The Concert Thread

2018 In Review:

1. Halestorm and Stone Sour
Kicking the year off Halestorm and Stone Sour was an interesting show, never been to a true co-headliner show before I felt the sets were just a little too short. Halestorm debuted Black Vultures off of Vicious at this show. Was never a Stone sour fan but their set was pretty solid. Overall a fun show that was cheap by concert standards.

2. P!nk
P!nk puts on a show, nothing else can describe what she does on stage. Fantastic set and great energy, probably in my top 3 for the year in terms of overall showmanship with Alice Cooper and Myles Kennedy. Definitely will be seeing her again.

3. Robert Plant
Of all the concerts I have been to this year this one is likely the 1st or 2nd most anticipated show I got to go to. Absolutely unreal performance, hearing zeppelin songs live was thrilling especially with some surprises in the set (When the Levee Breaks and The Rain Song). Didn't play the rock god persona but still rocked the house. Babe' Was the highlight of the night.

4. John Fogerty
Never been a huge CCR fan, but $20 was too cheap to pass up. Put on a solid show and had his son come out and play some songs which was cool. Overall a good show, but I won't have to see him again.

5. Jason Bonham, Whitesnake and Foreigner
a. Jason Bonham
Having seen Robert less than a month prior and Heart a few years ago Jason Bonham's singer had some tough shoes to fill/compete with. Overall a good show, the songs I had heard before he was overshadowed, however he still put on an amazing preformance. Stairway is always a wonderful song to hear live.

b. Whitesnake
I bought these tickets in order to see Whitesnake, and I was very happy with the purchase. Playing a short set DC lead WS through their greatest hits from the 80s, 2 songs in I had already decided to buy tickets for their North American Tour in 2019 provided they hit the west coast.

c. Foreigner
I have seen foreigner once before and they played essentially the same set. Kelly does an amazing job on lead vocals and the overall energy of the band was wonderful. Highlight was starrider which they didn't play the previous time I had seen them. Strong rocking show with great renditions of classic songs

6. Alice Cooper
Alice rocked and preformed. Bought the tickets for $18 and had heard about how great of a performer he is I hadn't gotten into his music aside from a few of the bigger tracks. Great show through and through and wouldn't hesitate to see him again. The another brick in the wall segment in schools out was a wonderful way to keep the song fresh.

7. Alice In Chains
Alice in Chains was a long awaited concert, my car broke down last time I went to see them (Opening for GNR) so I only caught their last song the first time. However a full show with them was a welcome addition, grunge isn't my favourite rock genre however the show itself was great and the harmonies were utterly outstanding. Bands should take lessons from Jerry Cantrel because his backing vocals are amazing.

8. Evanescence
Being an orchestra show, I knew going in the set would be ballad/slow song heavy. I wish there was less of an electronic sound to all the instruments however it was a good show overall and I would definitely see them again... without an orchestra.

9. Journey and Def Leppard
a. Journey
Journey puts out a very strong set of hits, the band's knack for catch arena rock anthems is something that I think is overlooked due to the popularity of Don't Stop Believing. It really is a shame since they have a very deep catalog and the show played mostly the hits. In comparison to Def Leppard, them opening the show is the better choice due to the overall tightness of the bands.

b. Def Leppard
Def Leppard is great at 2 things: 1) Touring with bands that I really want to see. 2) Putting on a great live show. This was my third time seeing the English rockers and despite the set being mostly the same was an energetic show that shows what bands can do later in their careers.

10. Myles Kennedy
Myles kicked ass. Unreal vocals, him and Plant are easily the best 2 vocalists I have ever seen live and his guitar works was amazing as well. Show was a mix of acoustic band tracks and electric solo album songs. A great way to close out the 2018 concert season and easily one of the best shows of the year.

2019 Line Up:
  1. Greta Van Fleet
  2. Kiss
  3. Lynryd Skynryd
  4. P!nk
  5. Uriah Heep and Judas Priest
  6. Queen
  7. Megadeth and Ozzy
  8. Weird Al
  9. Iron Maiden
  10. Elton John
2019 Wishlist:
Whitesnake
Alter Bridge
Slash
Scorpions
Queensryche
Michael Schenker
 
Black Wizard said:
Before the end of the month I'll do a post summarizing my year of concerts.
Click to expand...
As promised, this was my 2018 in live music:

10/2 Vuur/Exploding Birdsong, The Asylum, Birmingham
3/3 Blaze Bayley (+ forgotten supports), Camden Underworld
18/3 Sepultura/Goatwhore and others, Camden Koko
26/3 Sumo Cyco,/Skarlett Riot + another band, Boston Music Room, London
29/3 Testament/Annihilator/Vader, Marble Factory, Bristol
31/3 Testament/Annihilator/Vader, Birmingham Institute
5/4 Cellar Darling/Diamond Black(?), Boston Music Room, London
13/4 Epica/Myrkur/Oceans of Slumber, Kentish Town Forum
1/6 Iron Maiden/Killswitch Engage, Stockholm
5/6 Iron Maiden/Killswitch Engage, Copenhagen
9/6 Thrice/Brutus, Electric Ballroom, London
16/6 Stone Free (Scorpions/Megadeth + others), O2 Arena, London
29/6 Tremonti/Fallen State, Shepherd's Bush Empire
4/8 Iron Maiden/Killswitch Engage, Aberdeen
7/8 Iron Maiden/Killswitch Engage, Birmingham
9-12/8 Bloodstock Festival
22/9 Halestorm/Avatar/Rews, Sheffield Academy
12/10 Kamelot/Cellar Darling/Leave's Eyes, Electric Brixton
31/10 Devilskin/Fallen State, Boston Music Room, London
10/11 Within Temptation/Ego Kill Talent, Manchester Apollo
25/11 The Amorettes/Naked Six/Outlaw Country, The Joiners, Southampton
4/12 Tremonti/The Raven Age + another band, Kentish Town Forum
8/12 Nightwish/Beast in Black, Wembley Arena
16/12 Kreator/Dimmu Borgir/Hatebreed, Camden Roundhouse

That's 24 different events overall, 21 different venues, 11 different locations across Britain, Sweden and Denmark. I do not want to figure out how many different bands that was, or how much money I spent on it overall. The highlight was undoubtedly Iron Maiden's Legacy of the Beast shows with the Scandinavian shows probably being my favourites of the four I saw. I'm happy that I finally got to see Killswitch Engage again after an eleven-and-a-half year wait but after seeing them support Iron Maiden four times this year I would like to see them do a headline show. The Testament double header at the end of March (the first show was my birthday) was quite bruising, and I can't even remember the second show properly due to alcohol reasons. Oops. I'm happy to have seen so many great shows this year and looking forward to many more in 2019. :)
 
2018 in review

After a stellar 2017 that included Iron Maiden, Ghost, Tool, Megadeth, Metallica, and the Foo Fighters I was worried that 2018 would not live up to the previous year. I was wrong.

Started the year on a quiet note with Queensryche, an excellent performance but a small venue. Got to see them open with Best I Can which was quite the treat.

As the summer closed in I was able to attend the epic Mastodon/Primus tour in Seattle. I came out bruised and beaten in the pit, but was well worth it as I got on the rail for Primus.

Later I made a road trip to Vancouver, WA for possibly the most epic concert lineup I’ve seen. Alice In Chains, Bush, The Cult, and STP. I somehow managed to get the rail for this show right in front of Jerry Cantrell. Caught a pick from Jerry and from one of guys from The Cult.

I saw Australian Pink Floyd. It was a last minute ticket purchase. Didn’t care for the show too much. Shine on You Crazy Diamond parts 1-9 was an unnecessary setlist addition imo.

I flew down to Vegas for Ghost. All I can say is wow. Everything about the show was amazing! Will see again for sure! Was on the rail for this one too.

Metallica was my final show for the year. An amazing show. I wanted to see them closer up this time and accomplished this as I was yet again on the rail.

Right now for 2019 I have...
6/17 Judas Priest @ Northern Quest Resort and Casino - Spokane, WA
9/5 Iron Maiden @ The Tacoma Dome - Tacoma, WA
9/6 Iron Maiden @ Moda Center - Portland, OR
9/13 Iron Maiden @ MGM Grand Garden Arena - Las Vegas, NV

I probably won't see too many shows for next year as I spent a boatload of money on Maiden. Judas Priest was too good to pass up. Right now the only show I'm willing to travel for is Tool. Hoping for a few more shows in my town that I can see.
 
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Saw seven bands live for the first time in 2018:

Last In Line
Black Star Riders
Sons of Apollo
Jackyl
Lamb of God
Trivium
Lynch Mob
 
Ticket prices haven't been announced yet, but the poster says "Fan favorites only". Play classics cabaret tour ftw!
 
Powerwolf, Soulfly, Swallow the Sun and Incite just got announced for Bloodstock. Good stuff. Symphony X also have a show in London at the start of June after a couple of shows in Coventry and a town I'd never heard of called Holmfirth near Manchester. I think they're picking the most random venues possible.
 
Continuing my mostly metal-free schedule, I'll be seeing Anti Nowhere League later this month. I did see them at Sonisphere in 2014, and they get a lively audience.
 
Saw Greta Van Fleet, absolutely unreal, great show. Set had a slower middle chunk would of switched 1 of the 3 slower songs for a faster paced one but other than that it was a perfect show
 
Saw King Kong Company the other night. Irish dancy rocky kind of thing. Not sure if they tour internationally yet. Not the kind of stuff I would listen to in the house but after bein told many times "ye have to see them live" I thought it would be rude not too. Crackin gig, one of the sweatiest dance floors I have been on in a long time. Crazy tunes, crazy crowd. Highly recommended if you like that kind of thing.
The recorded stuff definitely does not do them justice.
Nothin this weekend, next weekend has me at Uncle Acid & The Deadbeats.
 
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