Concert Reviews
Concerts
Concert Review: Wayne Hancock
LVCS, June 15
June 18th, 2013
Every time I stop believing that Wayne “The Train” Hancock is not a reincarnated Hank Williams—when I feel comfortable saying, “Maybe every honky-tonk throwback artist sings about driving lonesome highways in a reedy twang”—Hancock reaffirms my earlier beliefs with a set of killer road songs and a few stories about the last time he was arrested. Read more »
Concerts
Concert Review: Reggae in the Desert
Clark County Amphitheater, June 16
June 17th, 2013
In the wake of overcrowding at last year’s festival—resulting in long lines, vendors running out of food and water, and an uncomfortable congestion on the amphitheater lawn—organizers decided to spread the festivities over two days. The verdict? Everyting irie, mon. Read more »
Concerts
Concert Review: Green Day’s 'American Idiot'
The Smith Center, June 11
June 17th, 2013
Can pop-punk be improved by professionally trained voices and choreography? If you can get past the oil-and-water pairing of punk rock with Broadway staging, then Green Day’s American Idiot is an OK show. Read more »
Concerts
Concert Review: Cheap Trick
Pearl at the Palms, June 15
June 17th, 2013
Cheap Trick at Budokan is rightfully part of rock’s stratosphere, and “Surrender” and “I Want You to Want Me” are among my favorite sing-along tunes. But even their inclusion couldn’t get this show up to screaming-Japanese-schoolgirl expectations. Read more »
Concert Review
Concert Review: Kobra and the Lotus
LVCS, June 7
June 10th, 2013
Despite her band’s galloping thrash rhythms, Canadian iron maiden Kobra Paige had always struck me as pop and indebted to Evanescence’s Amy Lee. My confusion stemmed from the polish of Las Vegas-based producer Kevin Churko (Ozzy Osbourne, In This Moment) who tends to airbrush sonic warts. As a result, the Churko-touched songs on Lotus’s self-titled Universal Records debut sound like a bid for mainstream attention. Read more »
Concert Review
Concert Review: Jewel
The Smith Center, June 6
June 10th, 2013
There was just a girl and her guitar. As part of her Greatest Hits Tour, Jewel appeared solo in a simple blue dress and cowboy boots, launching into “Near You Always.” “What do I feel like tonight?” she questioned, looking at a selection of guitars. Despite admitting only half her voice was working, the girl who was discovered in a coffee shop played off the audience’s requests. Read more »
Concerts
Concert Review: Demon Lung
Cheyenne Saloon, June 1
June 3rd, 2013
At Doom in June III, metalheads stayed for the dozen-plus doom bands from around the country. But they came to see Las Vegas-based Demon Lung (or should have), now with extra beefiness courtesy of new rhythm guitarist Brent Lynch. Read more »
Concerts
Concert Review: Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
Vinyl at the Hard Rock, May 31
June 3rd, 2013
In the closing days of the Spectre at the Feast stateside tour, I was rapt as Robert Levon Been, Peter Hayes and 2008 addition Leah Shapiro dished out the soundtrack for a journey down a dark and thinning trail somewhere in a strange and haunted America. Read more »
Concerts
Concert Review: Scott Weiland & The Wildabouts
The Pearl, June 1
June 3rd, 2013
Former Stone Temple Pilots singer Scott Weiland stepped onstage sporting aviator sunglasses and looking dapper in a sharp suit about 30 minutes late with his band, the Wildabouts. The 90-minute concert showcased mostly STP hits from the albums Core and Purple. After Weiland rambled about hearing Elvis whispering onstage, he shouted into his megaphone and launched into “Crackerman.” With the hall about 75 percent full, the crowd in their 30s and 40s stood up and cheered as Weiland performed “Wicked Garden.” Read more »
Concerts
Concert Review: Billy Idol
The Pearl at the Palms, May 25
May 30th, 2013
Even at 57 years old, Billy Idol still appears much as he did in his Rebel Yell prime of 1983. There is the blond, spiked hair; the still-ripped abs and the spiked, leather attire. But, most importantly, Idol still possesses a voice that ranges from guttural snarl to smooth croon, a voice still packed with attitude and swagger that delighted a predominately older crowd inside the nearly filled Pearl. Read more »
