Vibes blog

If there was one can’t-miss day at this year’s Voodoo Festival, Saturday was it. I walked into City Park around 2 p.m. to catch the end of Dan Dyer’s set on the Voodoo Stage and things got progressively better for the rest of the day.

Mates of State were on the PlayStation Stage dressed like The Captain and Tennille, after all, it was Halloween.

All kinds of people were in costumes – from the sexy to the sublime. Couch potatoes, Waldo, hot dogs, the blockheads from Gumby and plenty of zombies. There was an effort at the end of the night to set a record for the largest gathering of zombies.

Next up on the Voodoo Stage was MuteMath, who played a good mixture of their two albums. Drummer Darren King walked out on stage for his regular ritual of duct taping his headphones on.

Standing out in the perfect 70-degree weather under blue skies, the band rifled through songs such as “Armistice,” “Chaos” and “Typical.”

Next up on the PlayStation Stage was Gogol Bordello and their brand of gypsy rock that got the crowd moving. Their energy is simply infectious and it’s difficult not to get moving as their grooves get going.

Wolfmother may have changed their lineup a bit, but Andrew Stockdale and the boys sure sounded like they’ve been together since day one. Be sure and catch them at The Fillmore this week if you get the chance.

Next up was the band I traveled all the way to New Orleans to see – at least, they were on the top of my list. Jane’s Addiction’s reunited original lineup hit the stage and proceeded to run through their classics for roughly an hour and 15 minutes. Starting with the mostly instrumental “Up the Beach,” the band covered all the bases, including the longer songs “Three Days,” “Then She Did” and “Ted Just Admit It.”

There seemed to be more interaction between singer Perry Farrell and guitarist Dave Navarro than with returned bassist Eric Avery, but the band sounded like they were in peak form for the duration.

Avery stalked the front of the stage during “Ain’t No Right” and the band returned for a two song encore of an acoustic “Jane Says” and the drum-heavy “Chip Away.”

Then it was on to the night’s main headliner on the Voodoo Stage – Kiss. As the curtain dropped, the quartet showed why and how they’ve been at the music game for 35 years. Their energy is high, and it’s all about performance.

Guitarist Tommy Thayer, who replaced Ace Frehley, did a fine job on guitar and his own years of experience with the band showed.

Gene Simmons constantly wagged his tongue and, of course, blew fireballs and found time to drool blood during his bass solo before rising up to the top of the rafters to sing “I Love It Loud.”

Paul Stanley always keep the crowd going and his vocals are still in great shape. Classic rock songs performed by the originators of a lot of what you see in concerts today. Their latest song “Modern Day Delilah” fit right in with the rest of the set. Stanley also flew out into the crowd to sing “Love Gun” from the top of a riser.

Wrapping up the festival today are The Flaming Lips and Lenny Kravitz.

Jane’s Addiction setlist
Up the Beach
Mountain Song
Ain’t No Right
Three Days
Whores
Then She Did
Been Caught Stealing
Ocean Size
Ted Just Admit It
Summertime Rolls
Stop

Encore
Jane Says
Chip Away

Kiss setlist
Deuce
Strutter
Let Me Go, Rock ‘N’ Roll
Hotter Than Hell
Shock Me
Modern Day Delilah
Say Yeah
Calling Dr. Love
She
Parasite
100,000 Years
I Love It Loud
Black Diamond
Rock And Roll All Nite

Encore
Shout It Out Loud
Lick It Up
Love Gun
Detroit Rock City

Bookmark to:

Hide Sites

Posted in Live Reviews, Photos, setlist | Leave a comment