OK – so this is a long ass review. But we really had FIVE headliners so they each get their own little section. I gave you headings so you can feel free to skip to whatever you want to read.
Arriving at the Glen Helen San Manuel Pavilion at about 4:30PM on August 2nd, my day started well with free parking and a field of people tailgating and getting ready for a day of Rock in the sun and a night of partying with the Crüe. Wasting no time with light beer, burgers, scantily clad women and shirtless men in the California sun, I went straight through security and into the venue to check out the scene.
As one of the only touring Rock festival style shows this year (the other biggie is the Mayhem Fest which we reviewed last week), the Crüe Fest decided to forego the often disappointing second stage and let the fans run the show – the RockBand Second Stage Experience. Hundreds of loyal rockers lined up for a chance to embarrass himself or herself in front of everyone as they attempted to hack their way through Rock classics and new hits on everyone’s favorite party video-game – RockBand. The winner of an early battle of the bands performed was given the chance to perform the Sabbath classic Paranoid in front of the entire Mötley Crüe audience (on RockBand of course) just before the headliners take the stage.
After an hour of clinging to the little bits of shade available at the Pavilion, I took my seat and at 5:30 PM on the dot, the real show began with Trapt.
Trapt
Taking the stage with confidence, Trapt entered with the swagger of band that is comfortable on stage and loves doing what they do. They burned through a six-song set with serious energy. In fact, that energy that was also their primary drawback. To someone who hadn’t heard Trapt before, the songs ran together and the band lacked the sense of dynamics that really lead an audience through a show – no highs, no lows, just a mad dash through the songs. There was, however, a surprising crowd of Trapt loyalists, bigger than most for an opening band that knew every word and were happy to show their colors.
The highlight for most was the agro-fratboy anthem that put Trapt on the map, Headstrong. Personally, however, I think the strongest tune, and the best crowd reaction was the new single “Who’s Going Home With You Tonight” from their album, “Only Through the Pain,” due out in stores on Tuesday, August 5th– always impressive for a band to play a new song with such gusto.
Sixx:A.M.
High School’s over boys and girls – it’s time for the big leagues.
Sixx:A.M. was the most impressive, refreshing, original and cohesive band of the lot – yes that does include the Crüe… sacrilege, I know. The fact is, Sixx:A.M. is not a Mötley Crüe side-project. Sixx:A.M. is the break-out band of the Crüe Fest.
OK, enough ass kissing, now for the nitty gritty. As front-man James Michael pointed out during their set, Sixx:A.M. was meant to be a studio project – just three guys getting together to make a record. The resulting album “The Heroin Diaries Soundtrack,” a companion piece to Nikki Sixx’s book, “The Heroin Diaries,” produced some hits and quite a demand for the group. Hitting the road for the first time on Crüe Fest, you’d think this band had been together for decades honing their skills. Nikki Sixx exuded a sense of dark, brooding, joy as he performed these songs that are so deeply and personally meaningful to his life. Guitarist DJ Ashba is a break-out star in his own right. He was highly energetic on stage and gave a banshee performance while never missing a deep pocket riff or shredding solo.
James Michael is the quintessential front-man that take Sixx:A.M. out of the side-project category and into a world all their own. Known primarily for his studio work, Michael commanded the stage with a quiet confidence – foregoing the usual rocker calisthenics for a poised front-position with solid vocal delivery.
Half-way through the tour, Sixx:A.M. brought a crowd that I expect to grow. If you’re going to a future Crüe Fest date, get their EARLY – Sixx:A.M. goes on second.
Papa Roach
Papa Roach grabbed the audience by the balls and didn’t let go for 45 minutes. Clearly a crowd favorite from the start, Jacoby and the crew came out loud, hard and fast – the first group of the night to get some form of pit going in the front. The performance highlights included Jacoby making a trek into the middle of the audience four songs into the set. The group performed a list of hit after hit that remind us just how long this youthful and energetic band has been pumping out chart topping singles. Tunes like, Just Want to be Loved, Getting Away with Murder and Scars (including Shaddix performing the last chorus in Spanish) were all crowd favorites.
As the band moved to their older tunes, Broken Home and Last Resort (featuring an updated punk intro), we were reminded that Papa Roach evolved from the veritable Thunderdome of music that was the Rappin’ and Rockin’ late Nineties (debut in 2000 really) – many bands entered but few left with their souls or careers intact (can someone please remind me what “I Did it All For the Nookie” means?). What set Papa Roach apart was their ability to mold with the times, become more melodic and truly move to Rock rather than Rap-Rock. Nearly 15 years since they first formed and 8 years since their breakout hit, Papa Roach is still producing a fresh sound and impressively tight and energetic set.
Buckcherry
Buckcherry makes a valiant effort to bring Rock music back to its Sex, Drugs and Rock & Roll roots. Nearly every song (or at least every good song) the band has released to date involves cocaine, alcohol or dirty sex. The fact is, take an awkward, skinny dude running around the stage (singer Josh Todd), some heavy guitars, loud drums, funky grooves, a sound that’s equal parts Aerosmith, AC/DC and GnR, and some vulgar language and you have a really fun fuckin’ show.
When Buckcherry had a surprise SECOND hit, 2007’s Crazybitch, and pulled themselves up from the dregs of One-Hit-Wonderdom, they received all they needed to wrap up a 45 minute set. Performing 2001’s energized cocaine anthem, Lit Up early in the set got the crowd pumped. The show lagged a bit in the middle when the band slowed things down to perform their radio hit, Sorry, which just doesn’t come across that well live. The group closed with a 10 minute, jammed out rendition of their super-hit Crazybitch full of funky jams, sex stories and even a little rendition of Billy Squire’s “Stroke Me.”
Nicely done Buckcherry.
Motley Fuckin’ Crüe
Enter the headliners.
Fireworks, pyrotechnics, and Tommy’s Tit E. Cam – this band knows how to rock. The Crüe was in top form on Saturday night, performing their usual front-to-back greatest hits. Vince Neil took the helm with his cut-off tee, giving the usual 80’s rocker calisthenics a fresh vibe for the new millennium. Nikki Sixx was his usual self, a powerful stage presence with the signature deep pounding of his Thunderbird bass. Guitarist, Mick Mars’ sound is just unmistakable and undeniable – the man still plays some of the heaviest and crunchiest riffs on the planet and tears through roaring solos – a highlight of the evening was his rendition of Jimi Hendrix’s Voodoo Chile (slight return) backed by Tommy Lee on drums.
Tommy of course, banged the hell of out of his drums as usual with his giant bass drum. Staying true to his usual form, in lieu of a drum-solo (short festival sets don’t allow for such things) he ran off stage and came back with the Tit E. Cam, specially designed to allow the front few rows of chicks show their stuff to the 30,000+ crowd.
For me, THE highight of the night was the back-to-back performance of Girls Girls Girls followed by Dr. Feelgood to end the main set – damn does that Dr. Feelgood riff hit hard.
Honorable mention goes to the bands new single, Saints of Los Angeles which they pulled out early in the set. Chris Taylor Brown (Trapt), James Michael, Jacoby Shaddix and Josh Todd joined the Crüe for a shout chorus to close the song. SOLA brings the Crüe out of the 80’s and into the new millennium without losing their signature sound. In a world of nostalgia acts (Def Leppard anyone?) and 80’s/90’s bands breaking new ground (thank you Nine Inch Nails), Mötley Crüe finds their place right in the middle. SOLA is new, different, and fresh but it’s still the Crüe of old and we’ll never forget that. The energy was high, the set was fun and long and we all had a blast.
LINKS:
www.Trapt.com
www.SixxAMMusic.com
www.PapaRoach.com
www.Buckcherry.com
www.Motley.com
