Rock on the Range, 2009
For those of you that don't know, Rock on the Range is a huge two day, 3 stage, rock festival in Columbus Ohio. This was the third year for the event, and the first chance that I had to actually attend RotR. Months ago when I saw the lineup including Saliva, Slipknot, Burn Halo, Avenged Sevenfold, Pop Evil, Static X, Motley Crue and many more (almost 40 bands total), I instantly got excited and I knew I was going to go no matter what.
I do want to say that I am sorry for not having photos of the main stage bands. This was an extremely popular show, and not all of the media had a chance to get both main stage and side stage photo passes. But this game me a chance to enjoy the music so more and get a better feel of the overall crowd for their sets.
Saturday March 16, 2009
After months of anticipation, May 16th came and the festival began. We started the day off tailgating with some Outside The Nine (Slipknot's fan club) members in the parking lot. It was great to be able to meet Mamaknot, and some of the other OT9 members to finally put faces and voices to those that I had been talking to online for months. Nothing says rock festival like starting the day off with jello-shots and cherry bombs.
Once the gates opened at 11, we parted ways with our OT9 family worked out way onto the grounds. Instantly I knew that my legs were going to be hurting the next day because the 2nd stage and Jaeger stages were set up on opposite sides of the stadium. This also meant that there was no way I was going to be able to hear all of the bands play since they had bands performing on the two smaller stages at the same time. But oh well, you can't have everything.
One really cool thing that did catch before the music started was a designated driver booth. Basicaly you go to the booth, and show your ID proving that you are 21 or older. After that you sign a paper saying you won't be drinking at the show, and then they give you a wristband that gets you free water and soda all day. This was awesome, not only was it there for a good cause (to help promote people having designated drivers) but it also saved me a lot of money at the concession stands. Being 12 hours between gates opening and us leaving, I knew I was going to have to keep hydrated somehow.
Looking around the grounds, I had to check out a few other places that were set up. Playstation had their trailer there, allowing you go to in and play some PS3 or PSP games, including some games that, at that time, were not released yet. They also had a contest going for creating your own band on Rock Band and playing on site. The set-up was awesome and it was a good place to get out of the heat for a little while.
Harley Davidson also had a tent set up where you could check out some Harleys. Even though I'm not a bike person, I couldn't help but to at least look at the bikes.
There were a lot of good bands that were set up to play on Saturday. I was especially excited about seeing Static X, Atreyu, Halestorm, Alice in Chains, and Saliva since I hadn't seen any of those bands before. Korn was another band that I really wanted to see for a third time since the first show of theirs I saw was simply amazing, and the second one, well, sucked. So I wanted a 3rd look at the band to get a better idea of their performance. And of course, I wanted to see Slipknot again, even though I had seen them a few times already this year, every time is like the first with the nine.
The first band that we saw was Early Pearl. They were the opening band on the second stage. This was a band that I wasn't familiar with, so I didn't really know what to expect. Their sound was a little different than I expected at a festival with bands such as Slipknot, Avenged Sevenfold, and Static X playing, but I enjoyed their music. Their singer, Bishop Booker had great stage energy and kept everybody entertained. Even though I hadn't of the band before, when they played their song, "Get Out" I knew it from somewhere. I still can't place where I knew it from, but it's a pretty good song, and the band performed it flawlessly on stage. Overall this is a band that I wouldn't mind seeing again.
Next, we went over to the Jaegermeister stage to check out X-Factor 1. Since we had run into their bass player, Willie Jive, in the parking lot, we decided that we
would check this band out. Well, I was not disappointed that I chose to see this band over State of Shock. This was another band that I had never heard of before, so
I had no idea what to expect. They were local to the area, so they had the home field crowd there to watch them. If I had to choose one word to describe their music
and show, it would be intense. Their music was hard, and fast. This band was extremely entertaining to watch. Vocalist, QBall had the insane charisma that I love to
see on stage. Not only did this band do a great job with their music, but they really worked the up the crowd's intensity for the following bands.Hopefully we will be
able to catch them later this year at Mayhem Fest in July.
Next we headed over to the main stage to see the first main stage band of the night, Black Stone Cherry. While I'm not the biggest fan of their music, I never had any problems listening to it. Unfortunately, they just didn't seem to have the energy on the stage that I was expecting from a main stage band. Their vocals weren't bad, but they weren't great either. Overall, the high point of their performance was a guy and his wheel chair crowd surfing. But this was just the opening band for the main stage, so my expecations weren't that high anyways.
After Black Stone Cherry, we made our way back to the Jaeger stage to check out Halestorm. This was yet, another band that I was not familiar with, but I had been told
good things about them. Once they came on stage, the crowd went wild. Even though their lead singer, Lzzy, is very attractive, she didn't let her sex appeal overshadow
her vocal and guitar skills. This is something that many female entertainers have a problem with. Arejay, Halestorm's drummer, was simple awesome on the drums. Not only
was he very talented, but he was also just fun to watch. He didn't just sit there and beat on the drums, he was standing, bouncing around, and everything else.
His energy and skill both easily put him on my list of top five drummers of all time, up there with Joey Jordison and Vinnie Paul. The other band members, guitarist Joe
Hottinger and bassist, Josh smith also did a great job on stage, playing flawlessly and keeping everybody entertained as well. Their hit single, "I Get Off" was easily
one of the best songs played on the Jaeger stage the entire day. This is a band that I anticipate going places and doing great things. If you get a chance to see them
live, then I highly recommend checking them out. It's worth it.
After Halestorm we went back to the main stage to check out Saliva. I am a big fan of Saliva's old stuff, and some of their newer stuff I think is hit and miss. But what I did see of them was awesome. Unfortunately I had to bail half way through their set to help out with an interview, so I didn't get to see the 2nd half. But they impressed the hell outta me, and I hope to see them the next time that they pass through the Nashville area.
After taking care of some business, I made my way back to the Jaeger stage to see Hurt perform. I had seen them before at the Nashville Crawfish Boil the year before, and I was impressed then. This time, just like last time, they did a great job. Even though Hurt's music is a little softer than I normally listen to, the music has a sound to it that I can't help but to enjoy. Vocalist, J Loren does an awesome job on stage, and you can tell that he really gets into the music that he is singing, so that it's not just words but something more to him. This is something that really impressed me about the band. Not only does their music seem to mean a lot to the band, but it also seems to touch the band's fans as well in ways that many bands just can't seem to do. This is another band that I highly recommend watching live.
After Hurt's amazing performance, we worked our way back to the main stage to catch Flyleaf. I hadn't seen Flyleaf live in a few years, since they played in Nashville with the Family Values tour. They were extremely impressive then, so I had very high expectations this time around. Once on stage, they kicked off their music, and it sounded pretty good, but just not as good as they did a few years ago. Vocalist, Lacey Mosley, still had great energy and sounded good, but it just seemed as if something was missing. They played some of their older stuff, and some stuff off of their upcoming CD Memento Mori. Overall I was not disappointed in their performance, but I just expected a little more. I definitely want to see the band live again, and still would recommend seeing them live to anyone that has a chance to see them live.
Next, yet again, we worked our way back to the Jaeger stage to see a band that I haven't heard anything from in a long time, Static X. Being a big Static X fan myself,
this was a performance that there was no way that I was going to miss, and just like with Flyleaf, I had extremely high expectations of even though I had never seen
them live before. Their singer, Wayne Static, has a stage presence that is rivaled only by a handful of other performers. They played many of their big songs, such as "Push
It" and "I'm With Stupid". Static X was amazing to watch, they worked the crowd, and used every piece of the stage. I think that Static X could have easily been a main
stage band, but I enjoyed them as a second stage band as it gave a more personal feel to the crowd. Not only was Wayne awesome to see live, but the rest of the band
was fun to watch as well. I can't wait to see them again.
Chevelle was the next band to take the main stage. I missed the first few songs of their set, but when I finally saw their set I was highly impressed. Even though I liked their music, my expectations for their live performance was not that high. From the few songs that I did see, they were great. My favorite song that they did was "Vitatmin R", which is also one of my favorite songs that they wrote.
After Chevelle, we worked our way to the second stage to watch All That Remains. I had high expectations for All That Remains, since I was a fan of their music, and their musical style is what I like, with the mixture of screaming, growling, and actual singing. The band came out, and not only met my expectations, but blew them away. Phil Labonte, their singer, is fun to watch and looks like I'd think John Cena would look like if he were a rock star instead of a wrestler. Oli, their guitar player, not only played flawlessly, but his guitar looked badass. All That Remains' stage presence was great, and they really knew how to get the crowd going. If you want to mosh, then this is a band that you can definitely do it to. Just like with X Factor 1, this band was loud, fast, entertaining, and will be playing on the Mayhem Festival this year, so I'm looking forward to seeing them again. I hope they come to town after the Mayhem Fest for a non festival show so I can see them again. I would also love to see this band touring with Five Finger Death Punch as both band's have a similar style of music, and both are awesome live.
Next we went back to the main stage for Korn. I had seen Korn twice, once at the Family Values Tour at Starwood Amphitheatre in Nashville, and again at the Somet Center in Nashville a year later. The first time, the band was nothing short of amazing, while the second time I saw them they were blown away by Hellyeah and Five Finger Death Punch, even though Korn was headlining. The second time they seemed to be more of a laser light show than a rock show. So I wasn't sure what to expect, and with them following All That Remains, they had a tough act to follow. To top that off, I had been liking their newer albums less and less as they came out. But once Jonathan Davis and the rest of the members took stage the crowd went wild, and they started playing. They played both older and newer songs, and they sounded great. Even the newer songs that I wasn't a huge fan of, such as "Twisted Transistor" sounded great live. They more than made up for their show at the Somet Center a few years ago, and renewed my faith in their live performances. Needless to say, they restored my faith in their shows.
After Korn got off stage, we made our way, yet again, to the second stage for Atreyu. The first thing I noticed about the band is that they looked nothing like I
expected. But they sounded just like I expected them to sound like, amazing. They made awesome use of every inch of the stage, worked the crowd more than most of the
other bands, and seemed like they were having a lot of fun on stage. They played a lot of great songs, and were fun to watch on stage. Their slightly different look
just made watching them even more entertaining. Atreyu was definitely a great choice for the closing band for the second stage, and I can't wait until they come around
so that I can see them again. Hopefully sooner than later.
After Atreyu got off stage, we made our way back to the main stage area for Alice in Chains. I thought that Layne Stanley's death would be something that Alice in Chains just would not be able to recover from, so I wasn't expecting much for this performance. As the sun was going down, and the air became much cooler, they took stage. Amazingly their new vocalist, William DuVall, sounded just like Wayne Stanley. The entire band performed their music amazingly and I was blown away by their performance, despite freezing in the stands, it was totally worth seeing them live, and knowing that William DuVall sounded great brings back hope that their next CD "Black Gives way to Blue" will be an awesome CD. They played one of my all time favorite songs "Rooster". Their performance was one of the better of the night so far, and for most bands, they would be an extremely hard act to follow. They could have easily been a main stage closing band and I would not have been disappointed.
Once Alice and Chains got off stage, we decided to move into the GA area for the main attraction for the night, Slipknot. I had seen Slipknot twice already within a year, so this was our third time to see them. Since their shows had yet to disappoint, I had extremely high expectations for the nine. After working our way towards the stage thru the masses of maggots (Slipknot fans) we finally hit the point where we weren't getting any closer. Then the band took stage, Joey with his branch like gloves, and everyone in their masks. The intensity that Corey Taylor and the other member have is unmatched. Not only does the band use every inch of the stage, Corey also took a couple strolls through the crowd to get up close and personal with some lucky fans. They played a variety of songs off of their CD's from the new stuff such as "Sulfur" and older stuff like "Wait and Bleed". Corey surprised me by doing "Dead Memories" as the 'sing along' when I was expected "Duality" which they also played later. Even though the nine have been touring for over a year now, they didn't show any fatigue, and it seemed as if Drummer, Joey Jordison, and their DJ, Sid Wilson, has both fully recovered from their injuries that happened at Mayhem Fest last year (Joey's broken ankle, and Sid's broken ankles) . It was an amazing show, even though they had no pyro this time around. Their last song was "Spit it Out" in which Corey said that this show may have been the biggest "Zero Bullshit" ever, which was of course, one of the highlights of their show. They played "'Till We Die" as an outro, which is one of my favorite songs off of All Hope is Gone, and one that I wish they would play live. Even though I have now seen Slipknot three times in under a year, I really can't wait to see them again. Not only do they do an amazing performance, they have a charisma on stage that it incredible. On top of that, they seem to honestly love their fans and you can't walk away from their show without feeling appreciated by Slipknot. The only thing that could have made their show better was if they could have played longer, and maybe have thrown in "Gehenna" into their set list.
Overall Saturday was a huge success. Slipknot was the best performance hands down for the night. Static X, Korn, Halestorm, and All That Remains I think pulled out the rest of the top five bands for the night. My only concerns for the Sunday's show were that I'd be too sore to enjoy it to its fullest, and that with Saturday's performances, nothing would be able to really compare to Saturday's show. But only time could tell.
Sunday March 17, 2009
Even though the main band that I had come to see played the day before, I was still excited when Sunday morning rolled around and we were packing our stuff to go back to Crew Stadium. Just like the day before, it was perfect concert weather. A little cloudy, and not too hot.
Even though we arrived at Crew Stadium a little later than anticipated, we still got to catch the last half of Royal Bliss’s performance on the Jaeger stage. I had been hearing their song “Save Me” on 102.9 The Buzz in Nashville so I was a little more familiar with their music than I was with some of the bands that played on Saturday. Neal Middleton, their lead singer, was very charismatic. His stage presence reminded me of Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam. Their music sounded fantastic, and they closed their set with what is now my favorite Royal Bliss song, “I Was Drunk”.
After Royal Bliss, Burn Halo got on stage. I had seen them once before with Avenged Sevenfold, Buckcherry, and Papa Roach. Therefore, this time we knew what we were getting into. Burn Halo sounds great live. Their single “Dirty Little Girl” sounds just as good live as it does on their CD. They are very entertaining as hell to watch. James Hart’s (lead singer) stage presence reminds me a lot of Axle Rose’s on the old GnR videos of Paradise City. Overall, they are fun to watch, and I’d love to see them again.
After Royal Bliss got off stage, we made our way over to the other side of the venue to the second stage to see what Cavo had to offer. 102.9 The Buzz in Nashville had been playing Cavo’s song Champagne on the radio so I knew at least one of their songs offhand. The first thing I noticed once I got to the second stage is that the band had drawn a pretty good-sized crowd, which was a good sign. They sounded awesome, and put on a entertaining stage show. I was also pleased to know that Champagne wasn’t their only good song that they did. This is yet another band that I hope comes to Nashville so I can see them again.
After Cavo, we headed to the main stage area to watch Saving Abel. This is one band that has been in the Nashville area quite a few times, but I always miss their show for one reason or another. I’m not the hugest fan of their music, but they do have a good sound and I was interested to see how they sounded live. Overall I was impressed with their sound, even though it’s not nearly as hard as the music I used to. They put on a good show and next time they are in town I’ll do what I can to make it to the show.
Next on the lineup for the night was Pop Evil. This is another band that I didn’t really know offhand, but I had learned nothing but great things about this band. The first noticeable thing about this band is that in addition to the normal instruments, Pop Evil also uses a DJ. Pop Evil’s sound was awesome, and they instantly gained a new fan. The band was also extremely entertaining on stage. I can honestly say that I enjoyed every second of their show, and I hope they come to Nashville so I can catch them in a non festival atmosphere (which means longer set times). Pop Evil was easily one of the top five bands for the Sunday lineup.
After Pop Evil’s set, we made our way to the main stage to see Blue October. This is another band that I didn’t know anything about prior to the show. I don’t know if I was just at a bad spot in the stadium, but they didn’t sound good at all. This is the first and only band of the night that I can say that I just didn’t like. I’m going to have to listen to some more of their music to figure out if I just don’t like their music at all, or if they just don’t have that great of a live show.
So after Blue October we went back to the second stage to see the Sick Puppies. Like with Pop Evil, I didn’t know much about Sick Puppies, but I knew I loved their band name and I had heard a lot of good things about them. Once I saw their vocalist, Shim Moore, come out with his Papa Roach t-shirt on, I just got a good feeling about the band. They both sound great, and have a good stage presence. Their Bassist, Emma, was absolutely amazing with the bass. Like Lzzy of Halstorm, she is hot, but she doesn't have to realy on her looks because she has some amazing skills. They really knew how to work the crowd. Overall, I was very impressed with this band from Australia. After our interview with Hurt, J.Loren had told us that Hurt and Sick Puppies were going on tour together. Hopefully they will hit the Nashville area so that I can see them again. They definitely gained a new fan from their performance.
The next band, Shinedown, I had low expectations of. I’ve been a fan of their music and like their stuff ranging from “45” to “Second Chance”. But I especially like their newest single, “Sound of Madness”. Even though I was a fan of their music, I was disappointed when hearing their acoustic stuff on CD. So I was basing my expectations of their live performance with their acoustic stuff. Fortunately, they sound a lot closer to their CDs. They sounded great, and had a pretty good stage show. So it’s safe to say I was pleasantly surprised that they exceeded my expectations big time.
Taking the second stage after Shinedown got off the main stage was Billy Talent. This Canadian band had a pretty large crowd show up for their performance. They did a good job both musically and with their stage show. Even though they didn’t one up any of the other bands of the night, they did a good job.
After Billy Talent, we went back to the Main Stage to check out Buckcherry. This is a band that you are either going to love or hate. If you like their music, then you'll love their show, otherwise you probably could care less about them. For me, I like their music, so I enjoyed the hell out of their show. Josh Todd, their singer, reminds me a lot of Jacoby Shaddix of Papa Roach. He has an energy level that is over the top. They played a lot of their songs that I loved, like "Lit Up" and "Too Drunk". Overall, I really liked Buckcherry's set.
After Buckcherry we made our way back to the second stage one final time to see The Used. Overall, The Used as good, but not great. I believed that they were upstaged by pretty much everyone else that day, especially Sick Puppies and Pop Evil.
Avenged Sevenfold came up next, just before Motley Crue. After seeing Avenged Sevenfold earlier this year in Nashville, I was anxious to see them once again. Once M.Shadows and the rest of the band took stage, the crowd went absolutely insane. Synyster Gates and Zachy Vengeance played their sets flawlessly. And of course, their drummer the Rev was bad ass. They played a lot of the songs off of their latest album "Avenged Sevenfold" but they also did some of their old stuff, including one song from one of their CDs before "City of Evil" (Yes they existed before you heard "Bat Country" on the radio). They played their asses off, and the crowd ate it up, and was wanting more when they finally got off of the stage. This is probably the only band that I had seen so far that came close to Slipknot's performance the night before. I can't wait to see this band play again. There isn't much more to say about this band other than if you havn't had the chance to catch them live, then you should. I just feel sorry for any bands touring with them because they will steal the show every time.
The final band of the night, and of the show itself was Motle Crue. I grew up listening to the Crue and I've been a huge fan of theirs for years. Nikki Sixx's side project Sixx:AM renewed my faith in their abilities. Their long history of putting out great music led me to have extremely high expecations of their show. Unfortunately those expecations were way too high for what I actually saw that night. Their music actually sounded great, but Motley Crue used way too many lights. They had fireworks going off every few minutes for no aparent reason, and they seemed to end every song with a long ass guitar solo. A little bit of this would have been great, but they were doing it way too much. All it did was distract you from their music. I understand that they are from the 80's and thats what they did back then, but you have to adapt somewhat, or it's going to just make your show suck.
Overall Rock on the Range was a huge success. Tens of thousands of fans comming together for two days of great music. Everything was just awesome. I think that the best shows of the festival was Slipknot, Avenged Sevenfold, Halestorm, Sick Puppies, and Static X were the best shows of the two days. I'm planning on making the trip up to Columbus, OH yearly now as long as they continue to have kick ass shows like this one. It is definitely worth the price of the ticket, and we hope to see you all there next year.
