Motley Crue

We had a blast.
First, we were again, at my favorite venue. Not necissarily the best venue for the sound, but my favorite. It's not too far from home (about 2 hours). It's familiar since I have been there so many times. Small enough that any seat is a decent seat. And I can still smoke there.
But unless you are in certain areas, the sound can be lacking. Usually you get a lot of echo due to the accoustics.

Anyway. The weather was awesome. A little warm at the start of the show but nice and cool by the end. No real traffic issues getting there, though there was some road construction.
We got there about half an hour before the gates opened. Which means we got a good parking spot. There were already quite a few people there. Tailgating and just getting ready for a great day of music.
I liked all the bands on the bill. I was familiar with each of them, and liked what I knew of their songs. (turns out I knew almost all their material except for some of the very newest stuff) That is what was the deciding factor for going. If it would have just been Crue, I wouldn't have bothered.
That and the fact that my daughter really wanted to go. This show for her, was like Maiden for me. She was a huge fan of Sixx AM and Papa Roach. With Trapt being a close 3rd.

We got inside. Checked out or seats so we knew exactly where they were, then wandered around for a bit. Chatted with some of the ushers (another reason I enjoy this venue, most of the staff are friendly and conversational)
Then we took our seats just before the show started.

Trapt
01. Stand Up 02. Curiosity Kills 03. Disconnected 04. Who’s Going Home With You Tonight? 05. Everything To Lose 06. Headstrong
29 minutes

Excellent!
I felt sorry for them, having the lead spot. Going on at 5 with hardly anyone there yet.
No stage show to work with, and having to deal with a bad mix as well.
They still came out, put on a great show, and got everyone that was there, on their feet! Given some more exposure and a better chance to shine, I can see these guys taking off and going places.

They said something about being up top for autographs and stuff towards the end of their show also.
We kept an eye out for them while I was catching a smoke and getting a few drinks from the water fountain.
Turns out, by the time they were heading out, it was almost time for Sixx AM to start.
While it would have been cool to meet them and get some stuff signed and such, it wasn't cool enough to miss part of the show.
So we staid in our seats and enjoyed Sixx AM.

Sixx AM
01. Intro (X-Mas In Hell) 02. Pray For Me 03. Heart Failure 04. Intermission 05. Dead Man’s Ballet 06. speach, and props for the other bands 07. Tomorrow 08. Accidents Can Happen 09. Life Is Beautiful
37 minutes

I was iffy about them going in. I liked some of their stuff, but was unsure about the rest.
I had heard most of their CD and didn't know how it would come off live. I should have known better.
These guys are veterans. They know what they are doing, how to put some polish on a show, and how to put a show together. Got some good crowd interaction going.
And the vocalist is a lot better than I thought. He does much better live than on the CD (which is odd since he isn't really a frontman, and never toured until now)
The funny part is, they don't even have a drummer. They weren't supposed to be a 'band' and there was no intention to tour. In the studio, they did their own drum work, but for the tour, they are using Trapt's drummer.

After the set we headed back up to the concourse for the between sets smoke, drinks from the fountain, and bathroom stops. On the way there though, something odd happened.
We ran into people I know!
To make this even odder, and more unique, it was a friend that was living in Michigan!
She was down thsi way to take another friend to the show for her birthday.

That is me in the middle with Mikki on the right (the one from MI) and Tanya on the left.
I haven't seen Tanya in at least 10 years. And I know it has been well over a year since I saw Mikki (maybe even 2 years)
So this was an awesome surprise.
Turns out they were 2 sections behind us. Back in the cheap-seats :-)

Papa Roach
01. Change Or Die 02. …To Be Loved 03. Getting Away With Murder 04. Time Is Running Out 05. Forever 06. I Almost Told You That I Loved You 07. Scars 08. Broken Home 09. Between Angels And Insects 10. Last Resort
46.5 minutes

Awesome!
Nice range of material from their early stuff to stuff that isn't actually released yet.
Really know how to work the crowd, and took full advantage of what they could do with lighting. Which is why we didn't get any real good pics of the them. Too much smoke and lighting effects.
It also helps when the singer actually walks up through the crowd (including walking across the backs of the chairs) until he gets up to the mixing desk. Really gave the fans in the back, and on the lawn a nice treat. A great way to put them right in the middle of things.
Really got the place rocking and wound up.
Only complaint was the timing of thier set. The sun was setting and shining right into the pavilion. Making it much warmer than it had been, and hard to see when the singer climbed to the back.

Back out to the concourse for the between sets smoke, drinks, and visiting with my friends.

Buckcherry
01. Intro 02. Broken Glass 03. Lit Up 04. Onset 05. Next 2 You 06. Too Drunk 07. Everything 08. Sorry 09. Band props and speach 10. Crazy Bitch
46.5 minutes

Decent.
I wasn't expecting much from them really. And at first that's what it looked like I was gonna get.
Their first few songs just didn't come across well. And it wasn't just me, cause most of the place was sitting down for them. But then they changed gears. Got everyones attention back and put on a good show. I still get the impression that the singer is a bit full of himself though. So that is somewhat offputting.

Back out to the concourse for the between sets smoke, drinks, and visiting with my friends.

Motley Crue
01. Kickstart My Heart 02. Wildside 03. Shout At The Devil 04. Saints of Los Angeles 05. Guitar Solo (M. Mars – including Voodoo Chile) 06. Live Wire 07. Sick Love Song -----Tit E. Cam Segment----- 08. Motherfucker Of The Year 09. Don’t Go Away Mad (Just Go Away) 10. Same Ol' Situation (S.O.S.) 11. Primal Scream 12. Looks That Kill 13. Girls, Girls, Girls 14. Dr. Feelgood [Encore] 15. Home Sweet Home
97.5 minutes

Great!
Crue is good at doing what they do.
Which is hittng you right between the eyes with a completely over-the-top production.
Lots of smoke, lights, and really loud.
Plus some rather expliciit footage running on the screens to boot. (would have preffered more live footage of the actual band performing myself)
The songs were great, and I really like the selection they put together.
But towards the end, the Crue style was wearing thin on me. It was still enjoyable, but it wasn't the 'rocking out / headbanging away" kind of thing. Probably a personal taste kind of thing though. All that bombast only holds so much thrill for me. I much preffer a Maiden show where the show actually enhances the music and the experience and and isn't meant to be the substance of the show.
One of the highlights of course was Saints of LA. They bring out the singers from the other 4 groups to do the chorus with them towards the end of the song, just like in the music video and on the album.
Another cool bit was the Tit E. Cam. Tommy walking around the front of the stage with a camera on a live feed to the screens. Talking ot the fans and getting girls to show their chests. Entertaining, though somewhat filler-ish.
Vince's voice actually sounded great!
When he actually sang the words.
Most of the songs, he would skip words and/or phrases
(and I'm not talking about the ones where he was having the audience sing them)
It got annoying to be singing along, and suddenly there was something missing. I think the only songs he didn't do that with were the 2 new songs, and the last 2 songs of the night.
It was nice to see Mick looking decent. I had heard he was in really poor health last tour.
This night he looked pretty good. Sure, he wasn't jumping all over the place like some guitar players, but he was somewhat mobile, and really shredding on the guitar.
Man, a lot of people must have been trying to beat the rush, because the whole section by us (to the right) was completely empty before the encore.

Instead of heading straight for the car after the show, we went back up by the water fountain to meet my friends again. There was no sense in rushing out, as I know what the traffic is like after a show.
Good thing too. While we were standing there waiting, my daughter spotted DJ Ashba. He was just standing there signing autographs and getting pics taken with the fans.

Overall, and excellent time. And a day well spent.
Even if I had only had 4 hours sleep after working 3rd shift the night before this, and not getting home until almost 3 AM.
I am interested to see who they stick on the bill for the promised Crue Fest 2 next year.
As I could definitely see myself doing this again if it's a good line-up

CRUE FEST '08