Rock USA Oshkosh, 2014, Day 3: Like A Storm, Black Stone Cherry, Halestorm, 3 Doors Down, KoRn

Post #385

(an overdue review from 4 summers ago... See here for review of Day 2)

As Rock USA continued for its 3rd day on July 19th, 2014, I would again be taking in a variety of rock and metal music for an entire afternoon. The line-up on this day featured several bands I was looking forward to (Halestorm and Korn), and a few that were totally new to me (Like a Storm and Black Stone Cherry). In any case, it promised to be a day filled with awesome hard rock and metal music.

The first band I caught on the main stage was Like a Storm. They are a brand new band out of New Zealand, touring here in the States in support of their new album, Chaos Theory: Part 1, featuring their hit song 'I Love the Way You Hate Me'. They switched things up a bit with their alt-metal cover of Coolio's 'Gangsta's Paradise'. When it comes to their sound, between the vocals and guitar tones I felt they were comparable to Seether. These guys were something else! They even incorporate a didgeridoo into their music.

Next band on the main stage was Black Stone Cherry. They delivered their brand of hard rock with a veteran presence on-stage. Their songs were hard-edged yet made for mainstream radio. I recognized their main hit, 'White Trash Millionaire'. Their set was enjoyable and kept the crowd rocking out.

Halestorm were next, and they were one of the bands I'd been anticipating the most. It was late afternoon by this point and this band kept the crown engaged. Participation was encouraged by the band and the crowd responded. They opened with 'I Miss the Misery', a favorite of mine and a big hit of theirs. Lzzy proved to be one of the best band leaders of the whole fest. She kept the crowd engaged in the music, leading crowd participation segments, and interacting with her band mates. One of the best points of their set was here interaction with drummer (also her brother) during the drum solo. Another favorite from their set was 'A Familiar Taste of Poison'- a song I'd heard covered at Dame Nation Fest... But for me the real show stopping moment was when they launched into their cover of 'Dissident Aggressor'- the classic Judas Priest number (also a setlist staple for Slayer). Lzzy's voice sounded brilliant covering this metal classic, and she more than did the song justice, as Halestorm practically made it their own.

3 Doors Down performed on the main stage as the penultimate act of the day. They opened with 'Time of My Life', and their show was off and running. They delivered a great set, touching on all their major hits, and included  a new song from their (then) upcoming release. I was pleased to hear several songs from their debut album, The Better Life, as it is the album of theirs I know best. Of course the played Kryptonite- perhaps their most trademark of songs. Then it was down to Korn to close out the night...

Korn hit the stage with their unique, dark and twisted presence. 'Falling Away From Me' was the opening number. From heavy riffs to haunting 7-string lead guitars, dousing the outdoor ampitheater in the shadows of minor-key tones of ominous darkness, Korn blew the crowd away. Jonathan Davis' unique voice made spines tingle throughout the crowd. They closed this day of rock and metal music with a performance to be remembered. Not to be overlooked, they saved their early hit 'Blind' for their encore-closer.

All-in-all, it was a great day of live music enjoyed to the fullest. Setlists for these band on this day are as follows...

Like A Storm
-Chemical Infatuation
-Never Surrender
-Just Save Me
-Alone
-Nothing Remains
-Gangsta's Paradise (Coolio cover)
-Enemy
-T.N.T. (AC/DC cover)
-Love the Way You Hate Me

Black Stone Cherry
-Maybe Someday
-Me and Mary Jane
-Ghost of Floyd Collins
-Yeah Man
-Like I Roll
-Rain Wizard
-In My Blood
-Blind Man
-Fiesta del Fuego
-White Trash Millionaire
-Blame it on the Boom Boom
-Lonely Train
-30 Seconds of Death Metal

Halestorm
-I Miss the Misery
-Love Bites (So Do I)
-It's Not You
-Freak Like Me
-Break In
-Familiar Taste of Poison
-(drum solo)
-Dissident Aggressor (Judas Priest cover)
-Mz. Hyde
-Daughters of Darkness
-I Get Off

3 Doors Down
-Time of My Life
-It's Not My Time
-Duck and Run
-Away From the Sun
-Behind Those Eyes
-Loser
-Citizen/Soldier
-You Better Believe It
-Here Without You
-The Better Life
-Kryptonite
-When I'm Gone

KORN
-Falling Away From Me
-Twist
-Got the Life
-Did My Time
-Spike in My Veins
-Hater
-Shoots and Ladders
-Coming Undone
-Here to Stay
-Never Never
-Freak on a Leash
----
-Blind

Heavy Metal Madness: Second Round Summary, part 2!

Post #208

Back on July 20th, the Heavy Metal Madness 2012 Tournament officially reached the 'Sweet Sixteen', as 8 more bands were eliminated as the second round polls closed. The results for last month's voting were as follows...

Megadeth beat Motorhead 25-11,
Judas Priest upset the #2 seed Slayer 21-14,

Nirvana beat Rob Zombie 21-15,
Alice In Chains dominated Lacuna Coil 30-7,

AC/DC beat Queen 23-14,
Led Zeppelin edged out a close match with Ozzy Osbourne 20-17,

Tool came from behind to beat Bullet for My Valentine 23-12,
and System of a Down won a close match with Korn 18-15.

With these results in the bag, it is now on to the Sweet Sixteen! The first half of this round is now open for voting through August 19th. Cast your votes in the right hand column before then. >>>>>>>>

Now let's reflect a moment on the bands who were just eliminated. Here's a recommended song from each of them:

Motorhead-Overkill

Slayer-South of Heaven

Rob Zombie-American Witch

Lacuna Coil-Trip the Darkness

Queen-Bohemian Rhapsody

Ozzy Osbourne-No More Tears

Bullet for My Valentine-Scream, Aim, Fire

Korn-Another Brick in the Wall

Until the next round summary... Happy Headbanging!

Remember to keep voting....

Heavy Metal Madness First Round Summary: Part Four

Post # 198

On May 19th, the last segment of the first round of Heavy Metal Madness came to a close, and once again there were some unexpected upsets, and tight races for these bands to make it to the next round.

For the Metalcore Block:

Tool beat Death by a comfortable margin of 39-11,

Bullet For My Valentine upset Opeth 26-19,

System of a Down narrowly escaped being upset by Amon Amarth, as they clung to a 31-25 lead at the end of voting.

...and Korn had the most convincing upset of the month knocking off the #4 seed, Shadows Fall 34-13.

In the Classic Rock Block:

Queen upset Guns N' Roses 31-18,

AC/DC topped the Scorpions 35-14,

Ozzy bested Van Halen 37-9,

and Led Zeppelin overcame Jimi Hendrix 34-14.

As the early pattern of voting has unfolded, it seems that the magic number for a 'safe' amount of votes to push a band into the next round is 30. In the closest races, the most votes collected by a losing band was 29 (Godsmack). Will this rule-of-thumb hold true for the rest of this tournament? Only time will tell...

With the first round now concluded, the matches are only going to get tougher. Fans will have a harder time deciding who to vote for. Those who's first choice of a Champion is now eliminated have the freedom to vote for another band in their place. At this point, many of your predictions can be thrown out the window. I know several of mine have been defenestrated.

So, now is the time to follow more closely than ever! Already, the second round is underway, and more upsets are brewing, while other favorites dominate. Inevitably, more face-offs will come down to a close decision. Help those bands whom you prefer by sharing this blog with your friends, and call for more fans of heavy metal music to cast their votes, and make their opinion count!

Now, as I have done before, I leave you with some of my favorite suggested tracks from those bands now eliminated from Heavy Metal Madness:
Death-Open Casket
Opeth-The Drapery Falls
Amon Amarth-Fate of Norns
Shadows Fall-Forevermore
Guns N' Roses-Welcome to the Jungle
Scorpions-Alien Nation
Van Halen-Source of Infection
Jimi Hendrix-Manic Depression