Return Of The Dreads Tour

It's been too long. About 10 years since I last saw Rob Zombie.  The first time I had ever seen Rob Zombie was a one off show in at the Long Beach convention center in Long Beach, CA known as 'Priest Feast'. It consisted of Rob Zombie, Anthrax and Judas Priest. There should be a little written about that show in my 'Dan Goes To Judas Priest Concerts' post.

Priest Feast was on the floor of an indoor arena -- now here I was on lawn at Irvine Meadows amphitheater in Irvine, CA for round two with Rob Zombie. July 24th, 2016 I was once again faced with the hippie/cowboy/filmmaker/zombie that is Rob Zombie. First and foremost let me emphasize his work as a filmmaker, as this facet of Rob Zombie makes his show's unique. Known for his films ‘House of 1000 Corpses’ and ‘The Devil’s Rejects, as well as directing two movies in the ‘Halloween’ franchise. He is no slouch in the film industry, so naturally that's heavily incorporated in his live concert performance. It's like having a music video playing in the background. Interesting note, this was the first concert ever in which I witnessed a movie trailer in the middle of it. The trailer was for his recently released film titled '31'; check out the trailer here.

Rob Zombie, not only a successful film director,  he is also someone who's been around in the music industry for a long time now. Naturally he comes in with an impressive crew; Ginger Fish joined on drums, and John 5 alongside on guitar for this show. Marilyn Manson fans should be excited here, as Ginger Fish is a prolific contributor to early Manson albums, and John 5 has had the privilege of working alongside acts like David Lee Roth, Paul Stanley, and Rob Halford of Judas Priest. Rob Zombie controls the stage, and excites the audience --this show was so full of energy, the bands demanded it out of us. Rob Zombie pounded out hit after hit, not only his solo work but digging into material back when he was with White Zombie. He also played my favorite track off of his last album Dead City Radio And The New Gods Of Supertown.  The sound was great, not just for Zombie’s set but for the whole night in general. Although I did find it interesting that Rob Zombie spoke through his vocal effects; they usually get turned off when the artist is talking to the audience, but he had a crazy layering affect the whole night. It sounded fine, it was just unusual, then again... so was the movie trailer.

The great thing about this concert was not only getting to re-visit Rob Zombie, but also seeing KoЯn for a third time now. Compared to the first two times I saw KoЯn, this time was special in the way that it was them headlining with just one other group, In This Moment. The other two times I saw KoЯn were at festivals, leaving for a slightly condensed set. Rob Zombie's performance was unique in this way too, being that I had only seen him in a bit of a festival setting.

For this night, just having these two giants KoЯn and Rob Zombie together the bands had control over the energy of the audience in a special way, it was more focused. At large festivals you get a lot of grouping.  It can sometimes lead to a lack of unity at a concert. I've been to concerts with hodge podge lineups. But KoЯn and Rob Zombie really fit together. Similar to when I saw Kiss and Motley Crue, or Judas Priest with Heaven and Hell.

This was my  first time seeing KoЯn since they had stopped celebrating the 20th anniversary of their first self titled album 'KoЯn'. I don't want to even begin to complain about seeing them play that album in full TWICE. It was nice to see a "normal" KoЯn show with a cavalcade of hits throughout their entire catalogue. Well, for any "old-school" KoЯn fans, fear not, they played a great deal of older classics. Getting hit with tracks like;  Got The Life, Twist, Blind, Y'all Want A Single, Right now. Again with that audience energy, it was fun to sing along with a chorus of fans, again with that audience energy.

Seeing them play the first album is heavy. Jonathan Davis let out a lot of childhood anger and frustration out on that album. Performing the song Daddy, which he couldn't handle performing live for nearly two decades. But this night, he felt more like the multi platinum recording artist. Because when life hands you lemons, you pick up a mic and you scream into it. Jon was very talkative throughout the night, and very interactive with the audience. At one point all of their children came out onto the stage and danced around for a few songs!

I'm glad I got to see this show, and I'm glad I have at least one more show lined up for Irvine Meadows this summer, because after this season... Poof! it's gone. That's right, the Irvine Company wants to pave over my dreams and put up residential and multi family apartment communities. Just what we need, more people, less music... wrong. Let's just hope what I've read is true, and we get a brand new amphitheater at the great park. My closest outdoor amphitheater is about to become another 20 minutes away, sad panda.

The Who

May 25th 2016, I was acquainted with The Seeker, met the Pinball Wizard, and was reminded it's only teenage wasteland. (Notice that "teenage wasteland" wasnt capitalized? Congratulations, your parents loved you!)

My parents loved me and thanks to that they shared good music with me. Fortunately, they have good taste. If it wasn't for my parents you probably wouldn't be reading these words and this probably wouldn't be a blog. So yeah!

What can I say? I do want to say that Pete Townshend tore the roof off the place; so thanks for that. It was worth the wait guys. I may have purchased my tickets nearly back in 2014, but I'd have gladly waited longer. Fortunately, I didn't have too wait a moment longer. And before I knew it I was a beer and a cocktail in and I was ready to sit down to a promising show.

Before I know it I'm being taken back in time "whoooooooooooo are you? Who, who, who, who." Then I was reminded that this was their 50th anniversary, so it appeared that Pete had A LOT to say. Roger sort of just chimed in. Pete was a cheeky English person, that's for sure. He insulted the audience a couple times and then acknowledged his man boobs. Stating that "I think men get tired of not having what they want all the time, so they start to grow their own". Laughing out loud Pete.

But sitting there I was easily reminded who I was seeing. Who, indeed. So many songs that you grow up with. Bargain, Behind Blue Eyes, Squeeze Box, Won't Get Fooled Again, Eminence Front. These guys played at Woodstock, man.

My only gripes were only to do with how poorly a venue can be set up. With a ceiling so high, you think I'd be able to see their only set piece, but nope. Two giant speakers hung between me and the giant monitor. And it was a really well put together video feed, from what I could see. It was just them rocking out in front of a mega huge monitor. I could have used more lighting and glits. But they still did deliver a massive set.

These guys are in their 70s giving 100%. As the years continue to roll on we lose the opportunity to see the great performers of the 60s and 70s. If you get the opportunity to check out a classic rock band, don't hesitate. Make it happen.

The End: Or Is It?

Well, it has happened before - and it will happen again - another band has said goodbye.  Since I last posted on this blog, two bands have said goodbye to me: Mötley Crüe and, most recently, Black Sabbath.

At these times, we always have to wonder if it is truly the end. Let's look at the first concert, Mötley Crüe. This show was at the Honda Center in Anaheim on December 22nd, 2015. Alice Cooper opened up the evening with his typical array of dancers, props, and, above all else, awesome music. This was my fourth time seeing Alice, and I'm always so stoked to be there for him. I will always tip my hat to Alice Cooper for meeting expectations. If you ever go to an Alice Cooper show, be ready to get excited. It's all going to be there: snakes, dancers, severed heads, top hats, make up, and classic rock. They will have it all. And despite getting up there in age, Alice fortunately wasn't the artist saying goodbye to me that night.  I'm grateful, and I hope to see him as many times as possible.  After his set was my fourth and final time seeing Mötley Crüe...supposedly.

The thing about Mötley Crüe is that they are all still relatively young. It's hard to believe that in another ten years, they won't be missing their Mötley Crüe salary. Sure, most of the members of Mötley Crüe have had decent solo careers. But Mick Mars, Tommy Lee, Vince Neil, and Nikki Sixx are all nothing - if not first and foremost - members of Mötley Crüe. How will they live without Mötley Crüe, and how are we going to live without Mötley Crüe? I've grown fond of seeing them live; they really bring it all with explosions, girls girls girls, and rock n' roll. 

However, I'm not sure if the last tour was big enough. It didn't seem to be taken to that next level. They still were able to show the audience a very good time and put on a good show, but it was not really any different from seeing them before. Although this time, they did have explosions that were unlike anything I have ever heard in my life. This was my 103rd concert, and I had never been faced with such loud explosions. When I'm eighty years old and can't hear anymore, it won't be because of the loud guitar and pounding drums. No, it will be because of those god damn explosions. 

You may wonder why I sound so doubtful that this is the end of Mötley Crüe. Let's just say that I have seen a handful of bands on their "Final Tour", only to see them again later. It's a money thing; it's profitable to allude to it being one's last show. I'm sure there are other factors, but I'd have to imagine it's mostly a financial game. 

I'm going to have to leave the Mötley Crüe section on the short and sweet side, because I've got a monster of a show headed your way: Black Sabbath.

Black Sabbath is currently on their "The End" world tour. Black Sabbath has decided to power down after decades of heavy metal. It almost feels like they created heavy metal, and they are going to take it with them when they leave. I am far less skeptical of this being the end for Black Sabbath. This is mainly because Tony Iommi has been in questionable health for quite sometime. Also, after this tour Ozzy plans on recording a solo album and going on a solo world tour. If you add up the years that  it will take Ozzy to do his solo thing, it's obvious that there will be no time for Sabbath to have the opportunity to ripple through this tiny world of ours again.

Let's throw out another number: five. Yes, this was my fifth time seeing Black Sabbath. The first two times were while the band was being fronted by the dearly missed Ronnie James Dio. If only I knew that that would be the last time I'd be in his audience before he passed. Anyways, I'm almost 100% certain that I will be seeing Sabbath again in a few months from now, when they play at the Hollywood Bowl.  You may or may not know that Black Sabbath is a very important band in my life. I've written two posts that you should probably read, which might help you to understand the magnitude of my love for Black Sabbath, as well as the man who almost feels like my best friend, Ozzy Osbourne. 

The show, which was on February 11th, 2016, was a part of their "The End" tour at The Forum in Inglewood. Accompanied by my friend, Shannon, we embarked on a journey to see the band that started it all and bring our memories to a satisfying end.  Black Sabbath filled that venue with hit after hit, reminding us who they are and what they stand for. I felt like they were schooling us on music, and having a good time doing it. Tony, Geezer, and Ozzy all appeared to be having such a good time. I'll say it once and I'll say it a million times: Ozzy is one of the most captivating front men of all time. He's always having a good time, and he makes sure that the audience is having an even better time.  He amped up the audience, yelling "I can't fucking year you, c'mon!" and they roared. When Ozzy tells you to do something, you had better fucking do it! Goodness, my amount of "fucks" have really soared in this paragraph. I'm serious about my Black Sabbath.

Again, I don't know if this tour truly felt like the end. I'll admit that it had a bit more to it than your average Sabbath concert.  Black Sabbath is really all about the music, and their set is usually minimalistic - which is completely fine, because they absolutely murder the audience with their amazing sound. But this time around, they had a magnificent screen they were performing in front of. This screen gave the people in the nose bleed seats a brilliant close-up view of the action, with stunning visuals to go along with it.

To the real Black Sabbath fans reading this, yes, Bill Ward was very missed, as he was the last two times that I saw Ozzy front Sabbath.  For the newer Sabbath fans: Bill Ward is their drummer, and is still very much alive. But for very complicated and unfair reasons, he did not participate in wrapping up with the band that he had helped to start. It may have been the end for Inglewood, but it's not the end for me and it's not the end for this blog. So here's to sometime in September.

Photos pulled from The OC Register and Billboard.

Matt Nathanson

The Troubadour is such a cool little intimate venue full of history that makes it more than an iconic venue. I'm usually busy seeing huge stadium bands and it's always nice when a smaller act brings me back to a venue like the Troubadour. My third time at this venue and the second time seeing Matt Nathanson. Matt Nathanson is a singer songwriter who ensnares his fans with a poetic genius. After hammering out album after album over the past couple of decades, Matt Nathanson has a recognizable following. If you're unfamiliar with him, go check it out. I had never been familiar with Matt until my girlfriend introduced me to him. He's actually what I call a department store artist, because he had a relatively chart happy hit in the early thousands that you'll be likely to hear over the speakers of a JC Penny or Target. 
I think his diehard fans like his celebrity prowess just fine and I agree. I have a similar relationship with some favorite artists of mine. I'm glad they aren't too big. Smaller bands are fun in an intimate sort of way. Scorpions will Rock Me Like a Hurricane, and David Bowie will take me on a Moonage Daydream, but I'll either have a nosebleed or I'll be broke. I'll gladly take my small shows like The Adicts, Blue October, and Matt Nathanson. 

This show was fun because It was the first thing we have been able to do in a while; she's been really busy and so have I. It's always a treat to go out and do something really fun with her. Before the show we managed to go and get our belly's full of I-Hop and got in line early enough to be very close to the stage. The one downside to the intimate venue is being sardined in general admission standing in one spot for hours on end. My senses were happy but my back was not.

This was a fun set. The show was opened up by Matt's cousin/guitarist. Then with minimum intermission Matt Nathanson was on the stage. It was just the two of them for most of the set aside from 2 songs where his whole band came on stage. It was a stripped down show with something I had never seen before. A song wheel. If you want to know what Matt Nathanson is going to play when you go see him on this tour. GOOD LUCK! The song wheel was as explained by Matt "so, if you are unhappy about anything I didn't play, you can blame it on the fucking wheel." Matt Nathanson is such a ham. His sets are 2 parts. One part stand up comedy show, one part singer songwriter jams. He played a good 18 song I believe, with some deep cuts, some cuts off his new album and a few things in between. It was a well rounded show that was just enough for the small space that is the Troubadour. You wouldn't want to see anything much more try to be fit into that venue. 

This was actually a late birthday present for my girlfriend. I'm glad I got to take her to see her favorite music dude. Trust me, she's nutty for Matt Nathanson! 

Knotfest 2015

Here we are at 101 concerts. What are we gonna do about it?
Well... I guess we are gonna write about it.

Knotfest: A festival put on annually by the band Slipknot. This festival is two days of heavy metal artists exploding through the hills of San Bernardino.

I, however, was only drawn to the first day, Saturday October 24, 2015. Because who was main headliner? Judas Priest. Who opened for them? Korn. If you've been paying attention you'll know already that I am a huge Korn fan and an even bigger Judas Priest fan.

I have another post you can read called Epicenter Festival 2015. Where I talk about seeing Korn alongside a few other cool bands. Such as Limp Bizkit, P.O.D. I suggest you give that post a read!

I feel like Korn is a band that you come to understand and appreciate. I know the sound can be "a lot" at first. But when you find out where that heavy music comes from, and it comes from a very heartfelt place. It can change your mind, and make you a Korn believer. The lyrics are largely written by Jonathan Davis  who truly had a sad childhood. Understanding his story changed my mind. Also their relationship as a band is awesome. They are all buddies, in videos they seem to have so much fun with each other being in a Rock band. Or nu-metal if you want me to be all specific and what not.

So what do you do when you have tickets to see an awesome show, but your girlfriend gets busy?

Find another willing soul to gallivant alongside me through heavy metal bliss!
My friend Raitt pulled through when I requested a ride in exchange for his entry. So he picked me up at my house, we went and grabbed a 32 of Budweiser some ice and we were off.  We ripped through on the toll road and we arrived early for some pre game shenanigans. We were supposed to have a few drinks, then we got buzzed, and then we got drunk. Sharing laughs, and our love for metal.
While at Knotfest I managed to see Kataklysm, Mastodon, Korn and Judas Priest. To be honest I needed to rest during Mastodon. A lot of walking and a lot of beer was exhausting. I actually walked 7 miles! But by the time Korn was up I was ready, ready to redeem myself after an hour long lawn nap. I was so far from the stage that I didn't really worry about watching the show. There was a cool little mosh pit of just a few people. It was wide open and we were just having a lot of fun listening to Korn together. Korn is definitely it's own niche that I'm pleased to be part of. The set was not nearly as long as I could have hoped. They are touring for the 20th anniversary of their first self titled album. However there set was far too short to give the audience a full injection of the album and then some extra hits. So they ripped through the first half of the album and gave fans some of there more chart topping hits. I'm just glad to have seen them during the Epicenter festival. They had a longer set during that show, it was fantastic. Again I can't venture too far into the performance itself, because I had seen it and I wasn't really focused on trying to watch what was so far away. But I love John, Fieldy, Head, I love the Korn crew. They've made some of my favorite songs of all time.

The moshing subsided for Priest as one would expect, Judas Priest is high octane metal don't get me wrong. But their brand of metal doesn't really call for moshing. They slay you into submission to the point where all you can do is sit and watch in awe as your face starts to melt off. Rob Halford looked to be in really good health, and I can't imagine Judas Priest going anywhere anytime soon. I hope to find myself at a true to the bone full set Judas Priest show again soon. Much like Korn the set was minimal and short. However they did manage to have Rob ride out on his motorcycle. As one has come to expect. But cheers to performing some of my favorite songs of all time for me again boys. The Priest is always welcome back to Southern California. Please check out my first Judas Priest post Dan Goes To Judas Priest Concerts where I write like the biggest fanboy goober ever. Maybe next time I'll be able to afford meet and greet tickets and really solidify my Judas Priest history!!

My 100th Concert

Well, we've reached a milestone. I've been to now 100 total concerts as of last Saturday October 3rd. Feels like I've got this new awesome credibility. Now I have to buckle down and hit 200 twice, three, maybe four times as fast but until we get there, I'm just grateful to have grown up well off enough to have seen so many concerts. I've also been very blessed to have good friends and family that know how to show me a good time. Whether it's a Christmas present, birthday present, or just because I'm awesome, I've managed to attend 100 memorable and wonderful shows

Photo Credit: Orange County Register

Now let's take a look at the band that pushed me into 100 total concerts. Rascal Flatts, certainly an odd turn of events, but I'll take it. I say it's odd because my 100th concert was turning out to be The Who and country was never much my taste in music. But when your lovely girlfriend is your main concert buddy who loves country, you find yourself at many country concerts which has been rewarding in many ways and has actually harvested a taste for country music in my heart but ladies and gentlemen she goes and sees my metal bands with me, so that's what true love looks like :-p. 

This was our third time seeing Rascal Flats, and I am always pleased. Jay Flats has an intense voice and is just so spot on live. He delivers each hit with so much energy. This has been a hard working country act for about 15 years and having released 9 studio albums. With that body of work and commitment, it's no wonder Rascal Flatts has quickly solidified themselves as legends in country music.

The only thing about this show that was a bit disappointing is the fact that it was basically a re-hash of the last tour. It was essentially a victory lap with the success of their Rewind album. They re-named this tour Riot after the single that was released from the Rewind album. But it had a lot of the same stage elements. It was at my venue friend this summer Irvine Meadows. I think I managed to see over 5 shows at Irvine Meadows this summer. Smashing Pumpkins, Marilyn Manson, Van Halen, Darius Rucker, Sublime w/Rome. I think Rascal Flatts brought me to Irvine Meadows for the last time this concert season.

Oh, they had two openers, some girl from The Voice, and Scotty McCreery who I believe won American Idol, or something like that. I have a personal aversion to these kinds of shows, so I'm no authority.

So, 100 concerts!!! that's pretty exciting, We are also 25 posts in to the blog. and WeGoToConcerts.BlogSpot.com is still growing as well.

#2 AC/DC: Countdown To 100

This Isn't My First Rock Concert: I'm A Trained Professional.

AC/DC: The band that started it's rampage in the early part of the 70s providing top notch true to the bone Rock N' Roll with each and every album. Then, when tragedy stuck and front man Bon Scott passed, Brian Johnson rose from the ashes and brought with him one of the best selling Rock albums of all time Back In Black. Whether or not you are that into AC/DC in a big way, it can easily be agreed upon that they released some hard to miss anthems. Songs like Highway To Hell, Thunderstruck, Back In Black, and You Shook Me All Night Long. However, there is one thing that can be hard to convey to someone who is not necessarily a big fan (which you're crazy not to be) is the live concerts. AC/DC has such impressive Live shows that they actually have some of the best selling Live DVD's and CD's. When heading to an AC/DC concert there are certain things you need to expect. You'll have to expect a massive set list full of deep cuts and top charting hits. Not only are you going to get a musical feast but they are a band that will give you a visual performance you come to expect.

When you hear "Whole Lotta Rosie" start playing, you better expect a several hundred foot tall big Rosie blown up to fill the stage. While she's doing that Angus Young is probably already down to wearing just shorts, having already stripped down from his school boys uniform. Then there's the cannons. Basically if you haven't already lost your hearing by the end of the night they'll fire some cannons which are so dang loud.

The first time I saw AC/DC my nose was bleeding for sure. I also had a side view, so my seats were just the pits. I saw AC/DC come around for their Black Ice world tour. Since then they've lot Rhythm guitarist Malcom Young who is unfortunately struggling with dementia. Then there's drummer Phil Rudd who's evidently too much of a criminal rock star now to even be able to leave New Zealand.

I have still yet to see the show, so far this has all been written prior to this monstrous show! I will be once again a little to the side, but I'm down in the front! I've also been following the tour, and the stage is huge. If you're in the front, there is really no bad seat. I know Angus will rock himself all around that stage, they'll make sure to have us all feeling really really good!

 

Here we are, post show! 

And what a show it was. I got buzzed from my drinks and drunk off my as from AC/DC. For the first time in a long time, me and my girlfriend had ample time to get down in the area.  We fancied ourselves some pre show munchies at Islands, then hung out at a nearby park for a couple hours just enjoying our company before the show. Turns out heading to Dodgers stadium early is the way to go to get free parking right outside the gate. A quick trip to will call, a wristband, a metal detector, and we're in. I always have a hard time getting through the metal detector because they can detect how metal I am \m/. Inside, still time to spare, we make our way to the drinks, just one, two,

ok.. three AND It's time for the opener. They were like a swing rockabilly rhythm and blues type band by the name of Vintage Trouble. They were high energy, very confident. They managed to Rock the people who even bother to show up for an opener. But these guys were fun, fronted by a very vivacious gentlemen who was bouncing and screaming and running through the audience. But you wouldn't expect AC/DC to be opened by anything less than dynamic? Right? You wouldn't do that would you? No... no you wouldn't.

  Ok... But what about that AC/DC band?
  What about them? Oh yeah, they were pretty good.
  Wait... what are you talking about Dan?
  You're right... they fucking rocked. Ok! you happy? I dropped the F bomb. But it's really the only way to assess an AC/DC concert. As I mentioned before, there is an entire culture surrounded by AC/DC. Whether you've chosen to dress up in a school boy/girl outfit to pay respects to Angus Young, or perhaps you dawned flashing devil horns. Literally the whole audience twinkled with devil horns, how magical is that?  It's hard to talk about a show as good as AC/DC. A band so confident they roar with one of their biggest hits Back In Black on the 4th song in. When you're a band so beloved and so successful, you don't have to wait to give the audience what they want, you have a whole catalogue of massive hits. Amazing set, amazing sound, just up and down amazing. Then there is of course Rosie who made her massive appearance as I told you earlier in this post she would.
You might be surprised to find out that the audience chants "Angus" throughout AC/DC concerts. This is due to the fact that Angus Young is such a dynamic presence. He manages to be more than lead guitarist, but pretty much leader of the band. But it shouldn't be that surprising, his massive rifts can be heard throughout the world and his stage performance is legendary.

 

I banged my head, I bumped my fist, and I rocked with the best of them as I had many times before. Between the two AC/DC shows, I would feel comfortable assessing that they are one of, if not THE most fun band to see live.

AC/DC was sweet!!!
Posted by DanGoestoConcerts on Tuesday, September 29, 2015