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REVIEW: The HU’s Thunderous Finale of the Warrior Souls Tour at The Van Buren (10-26-2023)

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PHOENIX — On a late October evening in Downtown Phoenix, in a venue named for the street it sits next to – Van Buren – an audience gathered to witness an incredible night of musical diversity, and the final stop on the “Warrior Souls” tour. Three dynamic bands would take the stage this evening, bringing the desert night to life with powerful metal riffs and the pulsating rhythms from these unique bands: The HU, Blind Channel, and NERV. The HU is renowned for blending Mongolian tradition and metal, transporting the audience to far off horizons. Finnish nu metal band Blind Channel ignited the stage with incredibly kinetic music, and the hybrid genre band NERV left a lasting impression with their performance. It was an evening where boundaries were transcended, and as a result, the crowd was left craving more.

NERV

NERV performing at The Van Buren
NERV
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

NERV bills itself as a genre-bending rock band, which is an apt description, as their music crosses boundaries between emo and metal, and some pop mixed in for good measure. Formed in 2016, the Sacramento, CA-based band is rather new to touring life, as they have only toured three times since forming. They released their first album We’re All Patients Here in October of 2022. However, while newer to the touring life and new to the majority of the audience, the band managed to do something that all openers dream of: win over an audience who has never had any exposure to them. 

Dillon Jones - lead singer of NERV - singing in Phoenix
Dillon Jones (Vocalist), NERV
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

Lead vocalist Dillon Jones and guitarist and back-up vocalist Scott Buchanan took turns bantering with the audience, with Buchanan immediately gaining fans by wearing a Steve Nash Phoenix Suns jersey on-stage – unfortunately, the Suns would fall to the Lakers shortly after the NERV set ended – and both Jones and Buchanan made sure there was never a dull moment or awkward pauses during their set. Buchanan brought up the Arizona Diamondbacks’ improbable World Series run, which drew loud cheers. Jones also mentioned that singing karaoke until 2 in the morning was a really bad idea, apparently alluding to an incident earlier on the tour where the group had a little too much fun – if that’s even possible. 

Buchanan and Jones are joined onstage by guitarist Jordan Grokett and drummer Tyler Clark, and the band put together a 30 minute set that was, in short, extremely enjoyable, and left many hoping for more from the group. Jones has vocals that switch from a buttery-smooth emo style to a gritty sound that would fit in well with Breaking Benjamin, as well as other giants of metal. There is a bright future for this band, and if spotted on a bill as an opener, it is well-worth your time to show up early. You will not be disappointed.

Blind Channel

Blind Channel
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

Up next was Blind Channel, a Finnish nu metal band that formed in 2013, and represented Finland in the 2021 Eurovision contest. They would finish in sixth place in the competition with their song “Dark Side.” The organizers of the Eurovision contest asked the band not to flip the audience off – something that did happen during this show, with both the audience and the band playfully flipping each other off – as the Eurovision contest is a family friendly show, so to get around this, the band painted their middle fingers red. 

Niko Moilanen (Vocalist), Blind Channel
Niko Moilanen (Vocalist), Blind Channel
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

The show started off with “Happy Doomsday,” sung to the tune of “Happy Birthday,” with the band wasting absolutely no time in cranking the energy all the way up to 11 as soon as they started the show off. The band was heavily influenced by Linkin Park, and watching co-vocalists Joel Hokka and Niko Moilanen sing using screams that would have made Chester Bennington proud, it becomes very apparent just how influential Bennington and Mike Shinoda were.

In fact, “Scream” from their 2018 album Blood Brothers was dedicated to Bennington following his tragic passing. The lyrics make it very clear just how much they admired Bennington: “My hero, where did you go?/You still echo deep inside my bonesYou gave a choice to those who wanted to bleed/You gave a voice to those who wanted to scream.” The band also did a cover of “Numb” on video, but the song was never released as a standalone. 

Hokka and Moilanen are joined onstage by guitarist Joonas Porko, bassist Olli Matela, drummer Tommi Lalli, and DJ/percussionist Aleksi Kaunisvesi.

Blind Channel's vocalist Joel Hokka head banging
Joel Hokka (Vocalist), Blind Channel
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

The band expressed gratitude for being in town, for being on the tour, and made sure to inform everyone where they came from. The band is known in the EU, but had not made a name for themselves stateside. They call themselves the “Backstreet Boys of the metal scene,” and in fact ended their show with a short singalong to the song “Everybody (Backstreet’s Back),” which may have been a bit confusing to anyone who is unfamiliar with the band and unaware of their nickname. There is a bit of a boy band element with the group, so it does fit, but they are far more than a boy band. 

Blind Channel performing in Phoenix
Blind Channel
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

Blind Channel, like NERV, should be a must-see when spotted on a bill. The blast of pure energy and fun that comes from this group had a profound effect in bringing up the energy level of the crowd. You could not help but have a great time with these guys. The stage presence, the interactions, the ability to get the entire room to do what they asked with absolutely no hesitation (at one point asking the entire audience to crouch way down until given the word to go back to normal), were remarkable. It is just genuinely fun music with a band that is very good at what they do.

The HU 

The HU performing at The Van Buren
The HU
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

To say the crowd was buzzing, ready for The HU would be a bit of an understatement. The HU (which translates to the Mongolian root word for “Human being”) burst onto the scene in 2016 and has grown steadily in popularity ever since.

They are unique in that they only sing in Mongolian, including their Metallica covers, which are arguably significantly better than the originals due to the depth of sound that the traditional instruments provide, as well as the throat singing that provides a unique sound that builds on the growl of James Hetfield. Part of this success comes due to their extensive touring, including quite a few tours throughout the US. They are relatively frequent visitors to Arizona – frequent, that is, for a band that is based in a country half a world away from the Sonoran Desert. The band visited twice in 2022, once this year, and will undoubtedly be back many more times. 

Enkush (Vocalist, Morin khuur), The HU
Photography:
Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

The band expands on tour, from the four core members up to a total of eight, which allows them to bring their immense depth of sound to life. The band uses traditional Mongolian instruments and Tuvan throat singing, or Khöömei, as well as the more modern electric guitar and electric bass. 

Temka (Tovshuur), The HU
Photography:
Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

The core band consists of:

  • Galbadrakh “Gala” Tsendbaatar, the lead vocalist and one of the throat singers, who also plays the morin khuur. This instrument is known as the national instrument of Mongolia and is sometimes called a horsehead fiddle.
  • Nyamjantsan “Jaya” Galsanjamts, another throat singer, who plays the tsuur, an important instrument in Mongolian music culture, as well as the tumur hhuur, which is similar to a jaw harp in the US.
  • Enkhsaikhan “Enkush” Batjargal, who is also a throat singer and plays the morin khuur.
  • Temuulen “Temka” Naranbaatar, responsible for backing vocals and playing the tovshuur. The tovshuur is a handmade instrument with two or three strings and may resemble a guitar at first glance.

The four touring members include:

  • Unumunkh “Ono” Maralkhuu, who plays percussion, tumur hhuur, and provides backing vocals.
  • Jambaldorj “Jamba” Ayush, the guitarist and backing vocalist.
  • Nyamdavaa “Davaa” Byambaa, the bassist and backing vocalist.
  • Odbayar “Odko” Gantumur, the drummer.

The HU played a 15-song set, drawing mostly from their 2022 album Rumble of Thunder, including “Black Thunder,” “This is Mongol,” and “YUT Hövende,” which they dedicated to the indigenous people around the world, but especially to those affected by the Maui wildfire.

Jaya (Vocalist, Tumur hhuur, Tsuur), The HU
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

The lyrics of their songs are often about war and the old ways, with references to war in the song “Wolf Totem.” The wolf is a sacred symbol in Mongolia, with the Mongols considering them the messengers of heaven, and folklore holds that the great Chinggis Khaan – known to the west as Genghis Khan – came from a union between a wolf and an elk. As such, the song sounds like a war chant, one that would strike extreme fear into the hearts of any unfortunate foe who happened to hear it coming over the horizon, while simultaneously giving the army the ability to run through walls for their leader. 

Gala (Vocalist, Morin khuur), The HU
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

Throat singing was banned during much of the 20th century by the communist regimes that held the areas that the Mongolians call home due to the fact it was considered “backwards,” and the desire to eliminate all traditions and rituals from a culture before being forcibly assimilated by every communist regime in history. This changed in the 80s, and there has been an explosion of throat singers since the ban was lifted, allowing the general public to once again take part in their traditions. 

There is another layer to the greatness that is The HU: The music videos are absolutely gorgeous, showing off the beauty of the Mongolian steppes, telling an incredible visual and audio story. Each music video, each song leaves you wanting more. 

The same can be said about the shows: they are loud, they are fun, and if you are a fan of metal, you will absolutely have an amazing experience. The show ended with a cover of Metallica’s “Sad But True,” the only song in the encore, and the perfect end to an incredible show. 

The HU performing at The Van Buren
The HU
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

The HU and NERV have not yet announced new tour dates, but Blind Channel will spend much of spring 2024 touring Europe. While there are no current tours or local shows announced, it is well worth your while to listen to the catalogs and music videos from these extraordinary bands.

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Photographer: Rodrigo Izquierdo

The HU, Blind Channel, & NERV – The Van Buren 10-23-26

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All Rights Reserved

REVIEW: Babyklok Tour 2023: An Unforgettable Night of Metal Madness with Dethklok and BABYMETAL in Phoenix (10-10-23)

PHOENIX — On a mild mid-October evening, with the first signs of fall evident throughout town – as seen in the changing colors of license plates, and the exchange of the brutal dry heat for a slightly less intense dry warmth – a crowd assembled at Arizona Financial Theatre in downtown Phoenix. Next to fine examples of how architecture should not look (brutalist architecture is the unsalted saltine cracker of the construction world) sits the theater. The crowd gathered here this evening had braved the traffic and lack of downtown parking to bear witness to a metal show like no other: Dethklok and BABYMETAL teaming up as co-headliners on the “Babyklok” tour, with Jason Richardson opening the show up. Dethklok – a fictional band that is surprisingly very real – was touring in support of their newest album, Dethalbum IV, and the new movie Metalocalypse: Army of the Doomstar. BABYMETAL was touring in support of the latest album The Other One, released earlier this year. 

Jason Richardson

Jason Richardson took the stage first. Richardson first broke into the music industry at 17, when he took over for Chris Storey in All Shall Perish in 2009. Since then, he has played in Born of Osiris, Chelsea Grin, and currently plays in All That Remains, filling the massive hole left when Oli Herbert mysteriously and tragically passed away in 2018. He has toured as a solo act, and puts on an absolute masterpiece of a solo show. He played for around half an hour, playing a total of 7 songs, including “Tendinitis” and “Ishimura”.

BABYMETAL

BABYMETAL
BABYMETAL
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

The history of BABYMETAL is an interesting look into the culture and entertainment of Japan. Formed in 2010 with then-13-year-old Suzuka Nakamoto (stage name Su-metal) as the lead singer, 11-year-old Moa Kikuchi (stage name Moametal), and 11-year-old Yui Mizuno (stage name Yuimetal), the group was a subunit of a group named Sakura Gakuin. Yuimetal left in 2018 due to an illness, and was replaced in 2023 by one of their back-up dancers, Momoko Okazaki (known as Momometal). The idea was to fuse the Japanese idol genres with heavy metal, with the result being a new type of metal called “kawaii metal”. There is a very strong J-pop sound to the vocals, layered over thunderous, earth-shaking metal music.

BABYMETAL executing precise choreography
BABYMETAL
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

This is combined with choreography that has near military-like precision, with the trio seldom, if ever, being out of sync. The show is equal parts entertaining and organized chaos, and BABYMETAL fans enjoy every second of it.

The chaos began at exactly 8 p.m., with the words “BABYMETAL WORLD TOUR 2023” coming up on the massive screen behind the band. The introduction drew inspiration from Star Wars, with the opening lines being ‘A long time ago in a heavy metal galaxy far, far away,’ followed by a tale of how the FOX GOD chose the heavy metal spirits to make up the band. At the conclusion, the band erupted into a riff that would make Rammstein proud. Even with the band attempting to rearrange the molecules of the audience members with a sustained sonic blast, the cheers from the crowd could still be heard.

BABYMETAL with a bursting, sparkling image on a backing screen
BABYMETAL
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

BABYMETAL has released 4 albums over the years, starting with 2014’s BABYMETAL, 2016 saw the release of Metal Resistance, 2019 brought Metal Galaxy and earlier this year the band released The Other One. They leaned heavily on BABYMETAL, opening the show up with “BABYMETAL DEATH”, and following that up with “Gimme Chocolate!!”.

BABYMETAL dancing while shrouded in blue light
BABYMETAL
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

Su-metal and the band said little beyond greeting the audience and giving instructions that were eagerly followed, such as having the crowd turn their phone lights on, getting low (which, in most cases, simply meant taking a seat before jumping back up), and a couple of other actions. While little was said, it is clear that the band has mastered the art of stage presence and crowd interaction. It should also be noted that unlike many recent metal concerts, there was a circle pit from the jump at this show. Watching the dynamics of said pit when the screen showed an overhead view of the audience was also an interesting study. Watching fully grown men slam into each other at full speed while listening to kawaii metal is not something I thought I would write about.

Dethklok

Dethklok logo on the backing screen at their concert
Dethklok
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

Dethklok answers the question, “What would happen if Weird Al were a metalhead who decided to write NSFW lyrics?” The answer is a bizarre and yet utterly enjoyable hour-long show. The birth of Dethklok came in 2006, when Metalocalypse premiered on Adult swim. The fictional band would soon release a very real album – The Dethalbum – in 2007, which shot to number 21 on the Billboard top 200 list. Lead singer and founder Brendon Small played all the instruments from 2006 until he was joined in 2007 by Gene Hoglan, one of the greatest metal drummers to ever grace the stage.

Dethklock performs at Arizona Financial Theatre
Dethklok
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

While the premise may seem a bit odd to an outsider, don’t be fooled. It is pure, silly, and rather metal fun. The show begins with the band members walking to their positions in backlit darkness. Then, the screen behind them plays scenes from the Metalocalypse TV show, including scenes from the full-length movie Metalocalypse: Army of the Doomstar, which was released on August 22nd of this year, while the real-life band performs. If you are not familiar with the show, it can be summed up as an over the top world where the fictional band accidently murders thousands of people with every show, and is also a massive economic powerhouse, but they can’t buy groceries or cook a meal due to their incompetence.

Dethklok with an animation with gravestones on the screen behind the band
Dethklok
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

None of that previous sentence is made up, and the over the top moments mixed with the over the top songs attracted a die-hard following that happened to have quite a crossover into the BABYMETAL fanbase. This should be no surprise, as both bands produce some face-meltingly amazing metal, with a twist.

Oh, and Facebones, an animated skull featured in concerts and the TV show, serves as a well-intentioned character, often tasked with providing guidance and explanations, but invariably finds himself unable to convey valuable information before things inevitably go completely off the rails. He makes a couple of appearances, reminding the audience about concert etiquette, such as the importance of not indulging in excessive pot smoking, as no one wishes to take on the role of caretaker.

It gets very weird very quickly, but that seems to be par for the course considering one of the song names is “I Ejaculate Fire,” with an incredibly bizarre music video that redefines the idea of how destructive an STD can truly be.

Dethklok appearing as a silhouette with a large fiery screen above them
Dethklok
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

Your aunt is likely to pray for your immortal soul upon discovering your attendance at a Dethklok concert. You might feel a tad confused and uncomfortable, but the music is undeniably absurd in the best possible way, with a real-life band producing some of the finest metal sounds you’ll ever encounter. Just don’t pay too much attention to the lyrics, or you might realize you’ve been headbanging to a coffee jingle. Not that anyone could fault you; “Duncan Hills Coffee Jingle” is undeniably a banger that leaves you uncertain about whether to charge through a wall to get some coffee or flee, especially since the video playing behind the band strongly suggests the brand has mistaken “waking up” for “burning alive in a pool of superheated coffee.”

Dethklok performs in front of a large crowd of fans
Dethklok
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

The Babyklok tour ended on October 12 in the Los Angeles area, and while BABYMETAL will continue on with another touring partner in Europe, fans will have to wait for Dethklok to announce their next steps. It is, after all, a concept band that just released a film to conclude the Metalocalypse era and has wrapped up their first tour in 11 years. The fandom can only hope to see another tour or two, but if there are no more, it would be difficult to argue against the idea that they truly exited stage left on a high note.

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Photographer: Rodrigo Izquierdo

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Dethklok & BABYMETAL – Arizona Financial Theatre 10-10-23

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REVIEW: The Darkness Envelops & Excites Fans at Marquee Theatre… Again (10-7-23)

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Tempe, AZ — The Darkness returned to Arizona for a triumphant show as they celebrate the 20th anniversary of their debut album Permission to Land, and the special reissue collection that was released the day prior to the show: Permission to Land…Again. They last graced the Marquee Theatre stage in March of 2022 on their “Motorheart” tour. This October 2023 show was the 4th date of the US leg of the world tour celebrating their debut, and they played a setlist full of their biggest hits from that album and beyond. The Comancheros, a country/southern rock band from Missouri, opened the show with an infectious energy that warmed up the crowd for the high-octane headliner.

The Comancheros

The Comancheros perform energetically at Marquee Theatre
The Comancheros
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

They began with their powerful song “Mississippi”, which electrified the room, and they followed up with a string of other hits, including “Long Hair”.

The Comancheros rock Marquee Theatre
The Comancheros
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

The band asked the audience if there were any beer drinkers and hellraisers in AZ while holding beer cans up in the air, then drank it up and kicked into their song titled “Beer Drinkers”.

The Comancheros raising beer at their Tempe concert
The Comancheros
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

They continuously engaged with the audience throughout their set and completed it  with the songs “We Own the Night,” “George Jones,” “Cowboy Song,” “Drum/Gun/Chariot,” “Shoot Me Down,” and “Bird/Time Machine”.

The Comancheros vocalist and guitarist Tanner Jones
Tanner Jones (Vocalist, Guitarist), The Comancheros
Photography:
Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

The Darkness

"Welcome to The Darkness" theatrical poster
“Welcome to The Darkness” theatrical poster

On October 2nd, just five days before this show, The Darkness announced the launch date of their feature-length documentary, Welcome to the Darkness, that adds to their extensive discography with seven studio albums since their start in the early 2000’s. The film will arrive in cinemas for one night only on November 9th, and will then be available on Blu-Ray and digital download on December 4th. 

The Darkness kicked off their set with a high-powered rendition of “Black Shuck.” Fans were immediately singing along and dancing fervently. The band followed that up with a string of their biggest hits, including “Get Your Hands Off My Woman,” “Growing on Me,” and “The Best of Me.”

The Darkness vocalist Justin Hawkins
Justin Hawkins (Vocalist, Guitarist), The Darkness
Photography:
Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

Lead singer Justin Hawkins was in top form, delivering his vocals with power and precision. He showered the audience with guitar picks, ensuring the youngest fans got their concert memento by stretching and throwing as far as he could to get closer to them from the stage.

The Darkness frontman throwing a guitar pick to the crowd
Justin Hawkins (Vocalist, Guitarist), The Darkness
Photography:
Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

He had the crowd in the palm of his hand with his witty banter and stage presence. Guitarist Dan Hawkins, bassist Frankie Poullain, and drummer Rufus Taylor were also on fire, playing with some truly impressive musicianship.

The Darkness performing at Marquee Theatre
The Darkness
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

During their performance, the engagement with the audience was ongoing, including a sing-a-long with a member of the audience, also named Justin (with Hawkins grinning after the audience member shared his name). The frontman also saw a group of 4 British fans in attendance, all dressed up in Union Jack patterned suits, with their companion in a full American flag outfit, wearing a bald eagle head mask that got thrown onto the stage. The drummer put it on and wore it while playing an entire song, before throwing it back to the audience member that threw it to the stage.

Fans of The Darkness in British and US themed costumes at Marquee Theatre
Fans of English rock band The Darkness donning British and US themed costumes at Marquee Theatre concert
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Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

They closed out their set with a rousing performance of their signature song, “I Believe in a Thing Called Love”. The crowd went wild, with smartphones raised from almost everyone in attendance, prompting Justin Hawkins to stop and playfully ask the audience to ‘place themselves in their place, and to not record the performance’ before starting back up and, delighting the audience with a fantastic show, giving it his all. 

Justin Hawkins of The Darkness doing a headstand in front of their drum kit
Justin Hawkins (Vocalist, Guitarist), The Darkness
Photography:
Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

For their encore, they emotionally played “I Love You 5 Times” before the vocalist announced they had one song remaining, and with a mischievous grin stating, “but is a pretty f***ing long song.” The Darkness closed the set with “Love on the Rocks with No Ice”. The shower of guitar picks continued as the band did their goodbyes, with no pick left behind. 

Justin Hawkins smiling widely as he plays the guitar, with Frankie Poullain playing bass in the background
Justin Hawkins (Vocalist, Guitarist) & Frankie Poullain (Bassist), The Darkness
Photography:
Rodrigo Izquierdo © All Rights Reserved

Overall, The Darkness put on an incredible show at Marquee Theatre. They played a setlist full of their biggest hits and deepest cuts, and they delivered a performance that was both energetic and entertaining. If you have the chance to see them on this tour, you will be lucky to witness one of the best live bands in the world, with (at the time of publication of this article) just 9 more dates left for the US leg, and 36 upcoming world tour dates before coming back to the US in 2024 for the Monsters of Rock cruise festival in Miami, Florida. 

If you’re a fan of rock music, then you need to see The Darkness live, and they’re sure to put on a show that you’ll never forget. Make sure to catch a screening of their feature documentary on November 9th, or look for it on Blu-Ray on on its December 4th release date.

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Photographer: Rodrigo Izquierdo

View Separately: The Darkness* | The Comancheros

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The Darkness & The Comancheros – Marquee Theatre 10-7-23

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REVIEW: Ringo Starr and His All-Starr Band — a Memorable Evening of Rock ‘N’ Roll Intimacy at Celebrity Theatre (5-20-23)

PHOENIX — Thinking of the history of popular music, especially rock ‘n’ roll history, I’ve always been fascinated by the idea of people who were “there.” Every legendary artist started small, as even the biggest artists of all time had those early shows before it all blew up, and inexplicably there were people — average everyday people — who were lucky enough to be “there” to see those struggling performers before they turned into superstars.  

Still walking around are those who saw Elvis play local shows in Memphis, Bob Dylan play coffee houses in New York or, most mind-blowing of all to me, The Beatles play The Cavern Club in Liverpool. For the rest of us, those artists existed bigger than life, playing the biggest stages in the world. Unless you were one of those lucky individuals in The Cavern Club, or The Star Club in Hamburg, they only existed as mega stars, playing the biggest venues the 60’s had to offer. 

We would never get as close or as intimate as those lucky individuals who were there for those early days before they were legends, that is unless you were lucky enough to catch Ringo Starr and His All-Starr Band at Celebrity Theatre on one of two nights at their Phoenix stop on the tour. The Celebrity Theatre is a rare wonder that has no such thing as a “bad seat,” with its smaller intimate setting in the round with a rotating stage dead-center. It is certainly the most up-close anyone is likely to get to any of these legends since they first began their careers in bars and small clubs. 

Celebrity Theatre’s illuminated sign welcoming concertgoers to the sold out Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band show on 5-20-23
Photography:
Mark Greenawalt © All Rights Reserved

Ringo Starr and His All-Star Band

The “All-Starr Band” concept was originally conceived in 1989 by Ringo, with the idea that he would put together a band, not just of professional hired guns to help him perform many of his hits across his storied career from The Beatles to his many incredible solo records, but instead pack the band with fellow legendary performers who also had a bottomless well of hits from which to pull. 

Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band
Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band
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Mark Greenawalt © All Rights Reserved

Over the years, the Ringo’s All-Starr Band has included members of The Band, Bruce Springsteen’s E-Street Band, The Eagles, The Who, Dr. John, Todd Rundgren, Peter Frampton, and the “fifth Beatle” Mr. Billy Preston. This, the 15th iteration of Ringo’s All-Starr Band, included Edgar Winter, Hamish Staurt from Average White Band, Steve Lukather from Toto, and Colin Hay from Men at Work. The band is rounded out with Warren Ham who has played with Kansas and Toto (nice pairing) on saxophone, flute, and keyboards and Gregg Bissonette, who has played with seemingly everyone (seriously, look him up) on all things percussion. 

Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band
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Mark Greenawalt © All Rights Reserved

What of course makes the All-Starr Band so fun is that any given member could step up to the microphone and have enough hits at their disposal to play the show all by themselves. All of this results in a kind of jamboree of fun, as members take turns stepping into the spotlight for a song, only to then pass the spotlight to the next member, as the show rotates around the already rotating stage (if you’ve never been to the Celebrity Theatre, you need to get there for a show). 

Steve Lukather, Warren Ham, Ringo Starr
Steve Lukather, Warren Ham, & Ringo Starr
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Mark Greenawalt © All Rights Reserved

Ringo opened the show with a raucous cover of Carl Perkins’ “Matchbox,” a staple of The Beatles early live shows and later showing up as a single off of the Long Tall Sally EP. It was followed by “It Don’t Come Easy,” arguably Ringo’s most soulful vocal performance from his solo records. After blazing through “What Goes On” from The Beatles’ Rubber Soul, Ringo seceded the spotlight and moved to the drums. 

Ringo Starr (Vocalist, Drummer)
| Photography:
Mark Greenawalt © All Rights Reserved

This began what makes the All-Starr Band concept so much fun every time: each performer taking turns stepping up to the microphone to perform one of their own hits. Leading off was Edgar Winter who played his now 51-year-old hit “Free Ride,” which sounded as fresh and fun that night as it did the first time any of us played it in our cars with the windows down and the volume up.

Edgar Winter
Edgar Winter (Vocalist, Keyboardist)
| Photography:
Mark Greenawalt © All Rights Reserved

This was followed by Steve Lukather leading the band through “Roseanna,” with the crowd spiritedly singing along and pumping their fist in time with the chord changes, Hamish Stuart playing a ripping version of Average White Band’s “Pick Up the Pieces,” and Colin Hay taking the band through an extended version of Men At Work’s hit “Down Under” that included a fun call-and-respond with the crowd. “I wrote this song in forty minutes, and it’s sustained me for forty years,” he told the crowd prior to starting the song. 

Steve Lukather
Steve Lukather (Vocalist, Guitarist)
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Mark Greenawalt © All Rights Reserved

At that time, Ringo returned from behind the drum kit for a run through of “Boys,” his first vocal performance on The Beatles first album Please, Please Me, “I’m the Greatest” from Ringo (a song written for him by John Lennon), and “Yellow Submarine,” which a quick scan of the theatre revealed that every generation of fan in attendance — from those who were there from the start with The Beatles to little kids who have since grown up with the band through their parents and grandparents love for them — was joyfully and exuberantly singing along. Following this, as the crowd was still on their feet, cheering and clapping, Ringo waved to the audience and left the stage. “Don’t worry. He’ll be back,” Edgar Winter playfully reassured the crowd. 

Ringo Starr (Vocalist, Drummer)
| Photography:
Mark Greenawalt © All Rights Reserved

With Ringo gone, the band performed Average White Band’s “Cut the Cake,” the title track from their third album. “I’m going to hand it over to Edgar Winter now to unleash the beast,” he said at the song’s closing. Winter’s performance of instrumental classic “Frankenstein” allowed the band to have fun on what turned out to be a jam session that impressively highlighted the drumming skills of Gregg Bissonette. Throughout the song, which stretched to nearly ten minutes, Bissonette worked in drum breaks that steered the song into a range of hits by other artists, including “Come Together” by The Beatles, “Rock ‘N’ Roll” by Led Zeppelin, and appropriately enough, “In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida” — the seventeen-minute Iron Butterfly classic in which the recognizable drumming comes during the lengthy instrumental break in the song. By the end of the jam, Bissonette, very deservedly, got one of the biggest pops from the crowd. 

Gregg Bissonette
Gregg Bissonette (Drummer)
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Mark Greenawalt © All Rights Reserved

Ringo returned to the stage, and before going into “Octopus’s Garden” (rivaling “Yellow Submarine” for one of the most crowd-pleasing moments of the night), he introduced each member of the band, heaping praise on them as he did. It was followed by his solo hit “Back Off Boogaloo.” Next up was Colin Hay to perform Men at Work’s ode to anxiety “Overkill.”

Colin Hay (Vocalist, Guitarist)
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Mark Greenawalt © All Rights Reserved

Every song we’ve played tonight is one you know, but I’d like to debut my 30-minute jazz odyssey,” Steve Lukather joked with the crowd, adding, “If you get really stoned first, you might just get into it,” before launching into “Africa” — Toto’s mega-smash that will live on for generations to come. The performance featured some incredible backing vocals from Colin Hay. 

Ringo Starr (Vocalist, Drummer)
| Photography:
Mark Greenawalt © All Rights Reserved

After going one more round with each performer, including Hamish Stuart with the Isley Brothers’ “Work to Do,” and Ringo playing The Beatles’ “I Wanna Be Your Man.” Edgar Winter took a moment to pay tribute to his brother Johnny Winter before playing “Johnny B. Goode,” a song the brothers used to play together growing up, as they each first learned to play the guitar. It was immediately followed by Colin Hay playing “Who Can It Be Now?” and Steve Lukather on Toto’s  “Hold the Line.”

Hamish Stuart (Vocalist, Bassist) with Colin Hay and Edgar Winter
| Photography:
Mark Greenawalt © All Rights Reserved

The evening closed as it began, with the tour’s namesake Ringo Starr on vocals for his solo classic “Photograph,” the Johnny Russell hit “Act Naturally”, made famous by Buck Owens and even more famous by The Beatles version on Help!, and finally and very fittingly given the vibe of the tour and the mutual respect and camaraderie amongst the performers, they closed the evening “With a Little Help From My Friends.” As the song came to a close, they shifted to a cover of John Lennon’s “Give Peace a Chance” to send the crowd home happy, still singing along in their own acapella as they exited the Celebrity Theatre and out into the warm Phoenix night.

Ringo Starr
Ringo Starr (Vocalist, Drummer)
| Photography:
Mark Greenawalt © All Rights Reserved

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Photographer: Mark Greenawalt

Ringo Starr & His All-Star Band – Celebrity Theatre 5-20-23

Photography © Mark Greenawalt.
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