Venue: Tsongas Center
Review by Micah Gummel
Photos by Micah Gummel
Three Days Grace
Band Members
Matt Walst
Barry Stock
Brad Walst
Neil Sanderson.
More Show Photos: HERE
With the recent buzz about Three Days Grace singer Adam Gontier resigning unexpectedly. Gontiers reason was health issues for the cause of his exit. The band has replaced the singer with Matt Walst of My Darkest Days, for the remainder of the tour.
Everyone was curious to see how this was going to sound. The band came out on the well crafted stage and dove into their new hit single “Chalk Outline”. The crowd instantly sang along with Walst. It was good to see the effort that Matt has he seems to be settling in well. His energy never wavered I was impressed. And running around the stage like the Rock Star he is. He even resembles Adam a bit with his fly rock n roll fashion. The stage was set up well with some stealthy pyrotechnics and well lit.
Three Days Grace played the majority of their hits. They also threw in an curious cover song. After inviting Shawn Hamm, or Hammer as they called him, onstage the band broke out the Limp Bizkit classic Break Stuff. It surprised me to hear the cover but it was a good call the crowd was amped now. The crowd was in to it and sang a long; you could simply tell the energy was just ratcheted up a notch. Then they went in to Lets Start a Riot chanting Riot, Riot, Riot! The crowd went wild as they hit the first chords of Let’s Start a Riot to end the night; the crowd blew the roof off of Tsongas center Arena. It’s clear that these guys are already family, I wish these guys much success with their next chapter of their adventure!
Setlist
CHALK OUTLINE
JUST LIKE YOU
PAIN
HOME
THE HIGH ROAD
GET OUT ALIVE
BREAK
THE GOOD LIFE
PIANO/DRUM SOLO
MISERY LOVES COMPANY
WORLD SO COLD
I HATE EVERYTHING ABOUT YOU
ANIMAL I HAVE BECOME
NEVER TOO LATE
BREAK STUFF (LIMP BIZKIT COVER)
RIOT
Shinedown
Band Members
Barry Kerch
Brent Smith
Eric Bass
Zach Myers
More Show Photos: HERE
Shinedown was up next, and of course they stole the show Shinedown sounded like a hard rock band should. These guys always put on a powerful performance as always equipped with plenty of pyrotechnics and great stage layout. This time there was a Twist…. The curtain plummeted on the main stage and the crowd was stunned when only drummer Barry Kerch was there to greet them. Brent Smith, Zach Myers and Eric Bass had fooled the majority of the crowd. The crowd shifted and took off in a mad rush to other stage. This time around the band was sporting suits and vests, which is a stark contrast to their grungy, dirty look from early in their careers. As fit as he’s ever been, Brent Smith and his commanding stage presence with that distinctive voice has always been captivating, but now he’s the total package. He’s finally realized that the success of the band rests solely upon his shoulders.
One of my choice songs from the new album Amaryllis is Enemies. With its high energy and hammering drums, it was the perfect show opener. They followed up Enemies with Devour. This absolutely lit the fuse on this dynamite crowd. By the time the band began the single Unity, there was no one sitting in the arena. Everyone was on their feet and showing the love and respect. The sets backdrop was a huge circular video screen. Complete with another large riser behind drummer Barry Kerch. There were lights outlining the circular screen somewhat resembling the design that was used for the Amaryllis album cover. Making good use of the screen, creating and playing back videos footage all the way from a spinning earth to people and places.
All the guys in the band were laughing and smiling, and its great to see a band having fun on stage and enjoying themselves. Singer Brent Smith has a stage presence that is unstoppable. The crowd roared the loudest with these guys and it’s no wonder. They are huge right now, and have been constantly touring since March, with the release of their 4th album, Amaryllis.
Setlist
ENEMIES
DEVOUR
UNITY
THE CROW & THE BUTTERFLY
SAVE ME
I’LL FOLLOW YOU
DIAMOND EYES
IF YOU ONLY KNEW
AMARYLLIS
45
Encore
SOUND OF MADNESS
SECOND CHANCE
SIMPLE MAN
BULLY