Yourself
06. Fame
07. Cactus
08. Sound and Vision
09. All the Young Dudes
10. China Girl
11. Fantastic Voyage
12. 5:15 the Angels Have Gone
13. Days
14. The Man Who Sold the World
15. Hallo Spaceboy
16. Sunday
17. Under Pressure [fea. Gail Ann Dorsey]
18. Life on Mars?
19. Slip Away
20. A New Career in a New Town
21. Breaking Glass
22. Panic in Detroit
23. Ashes to Ashes
24. White Light/White Heat
25. I'm Afraid of Americans
26. "Heroes"
Encore
27. Bring Me the Disco King
28. Blue Jean *
29. Five Years
30. Suffragette City
31. Ziggy Stardust

May-19-04 Milwaukee Theatre Milwaukee U.S.A.
Setlist
01. Rebel Rebel
02. Cactus
03. Sister Midnight
04. New Killer Star
05. All the Young Dudes
06. Fashion
07. China Girl
08. The Loneliest Guy
09. The Man Who Sold the World
10. Sunday
11. Heathen (The Rays)
12. Hallo Spaceboy
13. Under Pressure [fea. Gail Ann Dorsey]
14. Station to Station
15. Ashes to Ashes
16. Quicksand
17. The Supermen
18. Modern Love
19. Pablo Picasso
20. White Light/White Heat
21. I'm Afraid of Americans
22. "Heroes"
Encore
23. Hang on to Yourself
24. Suffragette City
25. Ziggy Stardust

Metallica: Turning the Page

Metallica is busy locked away in a recording studio at this moment with the great Rick Rubin. The hope is to have a new record in stores by November and after the lukewarm response to "St. Anger", both fan and band are hoping for a return to form. Despite what critical reaction was to "St. Anger", 2004 was a banner year for Metallica with the theatrical release of "Some Kind of Monster" and a concert tour that impressed even the biggest cynics. Below is a review that originally ran in Unrated Magazine in 2004.

Allstate Arena, Rosemont, IL - August 28, 2004
Photos by Rob Grabowski

As abysmal as 2004 has been for the concert industry, it may very well be remembered as the year of comebacks. The first half of this year was dominated by David Bowie, on a tour, consisting largely of theaters, showcased his entire career and showed he was finally at ease in his own shoes. The same could be said of Prince whose back to basics hits tour was a rebirth. Both artists arguably performed the most illustrious shows of their careers on the heels of two back to basics albums, Bowie's "Reality" and Prince's "Musicology". While both reaped tons of praise for the standout shows and return to form, one act missing from the well deserved critical praise is roaming the road and playing some of the most defining shows of their twenty-plus year career; Metallica. The difference for Metallica is they are out in support of their worse album, "St. Anger". However, they are demonstrating they are anything but has-beens. If you want proof, go to their website and download one of the shows. Each show is being recorded and sold as a download on their website a few days later. This is forcing the band to reevaluate their entire catalog and this was never more evident than during the band's recent two night stand in Chicago.

I had never seen Metallica live before and my good friend, Lonn Friend, promised me a hook up last spring. Needless to say, he did well and the day before the show, I got an email saying, "you're in for Saturday". It was raining outside as I made my way to will call, but the second I picked up my tickets, I knew Lonn had done more than taken care of me for the evening. Section 102, row 3...three rows up off the General Admission floor, quite possibly the best tickets I have ever had. I went to my seats and saw most of the surprisingly solid Godsmack set. After their 60 minute set, the countdown began for night two of Metallica in Chicago. I've been a Metallica fan since '87 but somehow never saw them live. I chalk it up to a lot of bad timing and the Summer Sanitarium shows always appeared to be in the worse locations possible, usually race tracks or speedways which usually do not have concerts. Seeing any concert indoors is always better. It is indoors where Metallica has truly ruled with some of the most inventive stage designs to ever grace an arena. On the '91 "Black" tour they gave us a stage with a fan pit in the middle of the stage, in '97 the stage take up the entire floor and in 2004 the band's stage is in the round with 360 degree rotation.

At 9pm sharp, the lights dimmed and we were treated to the usual instrumental opening music, "The Ecstasy of Gold". As the music reached its climax, the band, Lars, James, Kirk and new bassist Robert Trujillo appeared on stage one by one...taking their places and ready to assail the Chicago crowd for the next 150 minutes. The acoustic intro to "Battery" was heard from the sound system and right before the drums kicked in, the band went full speed ahead. Instead of using their stage lights, a dozen giant light bulbs were placed at key points on the round stage. The band tore through the song like it was 1986 all over again. While I had never laid eyes on Metallica in the flesh, I was forever a collector of their live shows on cassette and VHS cassettes back in the day. It was how I sheltered the fall from not seeing them live. I'll say this here and now, the 2004 model of Metallica is as impressive as any period of the band. Other tours may have been better for old school reasons, seeing Cliff or Jason play bass can never be replaced, but there seems to be a sense of urgency with this band, in the here and now. Instead of resting on their laurels, they are giving back to their fans. As the 16,000 loyal fans in attendance were soon to learn, this show would give any show from the "Puppets", "Justice" or "Black" tours a run for their money.

After the explosive opening and pulverizing performance of "Battery", "Fuel" kept the crowd vivacious. Anyone who rags on the "Load" and "Re-Load" albums has not listened to them deeply. One thing I will always give Metallica credit for is they always push the creative envelope. Metal bands have such loyal followings for one main reason; the music, for better or worse, really never changes. How much heavier can it get? How much longer can the songs be? Other people like to rip Metallica down, but they are always forging ahead trying innovative avenues in the hope of expanding their creative juices. As much of a failure that "St. Anger" may be, I still give them their props for at least trying to do something diverse. "Fuel" in 2004 is night and day different from the '97 track and its incarnations that followed on subsequent tours. Lars is a madman behind the drums and the velocity with which it is performed makes it sound like it could have been recorded in 1984 for "Ride the Lightening". The fervor performance exceeded my expectations and even the skeptic's had to believe after observing the fuel charging their engines.

The band said their hello's to the nearly sold-out Chicago crowd before ripping to "Leper Messiah", a gem from "Master of Puppets" performed only a handful of times in the last 15 years. "(Welcome Home) Sanitarium" followed to the roars of the metal faithful. Despite the diverse styles of music I love, "Master of Puppets" will always be one of my ten desert island discs, now and forever. It's the perfect metal LP, with monumental songs that defined the entire metal genre for every act that followed them. The first time I heard "Puppets", I felt like it was from another planet. I was ten years old sitting in my kitchen having my next door neighbor crank it. At first it sounded like noise, shortly thereafter it became religion. Only the early Sabbath and Zeppelin albums have been more influential to the metal world.

As the stage slowly rotated, it gave the audience a different view of the stage for every song. In between songs, Lars came out from behind his drum kit to slap those die-hards up against the stage. Some see this as show boating, I see it as a man who has not lost touch with his fans. There is a reason why metal fans, especially Metallica's, are so loyal. It's because these bands are equally devoted to them. The set lists on this tour are a wet dream come true to these fans. Never has the band been so diversified in their choices. Plus, with the extensive lighting and pyrotechnics, this is no easy feat. Even the two songs performed from "St. Anger", the title track and "Frantic", work much better live than they do on record. The sterile sound of the album versions is gone as Hetfield preaches to the crowd and elicits their voices until they become part of the song.

Other rarities followed..."Turn The Page" was performed for the first time in four years and the "Black" album's "Holier Than Thou" had its first airing since May of this year. "Sad But True" and "Creeping Death" continued to drive the loyal fans into a tizzy, banging their heads just like it's 1989. The main set closed with "Damage, Inc", again from the classic "Puppets" album. What struck me during the main set is how in tune the band appears to be with their instruments on this tour. Gone are Hetfield's drunken rants; instead we have a man who still sings and performs with vengeance, but speaks with greater clarity and reason than ever before. "For those of you who did not come in here with any anger, that's good...and for those of you who brought that anger inside, let is out in here and get it out before you head back outside". It's not 1986 and the band is not an underdog anymore, but after the struggles of "St. Anger" the band is driving forward and playing each and every show like its last. I believe the poor fan reaction to the album made them gaze at their back catalog and embrace it once again. Like Bowie and Prince, they are doing it in style and grace giving casual and hard core fans alike the perfect balance of their entire catalog. Watching the fans at the Allstate Arena rock back and forth made it perfectly clear as to why Ozzfest is still thriving and other festivals have gone way of the 8-track. These fans are beyond loyal...the type that would kill for the band and music they love. Say what you want about metal heads, but they are possibly music's most loyal following.

For the encores, "No Leaf Clover" from 1999's "S&M" disc was performed for the first time since Michael Kamen's death (the composer they worked with on "S&M"), at the end James somberly stated "Michael Kamen, rest in peace". From that moment onward, there was no holding back. "Nothing Else Matters" led into an explosive "Master of Puppets" played unedited and to perfection. One look at this metal crowd during "Puppets" made it clearly evident that Metallica will always be a draw live even if they never recorded another album. The crowd's arms and fists were flying in the air with furor. Before the next song, the stage went black and a sound clip from Stanley Kubrick's "Full Metal Jacket" was played. Upon its conclusion, the crowd was assaulted by a series of pyrotechnic blasts. Never have so many blasts knocked me back. In all honesty, one of them was so forceful I almost fell over. To say they wanted you to feel shell shock is an understatement. As the smoke cleared, Hetfield could be seen strutting the few simple chords to the song that broke Metallica into the mainstream, "One". The onslaught of guitars, bass and drums reached a climax during "One" as the band proved they still had the passion to perform. As "One" would down, the bands most famous riff to their most famous song, "Enter Sandman", began. As the opening chords led into the drums beating away, a deafening pyrotechnic blast erupted over the entire stage. During the encores, it was clearly evident to me that each song became more vociferous as the band was testing their audience to heights I did not think was possible. "Enter Sandman" is the point where old school fans feel Metallica sold out but by the looks of insanity I witnessed by the 16,000, I did not see anyone without their fist in the air singing along.
While many thought they had seen the final song of the evening, the band was regrouping and looking over the set list. James asks the crowd, "Who has 'Kill 'Em All'". After the loud reception, the band delivered another rarity, "Jump In The Fire". Metallica is going all out on this tour playing every song imaginable from all points of their career. If old school Metallica wasn't enough, to end the show, the band resurrected "Dyers Eve" from "...And Justice For All". The steadfast fans were euphoric the band chose a cult favorite to end the show. As the final strains were played, the band went to each end of the stage and interacted with the fans. The band was throwing hundreds of guitar picks into the crowd. This went on for a solid 15 minutes, past curfew, as the band gave away little goodies that will serve as the ultimate souvenirs to those who witnessed a thrilling show for the ages. Lars then stepped up to one of the microphone's and told the crowd that he knows many of the fans follow them from show to show and he was about to say something he does not say at every show, "How come Metallica always play their best shows in Chicago", to roars of approval. As the band made their way to the backstage area, I pulled out my ear plugs and had a massive smirk on my face. After seventeen years, the wait to see one of my favorite bands had finally ended. Most media outlets are still focusing on the misstep of "St. Anger" but as far as I'm concerned, its water under the bridge as the band is going above and beyond every fan's wildest expectations, including mine. On this current tour, Metallica has proven they are anything but has-been's by illustrating to me they can still play with as much vengeance as they did twenty years ago. All that mattered was the passion with which they performed for two and a half hours. I for one will not forget it anytime soon. Neither will those who have fortunate enough to see them live this year. Along with Prince and Bowie, Metallica have once again, established their place in this world and will be a force to be reckoned with...wherever they may roam.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Set list:

Battery
Fuel
Leper Messiah
Welcome Home (Sanitarium)
Frantic
Turn the Page
Holier Than Thou
St. Anger
Sad But True
Creeping Death
Damage Inc.

No Leaf Clover
Nothing Else Matters
Master of Puppets
One
Enter Sandman

Jump In The Fire
Dyers Eve

Will Hoge: New Live Album February 20th!

One of the best live albums of all time is Will Hoge's 2005 release, "During The Before & After". It was the album that hooked me and two years later, he has another live album ready to roll; "Again Somewhere Tomorrow". The track list is as follows:

The Man Who Killed Love

Love From A Scar

Wait 'Til Your Daddy Gets Home

Woman Be Strong

Bible -Vs- Gun

Sunshine Burn

Someone Else's Baby

Rock And Roll Star

July Moon

Long Tall Sally

She Don't Care

Southern Belle

Lover Tonight

There are only two songs from the last live album which is a nice surprise. For most artists, live albums are product they put out as in between releases but for Hoge, they are something much more powerful. I can't wait!

Photo by Peyton Hoge

Talking Metal

Last April right before I went on my honeymoon I went to the Itunes music store and began downloading assorted music podcasts. I randomly grabbed a slew of shows and at the last minute, I downloaded a podcast called Talking Metal. Of all the podcasts I downloaded, this one interested me the least. Nine months later, it is the podcast I listen to the most.

Metal heads are a misunderstood group of people...they always have been and always will be. While listening to these podcasts, I found myself becoming increasingly engaged with each and every episode even when they did not have a major interview. Hosts Mark Strigl and John Ostronomy are two fans who work in the industry who took the bull by the horns and have become the #1 Metal podcast and have even been in the top 25 Music Podcasts from time to time in Itunes. I began corresponding with Mark & John a few months back when I set Lonn Friend up with an interview on their show upon the release of his memoirs of "Life on Planet Rock".

What I love most about Mark and John is that they do their homework before these interviews and give educated and inspiring thoughts on the artists and their inner workings. They are more than fan boys and ask better questions than most journalists. The truth is that I haven't listened to a lot of metal in the last decade, but the show inspired me to go back to my cd shelf and rediscover most of the music I grew up with and listened to religiously from 1987-1997. I owe that to Mark and John and plan on finally writing a "50 Underrated Hard Rock Albums" over the next few months focusing on lost albums that deserve a second chance.

This past week I was scheduled to do a 15-20 minute interview for an upcoming podcast and I wound up spending close to an hour doing a phone interview. The podcast will hopefully be posted sometime in the next month. In the meantime, I'll be going through my archives to see some of the harder rock reviews I have done over the last few years. Do yourself a favor and check out the Podcast because it's fun and informative and will bring out your inner metal geek.

Artwork created by Talking Metal listeners Jim Hollander and Casey McKinley

The Return of James!

A little over five years ago the Manchester based band James performed their farewell concerts in the UK to much acclaim. Singer Tim Booth exited leaving the band without a singer. Despite reports they would carry on with a new singer, this never came to fruition. Many people feel bands like Coldplay are deeply influenced by U2, but in truth, I hear more of James in them rather than U2.

One of my best friends, Kevin, became enamoured with the band back in high school and he continually reminded me of when "Laid" would be landing in stores in the fall of 1993. Because of him, James became one of my favorite bands and in America, one of the most underrated bands of the 1990's. There was so much more to this band than anyone gave them credit for. When U2 wanted to work with Eno in 1999 and 2000, he gave James precedence and I believe I read in an interview that "Sometimes" is one of Eno's favorite tracks that he ever produced.

Sadly I doubt we'll see a lot of new material from the band but instead will get a revamped "Greatest Hits" instead. However, I never caught the band live, so I'll anxiously wait until they make their way to US hopefully in the fall. Check out the letter posted by the band on their website here.

Gotta keep faith that your love will change tomorrow

Journey & Def Leppard: Survivors

It’s better to burn out…than fade away!-“Rock of Ages”

Co-headlining bills appear to be the wave of the future. I hate them…plain and simple; these shows are not good bargains for anyone other than the artists or promoters. Back when Kiss and Aerosmith toured together in 2003, everyone was thrilled at the prospect of seeing these two rock giants on the same bill, but all I could think was “where’s the rest of my show”? For $140 Kiss and Aerosmith each played an 80-minute set with no jamming or unique sets ala Billy Joel/Elton John. Billy and Elton played for well over three-hours, covered each others songs and opened and closed the shows together giving the fans a performance you could not see if you were to see either of them solo. The only thing that occurred on the Aerosmith/Kiss tour was less work from the two bands. The year before the co-headline jaunt, I saw Aerosmith for a top dollar price of $75 with Kid Rock and Run DMC in support. It was arguably one of the best tours of their thirty-year career. I saw Kiss for around the same price a few years earlier with their full two-hour stage show and two solid openers. With all that in mind, I went to see Journey and Def Leppard’s co-headline summer tour stop just outside of Chicago. I had no desire to go even if tickets were conservatively priced for a double bill ($30-$85). I had seen both bands last year and it was unlikely either band would improve on those shows, however, I was about to be proved wrong.

2006 has been a rough year for Journey so far. Vocalist Steve Augeri has been suffering from vocal issues and had to leave the tour in its infancy. Replacing him is Jeff Scott Soto, lead singer for Neil Schon’s side project Soul Sirkus. The whole situation is practically an outtake from “Spinal Tap”. Does Journey tour with a bullpen of lead singers at their disposal? A lesser band would have called it quits and gone home, however, the stakes were raised with the co-headline bill and they brought Jeff in, on short notice, without missing a beat. In a weird stroke of luck, it may have been a blessing in disguise. This is by no means any disrespect to Steve Augeri, but Jeff Scott Soto brought a fresh perspective to Journey’s classic songs. With the amphitheater near capacity, guitarist Neil Schon and Jonathan Cain took to the stage. Neil launched into a stirring version of the “Star Spangled Banner” which immediately segued into “Anyway You Want It”. I was stunned last summer at how tightly knit the band was when I caught their 30th Anniversary tour. It was a remarkable three-hour show encompassing their entire history. It was also one of the reasons I had no interest in seeing them this summer. How could they top what they did last year?

This evening was short on talk and after a very brief introduction of Jeff Scott Soto, the set ran at a breakneck pace with most songs segueing one into the other. Following in quick succession were the greatest hits “Ask The Lonely”, “Stone In Love”, “Wheel In The Sky” and “Who’s Crying Now” each receiving an elated response louder than its predecessor. These songs are so imbedded in the public consciousness it does not matter who is singing them. This is a testament to the songs. How many acts can perform in front of close to 30,000 paying people two-decades past their commercial peak without the original singer? Not many. This is a band that never ceases to surprise me despite numerous obstacles to overcome. Even though the Chicago show did not have any material from the last decade, this set was relevant and prevailing just from the venerable performance. Jeff Scott Soto did not even have to finish some verses, as the near capacity crowd was there with him following along singing every last lyric. Nostalgia or not, this was a scene to behold.

Journey has so many hits, it would be easy for them to pick a standard set list and play it every night of the tour, but to their credit, they’re not playing it safe. “Chain Reaction”, “Dead or Alive” and “Escape” were not obvious choices for a shortened set list, but they’re deep album cuts which added furor which the crowd fed off of. Last summer, drummer Deen Castronovo, stole the show with a passionate performance of “Patiently”. This year he not only left the crowd breathless once again, but he did the impossible by stunning us with trancelike performances of “Open Arms” and “Faithfully”, arguably two of the five best known Journey songs. His vocal delivery was so striking that I don’t think he should hand vocal duties for these two songs back to Steve Augeri, upon his return. An extended bluesy intro to “Lovin’ Touchin’ Squeezin’”, featuring Jonathan Cain on harmonica, was refreshing to see. Journey is a classic rock staple and no one would ever expect them to fiddle with these songs in any way, but this is what keeps them relevant and not becoming a band destined for state fairs. I don’t even deem myself a Journey fan, but each and every time I see them, they win me over with their endearing performance, proving the naysayer’s (including this writer) wrong.

If all of this was not enough to impress, the finale put the crowd into a state of delirium with “Don’t Stop Believing” taking on a life of its own. It became an anthem last year for the Chicago White Sox during their World Series run and as a result, the Chicago crowd made this song a tour de force moment. The lone encore of “Separate Ways” fired up the crowd prepping them for Def Leppard’s set. Whether this was one’s tenth Journey concert or their first, it’s unlikely it will be their last if the wails of the crowd are any indication. Few bands can handle as many challenges or hardships as Journey, but they are survivors in the truest sense of the word. They continue to exist because of sheer determination. If you don’t take them seriously, that will be your call, but never count them out. These guys are in it for the long run.

By the time Def Leppard hit the stage for their 85-minute set, the crowd was ready to riot. Most surprising to me, the lawn was almost completely sold-out. I spoke with one of the promoters after the show and he informed me they had sold 2,000 tickets in the two-hours before show time. If it was a weekend this show would have been sold-out (the amphitheaters capacity is just under 30,000). This was the largest crowd Def Leppard has played to in the Chicago area since two back-to-back shows at Alpine Valley in July of 1988 (each show brought in 35,000). Once Queen’s “We Will Rock You” intro finished, the lights dimmed and the band took their spots on stage where lead singer Joe Elliott made his way to the microphone with one question for the audience; “Do you wanna get rocked”? After the surging opener, “Let’s Get Rocked” the band ran through “Make Love Like A Man”, the undervalued “Promises” and “Bringin' On The Heartbreak” with ease performing the songs with unwavering precision. From my vantage point in the second row, the band was not only proficient with their instruments but was in another realm during this show. While the song selection provided no surprises, the resolve with which each song was performed did. The band was incredibly focused at not only keeping those up front engaged but those a half mile away on the lawn as well. Despite seeing the band numerous times before, I never quite noticed how mobile they are when they hit the stage. Aside from drummer Rick Allen the band members do not take us residence on any part of the stage and roamed freely. Most acts find a spot on stage and stay there for the entire evening never budging. In fact, this was the most mobile I’ve seen any band in quite some time.

The evening’s tour de force performance was the gorgeous and melodious “Hysteria”. While watching the band perform this understated pop gem, I couldn’t get over how perfectly constructed this elegiac pop song is. This is one of those songs you could go years without hearing, but when you do, it’s comes to life and you marvel as to why you didn’t realize it’s luminosity before. There are those who say that the band owes all of their success to Mutt Lange. While he was without a doubt the sixth member of the band, he was not the one who played all of the instruments on the record or went on the road touring giving these songs focus. The sonic landscapes of “Hysteria” are luscious and the band amazingly not only recreates this sound on stage, but gives the song a creative edgy arrangement. “Hysteria” is easily one of the top 200 albums ever recorded and when listening to it recently, I couldn’t help but feel that this album could have been recorded two weeks ago and not twenty-years ago. This may be the very reason as to why these songs continue to resonate.

Only two songs from their new covers cd, “Yeah!” were performed; “No Matter What” and “Rock On”, the same two from last years tour. Earlier in the tour, they were performing four songs and now it’s surprisingly down to two. In shows following Chicago, “Hellraiser” made a few appearances but I believe “Waterloo Sunset” is the one that should be performed nightly as it could perfectly segue into or from “Hysteria”. Last summer’s set lists were invariable for the most part, however, this summer has shown the band rotating certain songs in and out of the set list (including “Hellraiser”, “Hanging On The Telephone” and “Let It Go”). If Def Leppard were smart, they would take a page from Journey’s book rotating songs in and out of the set and include a few songs from “Slang”, “Euphoria” and “X”, three near masterpieces which completely are off most people’s radars if for no other reason than being unaware they even exist. All three albums show a distinctive side to the band and even though their combined sales as less than their b-side album “Retroactive” (from 1993), I believe the brilliance of these albums will come to shine through one day. One can only hope the band realizes these gems deserve a second chance and rotates them in and out of the set, giving these songs their due and proving the cynic’s and critics wrong.

The remainder of the show focused on fixating nostalgic compositions that effortlessly supercharged the crowd to new heights. As I watched the band effortlessly churn out these greatest hits, an epiphany took place. I could not help but notice how much fun these guys were having. I’ve seen hundreds of concerts over the last few years and some acts while proficient with their instruments don’t enjoy being on stage. Def Leppard was euphoric in their delivery, power and conviction with which they performed “Rocket”, “Photograph”, “Rock of Ages” and “Pour Some Sugar On Me”, all of which are nearly two-decades old. When all is said and done, isn’t rock n’ roll supposed to be fun above all else? While scoffed at a decade back for being “soft” and coming from an era that has largely been despised over time, Def Leppard has never given up and have proven themselves to be survivors.

While many view this co-headline show as a pure nostalgia fest, both bands surprised me with the resolve, drive and force they put behind their music. Despite lack of new material finding its way on the radio, never underestimate either of these bands because their secret weapons lie within their live shows. As long as Journey and Def Leppard believe in themselves and continue to perform with the same conviction as I witnessed on a steamy Chicago night, they will continue to thrive and survive even if radio formats ignore their most recent albums. One thing I know for sure is that neither band is going to burn out or fade away any time soon-they are both survivors in the truest sense of the word.

Def Leppard photo courtesy of Rob Grabowski.

Sebastian Bach: Bach Alive

November 27, 2006
Rosemont Horizon
Chicago, IL

The long and lanky Sebastian Bach hit the stage of the Allstate Arena with the same poise and liveliness that he did when he first performed in Chicago, over seventeen-years ago when he was opening for Bon Jovi. A lot has been written about Bach in the last year with his reality star turn on the VH-1 reality show “Supergroup” along with his opening spot on the Guns N’ Roses tour. Like Axl Rose, Bach is touring without his former band (Skid Row). His current backing band is superb, but even they can not rekindle the magic that the original incarnation of Skid Row once had. Great musicians don’t necessarily make great bands. While the band’s musicianship is first rate, they can’t quite capture the magic that people like Dave Sabo and Rachel Bolan brought to these songs. Jon Bon Jovi deserves credit for helping Skid Row reach the limelight, however, they would not have stayed in the public eye without the compelling songs written by Dave Sabo and Rachel Bolan and those songs would not have reached the masses without Bach, one of the most charismatic and misunderstood front men in the history of hard rock. I’d like to see the original Skid Row reconcile because there is so much more that they could accomplish together rather than apart, however, I do realize this is highly unlikely to occur. With that being said, it’s not as if Bach and his band called the performance in, on the contrary, they thrust themselves into a tizzy for 75-minutes as Bach led the way giving half of the crowd a nostalgia filled set while to the younger members of the crowd, he demonstrated what a rock n’ roll front man is capable of.

The set list was a mix of new material and vintage Skid Row classics. Each performance brought out the inner madman in Bach as he clearly was honored and thrilled to be performing in arenas once again. The energy brought by Bach and his band could not be denied as they delivered heavier renditions of Skid Row classics (“Slave To The Grind” and “Big Guns”) while balancing some surprisingly solid new songs from his second solo album to be released in 2007. New material like “Stuck Inside” shows that Bach has no intentions of mellowing with age. He receives a lot of bad press but in truth, one has to admire Bach because he is who he is. He doesn’t pretend to be something he’s not or follow a band wagon of genre’s that are currently popular. He is a rock n’ roller at heart who’s frantic and thrashing personality can cue crowds into hysteria. There is more than just a pretty face to this poster boy for late 80’s metal. Deep in his heart lies a determination and love of rock n’ roll and no matter what is riding atop the Billboard charts, expect a first rate rock show anytime you plan on seeing Bach.

Early in his set, the crowds reaction was tepid despite Bach front and center giving his all. Instead of being frustrated by this, he continued to eat away at the crowd, chipping away at their solitude. I deeply admired this as he was not ready to be defeated. Bach gave props to the arena formerly known as the Rosemont Horizon refusing to acknowledge the corporate sponsor which received a roar of approval from the crowd. But the evening’s biggest surprise was the new mid-tempo ballad, “By Your Side”. This is the first song I have heard from Bach since leaving Skid Row that I feel could have huge potential. With the right promotion, this song could bring Bach and his music back to the mainstream media. “You Don’t Understand” was another new number that showed Bach hasn’t lost his edge just yet with a riff so pulverizing and assaulting it is reminiscent of a classic Judas Priest or Iron Maiden riff. Regardless of who inspired this song, it supercharged the audience.

As the set progressed, Bach became more and more confident as he belted out the classics of “I Remember You” and “18 and Life”, but it was an album cut off of “Slave To The Grind” that really caught me off guard. “The Threat” was delivered with riveting raw energy that the entire arena took into account. When another “Slave” track appeared, “Monkey Business”, the crowd was in Bach’s hand. He even reminisced about shooting the video for “Business” in Chicago mere days before the band and Guns N’ Roses opened the “Use Your Illusion” tour at Alpine Valley to 80,000 fans over two nights in May of 1991. Despite the glories of yesterday, Bach was focused on the present even while he delivered a passionate performance of “Youth Gone Wild”, his final number of the evening. Despite being near forty, Bach sung the song with divine conviction making you believe this wasn’t just a trip down memory lane.

One of the reasons so many 80’s rockers have been unable to reclaim the spotlight is because they haven’t stayed true to themselves. Many of them abandoned the metal genre and hopped on numerous bandwagons and when those ventures failed, they came back to metal with their tails between their legs. Despite witnessing the highest highs and the lowest lows the music business has to offer, Sebastian Bach respects his audience and gives them his all for the time he’s on stage. Say what you want about Bach, but he’s never attempted to be anyone other than himself and as a result has not only stayed true to himself but his music as well.

Idiocracy: So True It's Scary?

Twentieth Century Fox rushed the latest Mike Judge film, "Idiocracy" into theaters quicker than you could say "TPS Report". It was released this past week on DVD with Luke Wilson in the main role. There are numerous theories as to why this film was shelved for close to two years, that can be found here. Most interesting, few of the theories have to do with the quality of the film.

Mike Judge made his mark with "Beavis & Butthead" and "King of The Hill". However, it was his first major film where he left his mark, "Office Space". I remember seeing it opening night, loving it and telling friends and co-workers to check it out. Sadly, the film disappeared from theaters after barely covering it's budget. However, something happened later that year when it was released on video and DVD, it became a cult classic and has reaped millions in revenue. With all this comedic history, many were highly anticipating "Idiocracy" until it was shelved with a extremely limited release.

I caught this film last night from Netflix and must say, it may grate on the patience of many, but I found it to be very entertaining and quick (the credits begin to roll before the 80-minute mark). Is it as good as "Office Space"? No. But it's better than 90% of the comedy teen drivel thrown into theaters with multimillion dollar marketing campaigns. The film finds Luke Wilson put to sleep in a military experiment where they accidentally forget about him and he does not wake up for 500 years. When he does make his return, he finds the Earth to be so dumbed down, that he is the smartest man on the planet.

The irony in all of this is that on early Sunday morning, I was flipping channels and was fascinated by the trash currently on VH-1 ("The Surreal Life") and MTV ("Exposed" and "My Super Sweet 16"). In a matter of seconds, Judge's film came to life and this isn't taking place in the future but in the here and now! To say I was terrified is an understatement. I'm all for some mindless entertainment here and there (I'll admit to watching "Footballers Wives" on the BBC), but the speed with which MTV appears to be dumbing down the youth of America is staggering. Look no further than it's TV schedule. They recently began a new reality show, "I'm From Rolling Stone" and it airs a mere two times over the course of seven days. Does the current MTV generation know what a writer is? Is the network afraid that showing people create and expose thoughts and feelings about artists too complicated for its viewers? Regardless of the answer, after a mere 15-minutes of watching "Exposed" I came to appreciate Judge's underrated film even more.

Do yourself a favor and check "Idiocracy" out, it may make you laugh and it may make you cry.

Pearl Jam: Band of The Hour (Live In Chicago 2006)

It's a shame to awake in a world of pain
What does it mean when a war has taken over?
-“World Wide Suicide”

The roars of 18,000 fans pierced my eardrums as Matt Cameron’s drums and Jeff Aments’ bass pulsated like an hyperactive heartbeat, Stone Gossard and Mike McCready clashed with their guitars as if their were fighting for their lives and their leader, Eddie Vedder, screamed with rage. Pearl Jam circa 2006 are no longer a band with a rabid fan base but one who is ready to take back their place as the conscience of rock n’ roll with a ferocious roar. The once pissed-off flannel wearing voice of a generation sung lyrics of disillusionment, disconnect and disorder from his pulpit with a sense of urgency and intensity I haven’t seen in well over a decade.

Over the last fifteen years, I have had a tumultuous relationship with Pearl Jam. I bought “Ten”, in late 1991, based on buzz from RIP magazine and I knew it was merely a matter of time before the public at large attached themselves to these melodious songs of torment. For the next few years, especially with the release of “Vs.” in 1993, I felt that Pearl Jam was the most important band in the world. They encompassed everything I loved about rock n’ roll-anger, aggression, hope, gorgeous storytelling, great hooks, soaring melodies and immortal lyrics. They struck a chord with the disillusioned youth of the world. I don’t care what anyone says, but I love it when a band finds their place at a specific moment in time and which connects everyone to the music. However, beginning with the release of “Vitalogy" in November of 1994, I found myself disillusioned with the bands need to be experimental and non-commercial. While I enjoyed “Vitalogy”, it wasn’t the home run their two previous releases were. Besides a small decline artistically, I felt the bands reluctance to shoot videos, give interviews and tour because of a $3.50 service fee added by Ticketmaster were grandstanding in the worse form. Pearl Jam was no longer speaking to my heart, my soul and my troubles. I wanted to see them give interviews giving insight into their craft, I wanted to see them live and I wanted to read and hear them tell me that despite the darkness that surrounds one growing up, it was all going to be ok. For the time being, only their first two albums were accomplishing this. As a result of all of this, I lost track of the band. I knew when new albums were released, but they did not move me the way “Vs.” and “Ten” did. In short, they became a footnote in my musical collection.

In 2000, I rediscovered the band through the release of their official bootleg series. Pearl Jam was the first band to actively release every concert they performed, fully mixed and mastered for commercial consumption. This is something I wish every band did and to support what they were doing, I bought a few shows merely as a show of support. To my surprise these were not merely souvenirs, but revolutionary documents of the band doing what they do best; performing live. They still possessed the rage and fury I originally fell in love with back in 1991 despite albums like “No Code”, “Yield” and “Binaural” leaving me uninspired. In the context of a live performance, I found songs from each of these discs to come ‘alive’. In late 2002, the band released their best album since “Vitalogy”; “Riot Act”. While it was not quite the return to form many fans hoped for, the songs and album gave birth to one of the most audacious tours in rock n’ roll history. The brilliance of these shows lied in its shock factor. One night you may see a solid two-hour show whereas on other night, for no apparent reason, the band would tear through a three-hour plus show with forty-songs. One never knew what to expect and this was highlighted by a three night stand in Mansfield, MA in July of 2003 where the band performed just under one-hundred different and unique songs over three nights. By the end of the tour, I was once again a card carrying member of the Pearl Jam fan club as a result of these electric performances.

While they took some time off from the road, they remained in the public consciousness and mine with the sublime B-side collection “Lost Dogs”, the salient live acoustic album “Live At Benaroya Hall” and the exceptional hits package, “Rearviewmirror” which helped put many of the latter 90’s songs into context by aligning them with their early anthems. Despite the rebirth of my love and admiration for this band, nothing could have prepared me for what happened when they descended upon Chicago in May of 2006.

You're always saying you're too weak to be strong...
You're harder on yourself than just about anyone
-“Life Wasted”

The first week of May, Pearl Jam gave birth to their most potent and relevant album since “Vs.” with their self-titled J Records debut. The voice of a generation was back with a vengeance with screaming declarations of hope and despair. These new songs speak to the public consciousness and the state of the world in 2006. However, two weeks after the album’s release, I was astonished to have a revelation that usually only occurs at one or two concerts a year. Over two nights at Chicago’s United Center arena, I witnessed Pearl Jam tear through over fifty unique and different songs with less than ten being repeated on both nights. It’s rare to see any band be this adventurous so early in a tour. I don’t think there are words to express what it feels like to see something so captivating that it releases the weight of the world from your shoulders. The first night commenced with the staple opener “Release” and while I was initially disappointed (I was hoping for a more adventurous opener) the disenchantment turned into euphoria as I heard Eddie and 18,000 voices howl the chorus in unison. The stage was dimly lit without a spotlight showcasing the unity of the band. Having a big rock star moment announcing your presence is not what is important to this band, as the lyrics took center stage here. There was no ego-tripping, rock poses, indulgent guitar or drum solos. These two nights were about unity.

While the opening number set the stage, it was the second song performed on both evenings that defined the show. “World Wide Suicide” is the most important Pearl Jam song to be written in years. The intensity of this number was a blueprint for the remainder of the evening which found the band in an unrepentant manner never resting on their laurels or their legacy performing every song as if these would be the last shows the band were to ever play. Both shows flirted with the 160-minute mark and exhausted me mentally and physically as I witnessed the band hold nothing back. The biggest difference between the electrifying performances of tours past and this one lies in the intricately crafted and riveting new material. Over the last decade, Pearl Jam has improved on their studio templates to make their sometimes sterile studio versions fixating when performed in front of frenzied audiences. Eddie’s voice showcases all the intensity and anger one needs to believe that Pearl Jam has a fire lit underneath them. Anyone who has continually seen the band live over the last decade knows that when it comes to concerts, they’re challenging their audience nightly with blistering performances few can match.

What is making this tour so magical is the variety of material performed nightly. Night one saw the band confidently change up classics (“Alive”, “Go”, “Black”, “Better Man”, “Jeremy”, “Even Flow”, “Given To Fly” and “Corduroy”) alongside the potent new songs (“Life Wasted”, “Comatose”, “Severed Hand” and the melodic “Unemployable”) which will no doubt be future classics. For the first time in well over a decade, casual fans may have found themselves wondering if these songs were new or forgotten deep cuts hidden on “Ten”, “Vs.” and “Vitalogy”. The bands ability to shuffle between the two mediums was inspirational, especially when the entire crowd sung along to the gorgeous new ballad, “Come Home” proving that songs merely two weeks old can be tour de force moments alongside the war horses

You can spend your time alone redigesting past regrets, ohh,
Or you can come to terms and realize you're the only one who can
forgive yourself. Oh.
Makes much more sense to live in the present tense.
-"Present Tense"

However, it was one specific performance which left me in awe. Eddie Vedder, born just outside of Chicago in Evanston, Illinois spoke of the Chicago Bulls championship runs in the 1990’s and in their honor performed “Present Tense”, a gem from “No Code” and a song I have ignored since its release. On this particular night, band and fan converged into an awe inspiring moment which may make me change my entire opinion of “No Code”. When it came time for the chorus, the entire crowd didn’t just sing the song, but they screamed it back to the band for a spine tingling moment I will never forget. It was right at this moment, when all of Pearl Jam’s decisions as a band over the last dozen years came into focus for me; their Ticketmaster fight, shunning of the press and the complete and total embrace of their fans made complete and total sense. All these years Pearl Jam has fought corporate sponsorship of their music and I realized, that if they had ever chosen a sponsor or had continued to fight to be the best selling band in America, a moment like this never would have been possible. Instead of fighting for mass acceptance, they sought something far better…a family. No other band on the planet takes better care of their fans than Pearl Jam; from preferred tickets, holiday singles and official bootlegs. Pearl Jam puts every other fan club organization to shame. By showering their die-hard fans with respect, the fans have become more than fanatical, but devoted. In today’s market place, Pearl Jam makes sure their core fan base comes first and then the people who may or may not buy their albums next. The band realizes that you can’t have a number one album every time and chasing that train is a losing game. I began to see WHY they fought the fights they fought. They wanted success on their terms. Because of keeping it in the family, “Present Tense” a deep album cut, came alive and had more crowd participation than even “Even Flow”. This isn’t “Piano Man”, “My Generation” or “Hey Jude”…but a lost track from a widely misunderstood album. It was at this moment that I knew it was unlikely I wouldn’t see a better performance of any song in 2006 no matter how many shows I see.

The extended encore was thrilling when Eddie Vedder gave a spirited solo performance on the Beatles classic “You’ve Got To Hide Your Love Away”. As the lights overtook the crowd and the band tore through a blistering version of the Who classic “Baba O’Riley”, the sold out crowd belted the song out at the top of their lungs as the voices soared above even the band’s frenzied playing. I didn’t see how anything could touch this opening night, but I was about to be stunned once again.

For the lights of this city
They only look good when I'm speeding
Gonna leave 'em all behind me
Cause this time
I'm gone
-“Gone”

The second night was as magnanimous as the first, with the band once again reclaiming their destiny as the conscience of rock with an endearing, unrelenting and iconoclastic performance. If one ever has the chance to see Pearl Jam on back to back nights in the same city, I wouldn’t just suggest it but demand you see them both nights as they change their entire set list. Less than ten songs from the previous night were repeated giving the show an entirely different make-up and feel. I found the band revisiting forgotten classics and digging deep into their vast catalog for a few surprises. The best song never to make a proper Pearl Jam album, “Down” brought the house down while the band sprinkled the set with cult classics “Lukin”, “Last Exit”, “I Am Mine” which stood side by side with ferocious performances of “Once”, “Gone”, “Animal”, “Do The Evolution”, “Why Go” and “Better Man” (which never gets old no matter how many times it is performed). Even “Insignificance” from the 2000 album “Binaural” gleaned like a star.

Once again, one of the new songs, “Gone” reached new heights as the crowd slowly whispered the lyrics back to Eddie before hitting the chorus and like a shotgun the crowd fired themselves into a tizzy egging the band on. The amazing aspect of all this is that Pearl Jam delivers each song with subtlety and restraint because they have already won these fans over by making them part of the family. It was in this moment when I realized that Jon Bon Jovi, Mick Jagger, Steven Tyler and Bono are such great front men because their livelihood depends on it. Don’t get me wrong, these guys can work up a sweat whether it is in a small club or a football stadium, but Pearl Jam didn’t have to resort to any shtick because the fair weathered fans in the crowd were few and far between. They don’t hold ticket auctions and don’t fill the best seats with industry peeps, they save the best seats for their fans. At the United Center, there are ten Will Call windows and eight of them were reserved for Ten Club members. By giving everything they can to their fans, they don’t fall into a trap of having to rely on their past and the stadium anthems to fill seats at $100 a ticket. No other band at Pearl Jam’s level has cheaper tickets. Besides price, you will be hard pressed to find better value as the standard concert is well over 150-minutes long.

Eddie Vedder may not be as nimble as he was fifteen-years ago, but the aggression and passion with which he delivers these lyrics is second to none as the second encore proved to be one for the ages kicking off with “Last Kiss”, which featured Eddie Vedder singing from the soundboard at the back of the floor. If this wasn’t enough to seduce the audience with a seductive finesse, Eddie returned to the main stage for a defiant performance of “Last Exit” and an unyielding sense of driven nostalgia with “Glorified G”, a song that was completely off the hook. Figuring the band had reached their nexus I was planning on a rocking finale but was pulled back in for the serenely subtle and elegiac “Crown of Thorns”, a song performed only at “special” shows, according to the band. It’s a Mother Love Bone track which appeared on their only album and the “Singles” soundtrack and is usually reserved for Seattle, Madison Square Garden or Boston (where the Pearl Jam fan base is beyond fanatical). When the band launched into “Rocking In The Free World” and “Yellow Ledbetter” it was almost an after thought for me as my expectations had been blown out of the water by this time.

With the house lights on, I viewed the intensity of the sold out arena and saw them rocking in a way I had not seen before. While many acts have torn down the walls of the United Center before, few have made it like a communal gathering the way Pearl Jam did. For that, I am grateful. Over two nights earlier this year, I saw Pearl Jam present its catalog in a fearless fashion with aggression and anger. This was a band who has once again converged everything I love about rock n’ roll to become the conscience of rock n’ roll for not just one but multiple generations. Pearl Jam may never have the year’s top grossing tour, but that’s OK, they'll settle for being the best instead.

“…I'm still alive”
-“Alive”

Set list for Chicago 5/16/06
Release, World Wide Suicide, Life Wasted, Severed Hand, Comatose, Given To Fly, Low Light, Corduroy, I'm Open, I Got Id, Even Flow, Unemployable, Daughter/(W.M.A.), Present Tense, Do The Evolution, Jeremy, Save You, Porch Encore 1 You've Got To Hide Your Love Away, Better Man, Come Back, State Of Love And Trust, Black, Alive Encore 2 Go, Blood/(Atomic Dog), Indifference, Baba O'Riley, Yellow Ledbetter

Set list for Chicago 5/17/06
Severed Hand, World Wide Suicide, Life Wasted, Animal, Marker In The Sand, Do The Evolution, Whipping, 1/2 Full, I Am Mine, Even Flow, Gone, Insignificance, Better Man, Save it for Later, Down, Garden, Inside Job, Lukin, Why Go Encore 1 Wasted Reprise, Man Of The Hour, Footsteps, Once, Alive Encore 2 Last Kiss, Last Exit, Glorified G, Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In A Small Town, Crown Of Thorns, Rockin' In The Free World, Yellow Ledbetter

RELATED LINKS

Pearl Jam

http://www.myspace.com/tenclub

Pearl Jam Photo Gallery at Unrated Magazine

Unrated Magazine Review

Will Hoge: The Redemption of Rock N’ Roll

Friends, here is a piece I wrote a few years back for Unrated Magazine, but I view it as maybe the most important thing I have ever written. It's about an unheralded talent, Will Hoge. I plan on publishing a new piece on Will shortly so to those of you who are new to my writing, here is a nice introductory piece I wrote back in 2005.
xTony

I saw my rock'n'roll past flash before my eyes. And I saw something else: I saw rock and roll future and its name is Bruce Springsteen. And on a night when I needed to feel young, he made me feel like I was hearing music for the very first time.

-Jon Landau, The Real Paper, May 22, 1974

Musical revelations are few and far between post-college. Everyone I know who was bitten by the bug of rock ‘n’ roll had it occur during their formative years (14-22). This is where you discover both the new and the old through roommates, friends, friends of friends, boyfriends, girlfriends, sitting around smoking, drinking at a party or even getting it on in the backseat of a car. Music is the soundtrack that defines our lives, gives us memories, nostalgia and the eternal feeling of being sixteen without a worry in the world. It is during this time when you hear a certain song, album or artist who you bond with like a first love. When one enters their late 20's rock n’ roll becomes old. Even though many of our favorite artists go onto greater heights, the “real world” becomes much more than a MTV delicacy but something brutal, harsh, sucks the marrow of life and in most cases overcomes us. We turn into cynical people more worried about what our boss thinks of us and how we are going to put food on the tables for our families instead of romanticizing about rock stars and their newest albums. The romance of rock n’ roll disappears quicker than the gas tank of a SUV and becomes merely a product of passing time going from point A to point B. However, it “doesn’t have to be that way”. Occasionally a savior rises from the ashes of our broken hopes and dreams to restore our faith not only in rock ‘n roll, but in ourselves as well.

In 1974, music critic Jon Landau walked into a small Boston club and witnessed rock n’ roll history in the form of a 24-year-old from New Jersey who restored Landau’s faith in rock n’ roll through the magic of live performance. This now infamous review Landau wrote went on to become one of the defining pieces of prose to ever be written about rock n’ roll and helped launch Bruce Springsteen’s career to unprecedented heights when he released his next album, “Born To Run”. Artists find us at crossroads in our lives when we most need them and more times than not, by accident. Earlier this year, I had a musical revelation of unimaginable significance. It was so monstrously momentous that for the first time in my life, I know exactly how Jon Landau felt when witnessing Bruce Springsteen over thirty-years ago.

“Hello, how do you do” -“Not That Cool”

I had never heard of Will Hoge before a cold night last March when I entered the House of Blues to review an up and coming artist who Will was opening for. As I was walking in, I heard what could have been an outtake from the Rolling Stones “Exile On Main Street”. “Better Off Now” served notice immediately this would not be an ordinary opening act. As I turned to corner, I received my first glimpse of Will Hoge; skinny and in a t-shirt, jeans, winter cap, a deep 5 o’clock shadow playing a Fender Telecaster. I felt like I was right back in 1974 with Jon Landau see Bruce Springsteen. Regardless of who he resembled, Will Hoge had me by the jugular and he held that grasp on me until the house lights went on an hour later. I watched him spiritedly run across the stage and felt the entire fifty-years of rock n’ roll history flash before my eyes and run through the blood in my veins; from Elvis Presley to The Beatles to Bob Dylan to the Rolling Stones to the Allman Brothers Band to The Clash to John Mellencamp to Green Day to the Counting Crows to Elvis Costello and Bruce Springsteen. Hoge enthralled the capacity crowd with his high energy full throttle rock and soul revue. Most writers and critics are always heralding a new band for making music “never heard before”. Well, let me tell you it does not take a genius to realize something sounds unlike anything else. However, the challenge is to take your influences and make those artists’ sounds and styles your own which is why I felt like Will’s show was a timeless jukebox of the entire fifty-year history of rock n’ roll. With each note sung and every chord hit, I was in awe at the spirit and control Hoge had over the audience climaxing with a truly magnanimous moment. Will asked for the place to be quiet so he could sing a song a capella…without a microphone. He stepped away from the microphone stand and sung his heart out across the crowd. Right at this moment, I witnessed something I have never seen before in two-hundred plus concerts; each and every one of the 1,400 in attendance became dead silent. They put down the booze, stopped gabbing and for a brief few minutes, every single person’s eyes and ears were focused on Will Hoge. Since the show I saw in March, I have talked up Will to every person I have come in touch with because the performance was so unquestionably compelling that no bit of prose could ever give it justice. All I do know is that I had a transcendental experience watching this man thrive in the glory of rock ‘n roll. Will’s performance was redemptive, resounding, redeeming and most importantly…rocking.


As soon as the set ended, I made my way to the merchandise table to grab his new live cd, “During The Before and After”. On the way home and over the next week, the songs on this disc resonated with me more intensely than any bootleg, live or studio album I had heard in recent memory. Bands usually go in and edit their live recordings or sequence them to the point that the feeling of being there is completely lost. The down and dirty grittiness of live rock ‘n roll is here in all it’s glory, something usually only a remarkable bootleg can occasionally capture. For the first time since the invention of the CD, “During The Before and After” has captured the live concert experience flawlessly and is the most exhilarating and vital live album to be released since The Who’s “Live At Leeds” and the Rolling Stones “Get Your Ya-Ya’s Out”, each recorded over three decades earlier.


I immediately sought out Will’s other albums and was stunned to find two “lost” albums and a stunning EP that have gone largely unnoticed in the media and marketplace. His melodious debut, “Carousel” (2000), is easy on the ears and is an album that holds up particularly well illustrating right from the beginning, he was no fluke. The roof raising “She Don’t Care” has a groove so sweet it could make Ronnie Van Zandt rise from his grave. “Let Me Be Lonely” and “Ms. Williams” are ferocious crowd pleasers. The mid-tempo bass beat of “Ms. Williams” brings the crowd to their feet in concert. “Your Fool” has a chorus that glistens and the title track displays the profound soulful voice within the framework of Will Hoge.


“Blackbird On A Lonely Wire” (2003) is a lost treasure produced by Grammy winning producer Jon Shanks (Bon Jovi, Michelle Branch, Sheryl Crow). One listen to this album and you’ll shake your head in disbelief as to why this was not all over the radio upon its release. “Not That Cool” is the catchiest pick up song ever written. “Secondhand Heart” yearns for freedom from a love one can not let go of. “Doesn’t Have To Be That Way” is a bluesy anthem written for smoke filled music halls. “It’s A Shame” is a mid-tempo fist-flying anthem made to take live performances to that next level. “Someone Else’s Baby” could be viewed as a sentimental throwaway, but instead it has a melancholy feel to it that makes girls melt and guys smile as they yearn for a lost love. “Better Off Now” is a tear down the walls anthem so damn good it could have fit right next to “Rip This Joint” on “Exile On Main Street”. If that was not enough to raise the roof there is the smoking “All Night Long” which would leave most clubs in ashes upon it’s climax.



The “American EP” (2004) was written and recorded in a burst of inspiration from the band’s road travels in a bus that had logged some 300,000 miles touring across America. This EP is a stunning collection of songs that aims right for the heart. Inspired by the lost souls they encountered on the road- in rest stops, diners, camp grounds and anywhere a conversation evolved- these songs speak to the heart of the consciousness of America in the here and now. Right wing or left wing does not matter as these songs evoke intense emotions whether you are living in a small town or in New York City. There is no better illustration of this than on the philosophical battle torn prayer “Bible vs. Gun”, which would make Bob Dylan mumble with glee. These songs ask valid questions we all think about, but too often do not speak of. A great storyteller shines a light on difficult life circumstances and if they’re really talented, they’ll enlighten your soul in the process. Will Hoge enlightens the mind, body and soul with his music and “The American EP” is a courageous step in the next direction as an artist, the same way “Darkness On The Edge of Town” was an important step in Bruce Springsteen’s career path.

So you're scared and you're thinking

That maybe we ain't that young anymore

Show a little faith, there's magic in the night

-“Thunder Road”-Bruce Springsteen

Like Jon Landau thirty-years ago, I’m in my late 20’s and can’t help but feel a part of my life is
slipping away and I find myself retreating to the music of U2, Bruce Springsteen, The Who, Beatles, Johnny Cash and others from past generations. However, I have had a hard time finding an artist from my own generation that speaks to me. However, over the last seven months that has all changed as Will Hoge has emerged as an essential and significant artist in my life. When Will and his band unexpectedly tore down the walls of the House of Blues earlier this year, I saw rock ‘n’ roll’s past, present and future pass before my eyes and ears. Never before have I seen an artist, this young, so in control and confident with his craft. He evoked emotions and feelings I did not even know could be experienced. Like Bruce Springsteen, Will Hoge writes about the poets, lovers, dreamers, sinners and those who simply grapple with life’s challenges. Despite the harsh realities in some of the lyrics, deep down there is a sense of optimism and hope which I take away with me to give me comfort and most importantly hope. I believe in the power and redemption of rock n roll, I believe that music can transform lives and I believe Will Hoge is one of those rare artists who will be with me (and hopefully many others) on my continued life journey.

People often ask me why I take music so seriously. I believe art is given to us to help us make it through life when we are dealt a bad hand. Music should open your eyes and heart to the world and if you truly feel connected to it, it has the power to transform your life. To some, rock ‘n roll is just a way to get from point A to point B, for me it’s a vital artery, without it, I would die. There are days where I feel bruised and battered and my only salvation comes in the form of a four-minute song that will give me solace. It’s rare I find an artist who right from the get-go I know I will follow them my entire life-buying every album, finding every rare import and getting my hands on any and all bootlegs to relive the concert going experience. Will Hoge gives me hope in the future of rock n’ roll and even more important, he gives me faith in myself and my future. That in itself is “magic in the night”.