Rockstar Uproar Tour
Verizon Wireless Music Center – Indianapolis, IN
9/17/2011
I asked my wife what my initial reaction was when I saw the Rockstar Uproar tour lineup – not because I didn’t remember, but because I wanted to hear her perspective of my reaction. She said that I was “completely freaking out,” but I think that’s an understatement. I seem to remember hyperventilating at some point.
Top to bottom, this was by far the best festival lineup I had ever seen. I knew as soon as it was released that I would be going no matter how far I had to drive. The main stage alone, with A7X, Three Days Grace, Seether, Bullet for my Valentine, and Escape the Fate, was enough talent to get me to commit, so the fact that Sevendust was headlining the side stage was just musical icing on my proverbial cake. (We all know I have a creepy obsession with Lajon and their drummer’s hair.) The lineup was so good that I convinced several of my friends, and even a few non-concert regulars, to buy pit tickets. Rockstar Uproar Part 1 – Let’s do this.
The Setup:
So I have to give Rockstar both props and complaints here. First off, it seems like Rockstar Energy Drink (which lets be honest, is just not as good as Red Bull, but is half the price, so we all buy it) spends a TON of money every year sponsoring tours. I mean, they practically sponsor every concert I go to, in addition to having two major festivals (Mayhem and Uproar) every summer. Most importantly, they have been showing Indy some love in recent years by making stops here on weekend days, which is somewhat rare (even though we are the 11th biggest city in the Country…) I digress, Rockstar has been showing the music industry, and specifically MY music, and my city, some major love. Props for that.
HOWEVER, for some reason, they put together the greatest tour ever for Uproar 2011, and then tried to drive right through Indianapolis and not play a show. WTF. The metal gods were smiling down on me, as X103 stepped in, paid for the tour to come here, and called it this year’s Xfest. It was really the best of both worlds, because it forced Uproar to stop in Indy, and it prevented X103 from putting together a separate mediocre Xfest that I would buy tickets to anyway (….I can’t help it).
Now, for all the grief I give X103 I have to give them a big, GIGANTIC high five for making this tour happen in this city. Good work people. (If only your radio station was more like your concerts. Hey, don’t get mad at me…when’s the last time you played Sevendust on the air? 1999?)
The Venue:
I’ve said before that Verizon Wireless is a great venue to watch music. However, for the first time ever, a handful of us splurged and got pit tickets. So, we paid three times as much, but, instead of standing way in the back and getting blasted in the spine by a bunch of hammered people moshing on an incline, we got to stand in the VEEERRYY front, relax, actually hold a beer while we listen to the music, and catch every bit of action from up close. I’m talking close enough that the heat from the fire on stage was causing my face to sweat. It was incredible. We talked several times about how this concert may have ruined the lawn for me.
The Early Bands:
Sevendust –
Because of commitments that morning, Sevendust was the first band I really caught, and man, what an opener. I have a soft spot for Sevendust, and have always just loved their music. Unfortunately, I can’t give this show glowing reviews because from where I was (in the back), the sound wasn’t great. The side stage looked very small and rickety (which is surprising for an event like this) and so my guess is that the sound had trouble reaching the back of the huge crowd. I was quite relieved when my friends, who bull-headed their way to the front (as per usual), said that Lajon sounded great from the front: That way I could blame the poor sound on the stage and not the band. Ignoring the sound issues, Sevendust played a great set – they had tons of energy, and played all the songs I love.
As far as song selection goes – Sevendust has so many great songs that I don’t know if I could ever be mad about what they play. Their show is a bit heavy on new material, but their latest album is one of my favorites, so it works for them (as opposed to bands that cram new crappy material down your throat). They book-ended their show with what I think are their two best live songs: Splinter to open, and of course, Face to Face to close the show. Even on crutches, it was very difficult for me to stand still for “You’ve F***** ME FOR THE LAST TIME”. I’ve milked a lot of enjoyment out of this band for the past 6+ years. I hope they continue to make music and play live shows, but rumors say that they only have one more album in them.
Escape the Fate –
I really think Escape the Fate is an up and coming band, as evident by the fact that they got a spot on the main stage on this great tour. I always have average expectations for Escape the Fate for some reason, and both times I’ve seen them, I thought they were absolutely great. Particularly for this show, I was really impressed with them technically; everything was extremely clean and the sound quality was just great. Even the guitar solos were spot-on. Lead guitarist, Brian Money, could battle with any of the greats, and he was impressive throughout. His Dragonforce-esque solo in The Aftermath was the highlight of the show for me. Other songs that really rang true are The Guillotine, Massacre, and of course their newest single, Gorgeous Nightmare (except for backup vocals…). Also, I never really liked Craig Mabbit when he sang for Blessthefall, but I think he’s improved ten-fold since moving over to sing for this band: He sounded especially good at this show. Two minor critiques: First, their stage presence left a bit to be desired. It’s hard for me to get more excited for a bands music than they are to play it. When you put out music this good, it ought be fun to play. Second, as previously stated, back up singing was mediocre throughout. They have some really cool layered vocals that were completely lost in this show, and really left some songs lacking depth. I’m hoping this will come with time; I’d love to see this band blow up, but in order to do so, they have to figure out how to bring those critical elements through live.
Bullet for my Valentine –
I’ve literally seen BFMV so many times that I lost count (it’s somewhere around 13). It’s with great excitement that I say that this was by far, the best I’ve ever seen them perform. Their “show” (lights, etc) wasn’t anything to write home about (as compared to when they headline smaller venues), but their performance was just excellent. They just walked out on a relatively mundane stage, and absolutely killed it. Matt Tuck’s vocals were better than I’ve ever heard them (even before his surgery) which is sometimes a concern for BFMV, but the MVP of the show for me goes to bassist Jason James. He played the bass perfectly (although admittedly not on super challenging material), but has a BLAST doing it, and I can’t even describe how good his backup screams are. Having a backup screamer like that is a true luxury, as he allows Matt’s voice to rest and reset in between verses, which makes a major difference in Matt’s ability to get through the entire set full-voiced. Jason is a huge asset to this band, and he sounds every bit as good as Matt. It made a tremendous difference, as last time I saw them, the guitar tech played bass for them. (Jason had to miss the show.)
Final point about this show: In order to write these blogs, it takes a tremendous amount of thought when I’m in the moment. My mind’s going a mile a minute, trying to take in all that’s happening, and remember enough of it so I can put it in my phone after the set and write about it later. This show was so good, for the first time ever, my mind went completely blank. The music completely muted my thoughts, which is a rarity. A portion is most likely due to my proximity to the band, but I was just blown away. In fact, a friend has a video in which you can hear me scream “I’m SO HAPPY” with child-like giddiness. Maybe I’m skewed, but this raised the bar for BFMV even further, and it was already pretty damn high.
As BFMV walked off the stage, I remember thinking “Welp, I could leave right now and be completely satisfied.” After realizing that there were three incredible bands left, I had to take a deep breath. It was time to grab a beer, relax for a few minutes, and get ready for three great closers. (Seether, Three Days Grace, and A7X). What a GREAT concert.
That’s all for now. I know, I know. You still want more. It’s coming soon. 🙂
As always, thanks for reading. See you soon.
“Yes, I will lead you / through the smoke and flames / On the front lines of war / And I will stand my ground until the end / Till we conquer them all”