As has become yearly tradition, Barenaked Ladies will be heading out on the road this summer for their “Last Summer on Earth” Tour along with both the Gin Blossoms and Toad The Wet Sprocket. In previous years, the tour has seen support from the likes of Better Than Ezra, Howard Jones, The Violent Femmes, and others. The tour begins June 3rd in St. Augustine, Florida and wraps up July 23rd in the Barenaked Ladies hometown of Toronto, Canada.
Tool fans can finally rejoice. Not only is their new record Fear Inoculum here, their first album since 2006’s 10,000 Days, but the iconic prog-metal band has announced plans to hit the road this fall for nearly 30 shows.
The album comes after nearly a decade of hype, in which the band at various times teased the record’s release or otherwise led fans to believe it was nearly complete. Bassist Justin Chancellor said “Sometimes I thought we were nearly there. We’d written an album or we had some songs that were cool, and then we’d dump the whole lot and start again. It was devastating…” But good things come to those who wait, as the album has already received rave reviews from critics while seemingly getting the stamp of approval from most longtime fans of the group.
Kicking off in Sacramento on October 13th, the tour sees the band trek across the US and into Canada through the end of November with most shows taking place in arena venues. English rockers Killing Joke have been pegged to open the shows. More info here.
Oct. 13 – Sacramento, Calif. @ Aftershock Festival
Oct. 15 – Denver, Colo. @ Pepsi Center
Oct. 18 – Salt Lake City, Utah @ Vivint Smart Home Arena
Oct. 20 – Los Angeles, Calif. @ Staples Center
Oct. 21 – Los Angeles, Calif. @ Staples Center
Oct. 23 – Glendale, Ariz. @ Gila River Arena
Oct. 25 – San Antonio, Texas @ AT&T Center
Oct. 27 – Houston, Texas @ Toyota Center
Oct. 29 – Tulsa, Okla. @ BOK Center
Oct. 31 – Milwaukee, Wis. @ Fiserv Forum
Nov. 2 – Indianapolis, Ind. @ Banker’s Life Fieldhouse
Nov. 3 – Chicago, Ill. @ United Center
Nov. 5 – Cincinnati, Ohio @ US Bank Arena
Nov. 6 – Cleveland, Ohio @ Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse
Nov. 8 – Pittsburgh, Pa. @ PPG Paints Arena
Nov. 9 – Detroit, Mich. @ Little Caesars Arena
Nov. 11 – Toronto, Ontario @ Scotiabank Arena
Nov. 12 – Toronto, Ontario @ Scotiabank Arena
Nov. 14 – Boston, Mass. @ TD Garden
Nov. 16 – Newark, N.J. @ Prudential Center
Nov. 18 – Philadelphia, Pa. @ Wells Fargo Center
Nov. 19 – Brooklyn, N.Y. @ Barclays Center
Nov. 21 – Uncasville, Conn. @ Mohegan Sun Casino Arena
Nov. 22 – Atlantic City, N.J. @ Boardwalk Hall
Nov. 24 – Raleigh, N.C. @ PNC Arena
Nov. 25 – Washington, DC @ Capitol One Arena
Celebrating 25 years since the release of Throwing Copper and Sixteen Stone, the albums that kickstarted and defined the careers of Live and Bush respectively, two of the biggest bands to help shape the post-grunge landscape brought their “ALTimate Tour” to Denver’s Fillmore Auditorium. The sold out show was able to live up to its hype and delivered nearly three hours of classic nineties riffs and sing-alongs to a jubilant Colorado audience that was thirsty for some musical nostalgia.
Canadian rockers Our Lady Peace opened the show and got the crowd engaged early with familiar songs “Innocent” and “Somewhere Out There”. Fans filtered into the scorching hot auditorium as lead singer Raine Maida sang about “a Lennon and a Cobain” and thanked the many who got in early to watch them.
Our Lady Peace
Also mixed into the set were “Clumsy” and “Superman’s Dead” off of their platinum selling 1996 album that shares a name with the former. The set would wrap up with “Starseed”, the hard rocking single from their debut album, Naveed, which also happens to be turning 25 year this year. Highlighted by an extended, at time cacophonous intro before blasting off with soaring guitars, the song took on new life in a live setting.
Bush was up to bat next and wasted no time delving into their Sixteen Stone material as they opened up with the stadium anthem, “Machinehead.” And from there the hits just kept coming.
All said the England-turned-California band would play six songs from their multi-platinum selling debut, including many that made for set highlights. Among them was “Everything Zen” and of course their biggest hit “Glycerine”, in which the band left the stage and allowed frontman Gavin Rossdale to perform the song solo on just his distorted electric guitar.
Bush
Then while in the middle of “Little Things”, another one of those album cuts, Rossdale ran through the crowd and eventually made it up to the balcony, high-fiving fans as he passed them by. Just prior to that we got a taste of some new material in the form of “Bulletholes” a track written for the upcoming action film “John Wick 3: Parabellum” starring Keanu Reeves. Rumbling bass and loud guitars in full force, the song sounded fresh while still remaining true to Bush’s hard rock blueprint.
“Comedown”, another Sixteen Stone classic concluded their set and then it was Live‘s turn to take the stage. Their portion of the evening kicked off with “The Dam At Otter Creek”, the opening track from Throwing Copper that was perhaps too dark and raw to be a radio single, but just bewitching enough to be the perfect beginning to both an album and a concert.
Live
Live hit upon seven tracks from that iconic record throughout their set, including the obligatory “Lightning Crashes” to close the show. “White, Discussion” the politically charged rocker that is as lyrically relevant today as it was in 1994 was also a treat to hear. Then of course songs like “All Over You”, “Selling the Drama” and “I Alone” are staples – it wouldn’t be a complete Live show without them.
But what really impressed me was their ability to include all their hits while also finding time to sprinkle in a few unique covers as well. Vocalist Ed Kowalczyk got to further show off his range as they put a really nice spin on The Rolling Stones’ “Paint It Black” that got the crowd as fired up as any one of their own hits, while also paying homage to one of their own alt-rock influences with a rendition of R.E.M.’s “Losing My Religion”.
Pound for pound, this may be the best tour of the summer for fans of 90s rock and alternative music. It’s a celebration of the past and those memories you made while listening to the songs all those years ago, but it’s also a celebration of how rock and roll is still very much alive in 2019. See full remaining tour dates.
In August of 1994 Live had just released their breakthrough album, Throwing Copper, and were one of the bands performing at Woodstock Festival in Saugerties, New York alongside an all-star lineup that included Bob Dylan, The Allman Brothers Band, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Cranberries, Green Day, and many more. Now 25 years later as the band celebrates the anniversary of that multi-platinum selling record, they’ve announced plans to include audio from the festival set on their upcoming box set commemorating the album.
Watch “Selling the Drama” (incorrectly titled on YouTube) from the set here…
https://youtu.be/eQxGrhk2NzI
Live wraps up their current run through Europe July 9th in Utrecht, Netherlands before coming back to North America to resume their ALTimate Tour with Bush, who is also celebrating the 25th anniversary of one of their own albums, Sixteen Stone. The pairing will also be joined on the road by Our Lady Peace. See all tour dates here.
“This show wasn’t supposed to happen” Stephan Jenkins proclaimed near the end of his band’s set. The Third Eye Blind frontman was aware of the rainy forecast across the Front Range of Colorado, including the possibly of strong cells of thunderstorms rolling right over Denver. The outlook at one point so bleak that the final call was made to leave the tour’s extensive lighting rig and stage production in the trucks and not on stage, another fact Jenkins lamented.
Nonetheless, the show went on as Jimmy Eat World took the stage in front of a soaked crowd while the occasional lightning bolt flashing in the distance. Who needs a fancy light system, anyway?
The Mesa, Arizona quintet got the crowd up and moving through the rain early with “Bleed American”, their 2001 single that seemingly played on repeat at skateparks across the country in the early 2000s. For the next 50 minutes they mixed distorted guitars with catchy melodies as they played upbeat songs like “A Praise Chorus”, “Work” and the fan favorite hit “Sweetness”. When they did slow things down, it proved worthwhile as the crowd seemed to appreciate and sing along to their acoustic number “Hear You Me”.
By the time they closed out their set with their biggest commercial hit to date in “The Middle” the rain had let up and against all odds, a few rays of sun even peaked through the hazy mile high air. Luckily for Third Eye Blind and their fans, it wouldn’t rain again for the rest of the night. Hey, don’t write yourself of yet…
Although it’s worth noting their set was marred with audio issues, mainly a criminally low volume. I’ve never been to a rock show where the decibel level was that low. The venue is new for 2019, so I’ll give them a one time pass.
Third Eye Blind walked onstage, embraced each other in a group huddle, then dove into two brand new songs to begin their set. Jenkins, dressed in a bright yellow hoodie that read “Hardcore Happiness” on the back, joked that their new album should’ve been released by now but hasn’t been. The new songs created enough intrigue to excite the crowd early, especially the classic 3EB sounding “The Kids”, but the real party began the next song when they broke into “Never Let You Go” and got the crowd singing along.
The band then offered up some slick musicianship as they perfectly segued the ending of “Rites of Passage” into “London” while slipping in a verse of the 2009 track “Can You Take Me” in between, all before jamming seamlessly into “Graduate”, one of the heaviest rocking tracks from their 1997 self-titled debut album. Speaking of that 6x platinum selling record, the evening’s show featured nine of the album’s fourteen songs including “Motorcycle Drive By” “Jumper” “I Want You” and more which made for some of the evening’s high points.
While many would probably argue their flagship hit “Semi-Charmed Life” was the highlight of the show, my money is on “God of Wine”, the sorrowful and bittersweet ballad that crescendos to a fever pitch. Just as the song’s power and emotion fit perfectly as a closer on that 1997 album, it seems to fit just as well as a show closer today. As many fans filtered to the exits after “Semi-Charmed Life” presumably ended the show, Jenkins assured them no hard feelings. “Really if you got to go it’s all good. We only want the people who want to burn and burn, just burn all summer long that’s it” he said genuinely without sarcasm as band newcomer Colin Creev played the deep cut’s intro on his piano.
So for a show that almost wasn’t, it all turned out pretty well. One week into an eight week run across the country, Jenkins said it was one of the “best night of the whole tour”. While that can certainly change for him, it will remain the best night of the tour for the approximately 3,000 fans who braved the elements and enjoyed a great night of music at one of Denver’s newest and coolest outdoor venues.
Fiddler’s Green Ampitheatre | Greenwood Village, Colorado
Words and photos by Tyler Hypnarowski
The official start of summer seemed to come a day early this year for music fans in Colorado as the Goo Goo Dolls and Train brought their co-headlining tour to Fiddler’s Green Ampitheatre Thursday night. With a cloudy Rocky Mountain backdrop behind the stage, the show began with a short set from Allen Stone, a Washington state born singer who mixed soft blues with poppy rhythms as commuters filed into the venue after battling Denver’s vexatious traffic.
Goo Goo Dolls frontman Johhny Rzeznik announced early on that it would be a night full of sing-alongs, before he plucked the opening notes of their 1998 hit “Slide”. Rzeznik, along with the band that also includes fellow founding member and bassist Robbie Takac, stayed true to that proclamation as they ran through radio throwbacks “Black Balloon”, “Big Machine”, “Here is Gone” and “Iris” while mixing in newer tracks including a trio from 2016’s Boxes album; “Free of Me”, “So Alive”, and “Over and Over”. They also showcased their new single “Miracle Pill”, set to be released today. The new song isn’t going to turn any heads, but it’s always nice to see artists keeping things fresh both in the studio and on the road.
Goo Goo Dolls | Photo by Tyler Hypnarowski
While Rzeznik may be the frontman, Takac is the band’s engine. Taking laps around the stage and jumping around barefoot just the same as he has been doing for over 30 years, the Buffalo, New York native was in great spirits all evening. “Denver! Greatest smelling city in the country.” he proclaimed.
About halfway through their set, Rzeznik had the increasingly growing crowd eating out of his hands. The singer appeared to get emotional and claimed to be “having a moment” at the peak of their 1995 breakthrough hit, “Name”, even lamenting he forgot the words to the final line before circling back and completing it all in dramatic fashion. Whether its an act done at every show or was unique to the night, it’s tough to blame him for making the most of those blissful moments he shares with fans.
The band was able to get the crowd up and moving one last time when they closed their set with the blue collar anthem “Broadway” from that aforementioned 1998 record. Missing from their set was any deep cuts and pre “Name” material, including their earlier post-punk influenced songs that have gotten at least one slot in their setlists over the past few years.
Last fall was a die hard’s dream as the band celebrated the 20th anniversary of their Dizzy Up The Girl album, playing it in its entirety along with early gems like “Fallin’ Down” and “Two Days in February”. But with so many hits it’s understandable, and a co-billed tour like this requires some setlist sacrifices.
Johnny Rzeznik of Goo Goo Dolls | Photo by Tyler Hypnarowski
Train would keep the sing-alongs going as they came out with the feel-good 2003 single “Calling All Angels” just as the last ray of light was dwindling. With smiles all around the stage and a seemingly loose and playful feel between the band, their show was all about having a good time and that vibe seemed to translate well with the crowd. Three songs into their set while in the middle of “If It’s Love”, lead singer Pat Monahan caught a cell phone from the crowd, snapped a selfie onstage and tossed it back while singing “cell phones up in the air, just be glad we made it here alive, on a spinning ball, in the middle of space…” These guys clearly love their jobs.
The band had even more reason to joyous, as lead guitarist and Boulder, Colorado native Luis Maldonado was making a bit of a homecoming. Maldonado had a chance to show off his chops two times during the guitar solo of their 1999 hit “Meet Virginia”, an ode to an anxious, eccentric, yet surprisingly relatable girl. After the normal solo, Monahan ribbed the guitarist for not going all out in front of his hometown friends, to which he responded with another extended solo much to the delight of both his bandmates and the roaring crowd.
Train | Photo by Tyler Hypnarowski
The party also included some special guests, as they brought out Allen Stone for two songs including a nice take on an abbreviated version of Jay Z’s “Empire State of Mind”. Shortly after, Johnny Rzeznik emerged from backstage for a cover of Tom Petty’s “American Girl” that saw both frontmen trading verses. It was a nice tribute to a lost legend and further proved these two groups to be a good fit for a summer tour together. The show then ended in grand fashion with the crowd singing along to “Drops of Jupiter”, the band’s 2001 hit from the album of the same name as confetti shot out from cannons onstage.
This tour sort of offer you two different eras in radio hits and nostalgia. Goo Goo Dolls hit the stage first and deliver an hour of 90’s classics with a bit more of an edge, before Train takes over and heads into the 2000’s and beyond with a bit more finesse. A great start to summer time in the Rockies…
