This would be my third time watching a Motley Crue (my very first big concert was the Dr. Feelgood tour in 1989) and third times the charm. The show was completely awesome from start to finish.
All apologies to the band The Raskins our tickets said the show started at 7pm but to our surprise they started playing at about 630pm so I only got to watch about half of their set so I don't think it would be a fair review. From what I saw they were doing great and their best to warm up the 30% (at that point) full Rogers Arena.
Alice Cooper is a STONE COLD KILLER in concert I was really blown away by his performance. His SIX piece band was unbelievable but as drummer I am biased and must say his drummer (Glen Sobel) was a MONSTER on the drums. I could not believe how good he was! What a talent!
Here is a clip of him playing "Feed My Frankenstein" (not from Vancouver) at another show.....
All apologies to the band The Raskins our tickets said the show started at 7pm but to our surprise they started playing at about 630pm so I only got to watch about half of their set so I don't think it would be a fair review. From what I saw they were doing great and their best to warm up the 30% (at that point) full Rogers Arena.
Alice Cooper is a STONE COLD KILLER in concert I was really blown away by his performance. His SIX piece band was unbelievable but as drummer I am biased and must say his drummer (Glen Sobel) was a MONSTER on the drums. I could not believe how good he was! What a talent!
Here is a clip of him playing "Feed My Frankenstein" (not from Vancouver) at another show.....
Anyway, on with Alice Cooper - what can I say he went ALL out. I have always been a fan of his music but I have never seen him live and what a treat. He pretty well played all his well known songs....
The crescendo of his performance was "School's Out" at the end with a switch up into Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the Wall" then back into "School's Out" while a torrential downpour of confetti, bubbles, and balloons filled the floor of the sold out Roger's Arena.
An absolutely masterful performance by Alice Cooper who was just as good if not better than the main act - all at the age of 66! I highly recommend that you go see him if you get a chance.
On to the main act... Motley Crue. They opened with one of the best newer songs in a while (Saints of Los Angeles) and blistered into almost all of their big hits. If you are a long time Motley Crue fan you would have noticed a couple missing from the setlist however I would say they played 90% or more of their biggest songs.
Motley Crue's years of touring and hard work shows when they work the stage. They were trying their best to put on the best show they can. I will say this - everyone always knocks Vince Neil (singer) for his shot voice. While his voice wasn't in top form it certainly was better than average. The common complaint about his is that he skips lyrics, gets the audience to do most the singing, and is off key. While he certainly got the audience singing quite a bit I was impressed with his singing - for amount of miles on the odometer he has and certainly think it was up to snuff. The only knock I will give him is pretending that he's playing guitar on some songs (ie. Same Ol' Situation). Clearly the guitar was a prop and only there for effect.
Mick Mars (guitar) is in my view the strongest member (musically) and it shows in his playing. What a trooper - he is easily well into his 60's and diagnosed with Ankylosing Spondylitis he sure gave it his all and hit most of the notes.
Nikki Sixx (bass) is the foundation and founder of the band. He has written about 90% of all of their music. Without him there is no Motley Crue. He always delivers in concert and does his best. He paused the show midway to make about a ten minute speech to break down the history of the band, how they got this point, and telling others to strive to achieve their dreams. Nice personal touch.
Tommy Lee (drums) is easily the most famous guy in the band and also he is the entertainer in the band. Ever since the Girls, Girls, Girls tour his trademark within Motley Crue is having a drum set that in some way levitates and/or does something totally unique. He didn't disappoint at this show either....
- Hello Hooray (Judy Collins cover)
- No More Mr. Nice Guy
- Under My Wheels
- I'm Eighteen
- Billion Dollar Babies
- Poison
- Dirty Diamonds (with drum solo)
- Welcome to My Nightmare
- Feed My Frankenstein
- Ballad of Dwight Fry
- Killer
- I Love the Dead
- School's Out
The crescendo of his performance was "School's Out" at the end with a switch up into Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the Wall" then back into "School's Out" while a torrential downpour of confetti, bubbles, and balloons filled the floor of the sold out Roger's Arena.
An absolutely masterful performance by Alice Cooper who was just as good if not better than the main act - all at the age of 66! I highly recommend that you go see him if you get a chance.
On to the main act... Motley Crue. They opened with one of the best newer songs in a while (Saints of Los Angeles) and blistered into almost all of their big hits. If you are a long time Motley Crue fan you would have noticed a couple missing from the setlist however I would say they played 90% or more of their biggest songs.
Motley Crue's years of touring and hard work shows when they work the stage. They were trying their best to put on the best show they can. I will say this - everyone always knocks Vince Neil (singer) for his shot voice. While his voice wasn't in top form it certainly was better than average. The common complaint about his is that he skips lyrics, gets the audience to do most the singing, and is off key. While he certainly got the audience singing quite a bit I was impressed with his singing - for amount of miles on the odometer he has and certainly think it was up to snuff. The only knock I will give him is pretending that he's playing guitar on some songs (ie. Same Ol' Situation). Clearly the guitar was a prop and only there for effect.
Mick Mars (guitar) is in my view the strongest member (musically) and it shows in his playing. What a trooper - he is easily well into his 60's and diagnosed with Ankylosing Spondylitis he sure gave it his all and hit most of the notes.
Nikki Sixx (bass) is the foundation and founder of the band. He has written about 90% of all of their music. Without him there is no Motley Crue. He always delivers in concert and does his best. He paused the show midway to make about a ten minute speech to break down the history of the band, how they got this point, and telling others to strive to achieve their dreams. Nice personal touch.
Tommy Lee (drums) is easily the most famous guy in the band and also he is the entertainer in the band. Ever since the Girls, Girls, Girls tour his trademark within Motley Crue is having a drum set that in some way levitates and/or does something totally unique. He didn't disappoint at this show either....
I have to give a shout out to the fans that attended the show. They were absolutely INCREDIBLE. As you will see from the video clips below the fans were right into it singing along with all the songs and were having the time of their lives. There is NOTHING like attending a sold out rock show, with great fans, and awesome music - it's the best feeling in the world.
The Setlist:
Beginning of Show:
(Rodgers & Hammerstein song)
- Saints of Los Angeles
- Wild Side
- Primal Scream
- Same Ol' Situation (S.O.S.)
- Looks That Kill
- On With the Show
- Too Fast for Love
- Smokin' in the Boys' Room (Brownsville Station cover)
- Mutherfucker of the Year
- Anarchy in the U.K. (Sex Pistols cover)
- T.N.T. (Terror 'N Tinseltown)
- Dr. Feelgood
- In the Beginning
- Shout at the Devil
- Don't Go Away Mad (Just Go Away)
- Drum Solo
- Guitar Solo
- Live Wire
- Too Young to Fall in Love
- Girls, Girls, Girls
- Kickstart My Heart
Encore:
Home Sweet Home
End of Show:
My Way (Frank Sinatra song)
A very nice touch to their final bow in Vancouver was walking back through the crowd with flashlights to shine on their fans while walking towards a platform stage at the end of the stadium and finishing the show with "Home Sweet Home" and then walking back through the crowd to exit the stadium.
I found myself thinking that shows like this are a dying breed they come from a different time and most artists today don't deliver the same style of show anymore. And the shows today are not authentic they are overproduced, auto tuned, using backing tracks, with flavour of the month bands that don't have a career past two years.
So it's a bit sad to see this era of concert slowly fading into the limelight but I am SO greatful that I got to see many of them before they left and before I leave this earth.
Ok, now to my official rating of the show....
Audience Interaction & Engagement: "A+"
Quality and Diversity of Music: "A"
Stage Presence of Band "A"
Energy from the Crowd: "A+"
Notable Exceptions: Red Hot, Ten Seconds to Love, Piece of Your Action.
Overall rating for the show A. When I put this tour together never in a million years did I think it would not sell out especially when the show at Rogers Arena was completely sold out. This show was TOTALLY AWESOME! And if you didn't take advantage of the chance to see it you totally missed out and I feel sorry for you as you missed one hell (no pun intended) of a show.
That's my review and I'm sticking with it!
So it's a bit sad to see this era of concert slowly fading into the limelight but I am SO greatful that I got to see many of them before they left and before I leave this earth.
Ok, now to my official rating of the show....
Audience Interaction & Engagement: "A+"
Quality and Diversity of Music: "A"
Stage Presence of Band "A"
Energy from the Crowd: "A+"
Notable Exceptions: Red Hot, Ten Seconds to Love, Piece of Your Action.
Overall rating for the show A. When I put this tour together never in a million years did I think it would not sell out especially when the show at Rogers Arena was completely sold out. This show was TOTALLY AWESOME! And if you didn't take advantage of the chance to see it you totally missed out and I feel sorry for you as you missed one hell (no pun intended) of a show.
That's my review and I'm sticking with it!