Concert Review: Incubus Double Feature

The Bots, Death from Above 1979, The Deftones, and Incubus
Riverbend (Cincinnati) and Klipsch (Indianapolis) Music Centers
7/25 and 7/26, 2015

Note to Readers: This is a first for The Music Pill: A guest post from a friend of the site, who was able to catch a couple Incubus shows that I couldn’t make it to. Hope you guys enjoy reading!!

I saw Incubus three years ago at Riverbend in Cincinnati on a sultry August day. I remember mostly drinking tepid beer and standing in line for more tepid beer, during hydration to dehydration cycles. We were in the lawn at the venue, which makes it very easy to get distracted from iconic bands, as foolish as that sounds. At Riverbend Music Center in the lawn, you can easily replicate the experience by doing the following: Drag a small television into a field, prop it up on a beam that would block your view of anyone playing music behind it, bring an Ipod and a knock off speaker, dunk the ipod and speaker into water. Close your eyes. You’re at Riverbend Lawn. Just saved you twenty bucks.

Concert Review: Rockstar Mayhem 2014

I look forward to Mayhem each year, because when you live in Indianapolis, it’s your only opportunity for a metal festival. Previous years’ shows have been fantastic, highlighted by an extremely memorable performance by Slipknot in 2012. Mayhem consistently brings a solid lineup of bands across the entire metal spectrum, as well as lots of different flavors of metal, and gives an all around great experience into the current landscape of metal music. This year featured sets from Texas Hippie Coalition, Mushroomhead, Miss May I, and Emmure, and more on three side stages, paired with headlining shows from Trivium, Asking Alexandria, Korn, and the mighty Avenged Sevenfold.

So here goes nothing. Mayhem 2014 – bring it!

Concert Review – Mayhem Festival 2013

Rockstar Mayhem Tour 2013
Klipsch Music Center – Indianapolis, IN
7/26/2013

As usual, the Mayhem tour was packed full of great bands. Young metal, prog metal, old school metal, Rob Zombie metal (?), and everything in between was slated to be a part of this show. Thanks to some freakishly cool weather, it was a partly cloudy, 75 degree day in the middle of July – a perfect setting for me to muster up some of my energy and rock out for the day!

Mayhem – lets do this!

Picture Blog: 2012 Mayhem Festival

2012 Mayhem Festival
Klipsch Music Center
Indianapolis, IN

The Mayhem Festival in 2012 had an absolutely incredible lineup. It was chocked full of amazing bands, both old school metal and new. It had metal giants, like Slayer, and up and comers, like Asking Alexandria. It was just all in all a great line-up. In addition, the headliner was Slipknot, who has the best live show of any band I’ve ever seen. And it’s not really close. So, needless to say, I was extremely excited for this show. So excited, that I paid a $160 for a pit ticket off of stub hub so that I could be up front for the main stage shows.

To say that this show delivered would be the understatement of the decade. I was completely blown away, to the point that I honestly had chills for 4 hours after the show. HOWEVER, I try very hard to remain unbiased on this blog, so, rather than rambling on and sounding like a fan boy, I’ll just let the pictures do the talking. See, thats the thing about Slipknot. If you haven’t seen it….you just won’t understand. I included quick thoughts on the other shows at this festival as well. But mostly, after the jump, is just a shit load of Slipknot pictures. But hey, ya can’t go wrong with those, right. 🙂 Hope you enjoy!

Concert Review: Rockstar Uproar Tour Part 2

Rockstar Uproar 2011
Verizon Wireless Music Center – Indianapolis, IN
9/17/2011

Status: We had just heard Sevendust crush the side stage, and Escape the Fate and Bullet for my Valentine do some damage on the main stage. Three powerhouse bands left, culminating with the legendary Avenged Sevenfold. I was on crutches in the pit, but the security guards let me take breaks and sit in the front row of empty seats in between acts (thank God), so I was feeling pretty good.

Take a deep breath. Here we go. Rockstar Uproar – bring it home.

Concert Review: Rockstar Uproar Tour Part 1

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.