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Darien, NY-Preceded by a drenching rain, Chicago’s “Kill Hannah” took the stage before a crowd of about 6,000, most of whom were still en route to their seats. Singer Mat Devine, who spiked his hair & made up his face, only to then shroud it with a hoodie, provided a gothic glam charge with a short, but poetic, performance that included the band’s 2006 single “Lips Like Morphine,” followed by the additionally gripping “The Chase” and a cover of Billy Idol’s “Rebel Yell.” I like this band. They’ve been flying just under the radar for quite a while now. This might not be the best tour package for them to be on, as I wouldn’t describe the ticket buyers as their target audience, but hey, exposure is key to success and every little crumb that is thrown your way…eat it up. In fact, I mean that literally, the combined weight of all the rock stars on hand this evening, Scott Weiland included, wouldn’t be enough to raise the average adult on the other end of a teeter-totter more than 10 inches off the ground.
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At any rate, speaking of rising, the crowd quickly rose to their feet to welcome Alice in Chains to the stage. It’s been argued that AIC should’ve been the headlining act, but again, it depends on who you ask. The set was an onslaught of their most popular tunes including “Them Bones”, “Angry Chair”, “Man in the Box”, “Would” and “The Rooster.” New lead singer, William DuVall paralleled the vocal styling of the late Layne Staley effortlessly and most impressively on the chilling “Down in a Hole.” Jerry Cantrell equally delivered some spine tingling sounds to fervent fans that stood in awe of this mans stellar guitar aptitude.
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Velvet Revolver, who some thought would crumble after their first record, squashed that notion as a skinny, yet healthy & sober, Scott Weiland slithered his way up to the front of the stage, amidst blaring sirens with bull horn in hand, and began the set with the first song off the Libertad record entitled “Let it Roll.”
And roll they did, right through a long list of VR tunes, plus an equal mix of STP and Guns n’ Roses selections tossed into the mix.
Slash was in fine form himself, sporting his signature black top hat, leather pants and vest and ever-dangling cigarette. He busted out the double neck on “Gravedancer,” and introduced the forever cool talkbox effect on “Get Out the Door,” two strong songs from the new record.
Chris Daughtry, the 5th place American Idol contestant, was spotted looking on from the side of the stage, as the band covered his current hit “What I Want,” a song to which Slash lends his guitar talents.
About two thirds of the way though the performance, the band came to the forefront perched atop stools to perform acoustic versions of “The Last Fight”, “Interstate Love Song” and “Patience.” This was a big crowd pleaser and was probably the most cohesive display of the evening. Given the star quality of the band, where most of its members have enjoyed careers filled with accomplishment and acclaim, its understandable that viewing them as a “band” can be challenging for some and possibly for them as well.
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The four song encore was poignantly highlighted by Pink Floyd’s “Wish You Were Here,” and may I say, for those of you who weren’t there, you missed one hell of a rock ‘n roll show.
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