Despite being over and hour late to the venue thanks to
construction traffic, we managed to see most of the bands and get all of our
interviews done. Walking in, Klipsch is packed like I’ve never seen. People
milling around between the vendors and stages all seem to be in good spirits as
everyone shares the same motive for the day: enjoy some bad ass music.
Squeezing all those people into that small of a space may seem like it would be
a problem but the combined excitement and anticipation of everyone there kinda
makes you overlook the drunken douchebags walking around spilling beer on
everything and slurring all their words. All in all it’s a great atmosphere to
be a part of.
After rushing to our first Interview with Chris Jericho from
Fozzy we were able to catch their set. Displaying energy normally only
possessed by sugared up toddlers, Fozzy was all over the stage and the crowd
loved every second of it. Chris Jericho,
at one point, even jumped on the speakers alongside the stage and sang to the
audience waiting with outstretched hands.
Frank Fontsere, their drummer, has an
insane amount of energy and love for what he does.
Later in the day we were
able to catch up with Billy Grey and Rich Ward, the guitarists for Fozzy. When
asked what the best thing about the tour was Rich stood up and turned our
camera towards the lake behind us and said “Great show, great fan base but
also, and the fact that we’re doing an interview and right over there is the
singer of P.O.D. fishing in the lake
with his son”. The camaraderie of all the bands there is just astounding. These
guys may or may not have ever met each other before, but they’re all hanging
out and having a good time.
The next show we caught was P.O.D. , again, a very energetic
band. The crowd, young and old, was going crazy through the set. There were
people crowd surfing and starting mosh pits, overall having a great time. Durin
g the set he even stepped out onto the guard rails in front of the crowd and
let various fans sing parts of the songs.
We had the pleasure of interviewing
their lead singer, Sonny. While doing the interview, his son sat in on the
entire thing playing on his iPad. According to him, the best part of the show
is seeing all the up and coming bands. The rest of the band couldn’t be reached
for an interview.
After P.O.D., I decided to walk around and see what people
thought about the show. Everyone I was able to talk to said that they loved
being there and loved the atmosphere. Walking around looking for willing
interview-ees, I was able to scope out some of the vendors. Along with the
obvious band merch, people were selling glass pieces, banners, flags and even
hats made of old beer boxes. The air in the “lobby” area smelled strongly of
nachos, beer and a strawberry Swisher. All of the people there seemed to be in
good spirits and enjoying themselves. The next big matter of business was
catching the show on main stage.
Adelita’s way put in a phenomenal show. The crowd was
incredibly responsive to them and seemed to love every second of the show. The
pavilion and lawn were both packed with people from wall to wall. People were
standing in the aisle ways listening to the show while security tried in vain to
usher them to their seats.
The band appeared to love the attention and crazed
fans cheering them on and enjoying the show.
Between sets everyone shuffles back out to the vendors to get a cold on or some more nachos or to just meet up with friends and talk about the bands.
Next on the roster was Staind. They’re a great band to see
if you’ve never seen them before. Their stage show was simple yet awesome at
the same time.
This band has an awesome stage presence and the crowd responded
wonderfully to them. Everyone there was
enjoying the show and in good spirits.
Godsmack played a phenomenal show. From the very beginning
their set was engaging and entertaining.
Their drummer, Shannon Larkin, has so
much energy it’s unreal. During one part they wheeled out a second drum set and
both Shannon and Sully played drums together in kind of like a duel/duet where
they tossed their drum stick back and forth to each other without missing a
beat.
The crowd, in my opinion, was at their peak during the entire set. Shinedown may have been the headliner but
Godsmack stole the show. Godsmack is an incredibly talented band with a broad
and enthusiastic fan base.
Shinedown’s stage set up was very flashy and visually engaging, between the pyrotechnics and light show. The singer,
Brent Smith, had a box he stood on at the front of the stage and didn’t really move from it too often although the guitarist, Zach Myers, did play part of a song from the sound booth in the middle of the pavilion. The show itself was great and entertaining.
Being the first “festival” type show my girlfriend had ever been to, She enjoyed it. If given the chance to do it again we would, although I would leave earlier to make sure I get through the construction traffic in time to see the entire show.
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