Alter Bridge and Black Stone Cherry had teamed up for one of the more anticipated Hard Rock tours of this fall. Rockefeller Music Hall was packed even before Black Stone Cherry entered the stage, which is a bit unusual for a support act in Oslo, Norway. Fans were indeed geared up and ready to rock …
Black Stone Cherry
Black Stone Cherry aren’t just any support act anymore. Their third album, Between The Devil And The Deep Blue Sea (released May 31,2011), sold 13,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The album also reached #29 on The Billboard 200 chart in its first week.
Black Stone Cherry brought their Southern-styled Hard Rock to Oslo on this evening. Most people seemed to have heard their new single “White Trash Millionaire” prior to this concert, and along with “Blame It On The Boom-Boom”, it was the sing-along track of the evening. Another breath of fresh air was their Southern-styled cover of Bob Marley’s “Get Up, Stand Up.”
Between The Devil And The Deep Blue Sea is a somewhat more commercial success than their previous efforts, and they played five songs off this record — the song “Change” probably being the heaviest one. Black Stone Cherry were more energetic on stage than their touring mates, and the energy was echoed by the crowd. They’re a great band that’s recommended for any Hard Rock fan.
Setlist: Change / Shooting Star / Blind Man / Get Up, Stand Up (Bob Marley cover) / In My Blood / Rain Wizard / Peace Is Free / White Trash Millionaire / Killing Floor / Backwoods Gold / Maybe Someday / Blame It On The Boom-Boom / Lonely Train
Alter Bridge
The headliners, Alter Bridge, had to cut a few of their most demanding songs from the set due to vocalist/guitarist Myles Kennedy’s recent illness. He caught a cold while on the Scandinavian leg of the European tour. Anyhow, Kennedy sang great and there was no trace of illness in his voice other than that he avoided some screams. They opened with “Slip To The Void” from last year’s AB III, and continued with “Buried Alive” from their sophomore album Blackbird.
They played quite a few songs off AB III, but the other two albums were equally represented in their set, so there was something here for everyone. “Open Your Eyes” from their debut album One Day Remains seemed to be the song most people waited for this evening, and Kennedy had the crowd singing most of the chorus to this one during the encore. Another highlight was the title track from Blackbird. Earlier this year Guitarist magazine listed the song’s guitar solo, which is performed by both Kennedy and guitarist Mark Tremonti, as the greatest guitar solo of all time. While this is a subject for heavy discussion, there’s no doubt about the greatness of the solo, which they proved this evening.
The guitars play a big part in Alter Bridge’s sound and Kennedy and Tremonti topped the evening by having a guitar battle between the two songs in the encore. While there’s no question about who’s the better guitar player of the two, Kennedy’ performance was impressive as he proved to be quite a capable guitarist as well as a vocalist.
All in all this was an evening filled with quality Hard Rock from two of the genre’s best representatives of the modern era. If you’re a Hard Rock fan and have the chance to catch either of these bands on the road, make sure you get a ticket!
Setlist: Slip To The Void / Buried Alive / Ghost of Days Gone By / I Know It Hurts / All Hope Is Gone / Metalingus / Broken Wings / Come To Life / One Day Remains / Coeur D’Alene / Watch Over You (acoustic) / Blackbird / Find The Real / Ties That Bind
Encore: Open Your Eyes / Guitar Duel / Rise Today
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