We went to see Puddle of Mudd in San Francisco and found out they were playing at one of my old stomping grounds; Slims. If you haven't read it yet, my previous post covers Slim's and what a great place it is! The tickets for the show were only $25 and was a great deal since we found out that there would be two opening acts! $25 for three bands. The kids (my son Ryan and his friend, Javier) were really excited about that since they are soon building their history of bands they have seen in concert.
When we got there, of course the boys went straight to the merchandise tables and Ryan rushed to buy the autographed drum head to add to his growing collection! They were even more amazed when they found the band members of the opening band selling the merchandise. They took no time to ask them to autograph the CDs and the posters!
First up was The Veer Union. This band comes from Vancouver, Canada and consists of five very energetic and charismatic guys who seem to be very close and have a lot of fun together. This can be seen later in the night as they recited something in unity prior to inbibing a beverage. (Black Label and smooth is all I will say!)
When they came out on stage, the first thing you notice is Crispin Earl's (the lead singer)incredible and super long mohawk. It made you wonder if it was real it looked so perfect. Then they rocked it! They had a sound which mixes alternative rock and garage band grunge. The song that really got everyone to take a good look at this band and remember the moment was "Seasons". "Seasons" displays incredible guitar work as well as powerful vocals. The crowd went wild to that song as well as "Darker Side of Me" which reminds me of Hinder. This is a band to watch out for and I am sure they will be taking over the charts soon.
Next up was Burn Halo, a five member band from California and Oklahoma. The frontman for Burn Halo turns out to be James Hart who was the awesome lead singer for the Southern California Punk Band, Eighteen Visions. When I saw him, I knew it was going to be a great show and they did not disappoint! The incredibe charisma of these guys shows throughout all their songs. Joey Roxx the guitar player would have you just watching him and wondering how in the heck did he get so good and he looked so young! I could only imagine what the next years bring them! Dillon Ray banged on those drums hard and with the vocals of Brandon and Aaron it all came together. I was surprised to find out that they are just on their first album, self titled Debut Album. They seemed to make it look like they had been playing together for years and having a great time doing it. The song favorites would be 'Dirty Little Girl" which has some great vocals and shredding guitar. "Save Me" is another great song that eerily reminded me of Guns n Roses and had me wanting more. You will have to check this band out.
Headliner, Puddle of Mudd was next up and the crowd was really ready. Puddle of Mudd was formed in 1992 but broke up in 1999 and left Wes Scrantin as the original member who would put a new band together the following year. These four guys came out with intense energy and Wes shows his care free personality and definitely makes you feel like you are in a garage and you are just all hanging out together jamming. It is amazing to watch how he engages the crowd and you can tell is just having fun performing! Paul Phillips on guitar is like a caged tiger on stage, he just moves around and is pure energy!! You feel like he is just going to jump out off the stage and just play right in the crowd. The chemistry with the band is well displayed and Doug Ardito on bass and Ryan Yerdon on drums just makes it all fit.
The crowd went crazy for "Psycho" which is their smash hit from 2007 Famous album. The vocals of Wes had everyone screaming, "Maybe I'm the one...." Old, young, women, men; everyone was on their feet screaming and jumping! Another great song is their latest single, "Stoned" which had extraordinary guitar work and I can see it fast climbing the charts. Every song they played was great and it was hard to leave when they finished. Everyone wanted more including myself. Of course, I am now searching when any of these three bands are coming back to town because I will check them all out and so should you!!!
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