STAIND/SEETHER/ASKING ALEXANDRIA – THE BIG GIG
By Kat Gullage
THE BIG GIG AT DCU CENTER, WORCESTER, MA FEATURING STAIND, SEETHER, ASKING ALEXANDRIA & TIM MONTANA
The DCU (Digital Federal Credit Union) Center is a typical multi-use arena with a capacity of 14,800 located in Worcester, MA. A nearby venue, The Palladium, was hosting Queensryche (without Geoff Tate), so we snagged a parking spot for $20 near there which allowed for easy in and out. I found the DCU staff and security to be welcoming and tolerant of us (well me).
Tim Montana was the opener. I had never heard of him before, but this dude has five studio albums! His sixth, Savage, is scheduled to be released 7/12/24. His setlist of nine songs included seven off of the upcoming LP. He’s got a country rock sound, leaning a bit more on the country side, with a dash of Stone Temple Pilots. “Get You Some”, “Ain’t Coming Down” and “Die Today” kicked it off. The crowd was very small at this time but it didn’t deter him. “I’m comfy playing in front of two people, I ain’t comin down.”
Three more from Savage followed with “Shut Me Out”, “Lovely” and the title track “Savage”. A cut from American Thread, “Mostly Stoned” mixed it up. Charlie Sheen (my spirit animal) is a huge Tim Montana fan and he directed the video. Check it out! “Beard Came Here To Party” from Tim Montana & The Shrednecks was a crowd favorite as the Boston Red Sox used it as an anthem back in 2013.
Montana is a staunch supporter of U.S. Military Veterans and he gave them a shout out before wrapping it up with yet another Savage track, “Devil You Know”. The band sounded good and confident, they kept my attention and were a fitting opener to a Staind show. Tim was backed by Jackson Moody on bass, Tom Samulak on guitar and Kyle Law on drums. My photographer and I had to do deep dive forensics to figure that out, as we didn’t see them tagged in any Tim Montana socials or posted on his website.
Asking Alexandria was formed in Dubai, United Arab Emirates in 2006, but hails from England. They reorganized and morphed into the current line-up in 2008 and released nine studio albums. The setlist would include tracks off of six of them. I’d heard of Asking Alexandria before and know plenty of people that are into em, but they didn’t excite me enough to become a true follower.
They came out and jumped right into “Closure” from Reckless & Relentless. It was loud and in my face and I loved it! More fans are filtering into the venue now. The band: Cameron Liddell – lead guitar, Sam Bettley – bass, Paul Bartolome – guitars and James Cassells on drums are energetic, bopping around, giving off english punk vibes. The singer, Danny Worsnop, sounds good but his movements do not match his bandmates.
“Alone Again” off of See What’s On The Inside is churned out before Danny thanks the audience for coming out and then chugs a bunch of water off stage. Like A House on Fire’s “Down To Hell” is accompanied by an ineffective and unnecessary smoke cannon. I’m in the pit and getting more cramped for space, the place is about 75% full now.
Danny, after another off stage thirst quench, addresses the masses “You’re at a rock and roll show! Let’s dance all the way to the back! Jump! Jump! Get the fuck up!” Two from Asking Alexandria are up, “Into The Fire” and “Where Did It Go”. The opening chords of “Dark Void”, from 2013’s Where Do We Go From Here?, barely get off and the show is abruptly stopped. Danny yells for security and the house lights. The issue was toward the front of the pit but my 5’4” self couldn’t see exactly what was happening.
There was a ten minute delay to handle what was rumored to be an injury. At the five minute mark Danny thanked everyone for their patience, pointed to the problem area and yelled “Hey! Hey! Calm the fuck down!” We are finally cleared for take off. “Alright, we’re gonna get the show going. Take two. This is the current song they’re playing on the radio. Please don’t hurt yourselves, have fun!”
We got a full re-do of “Dark Void”. The sound is great, the band’s energy is getting us fired up, but the singer’s movements remain stagnant. And then he surprises me as he, accompanied only by one guitar player, belts out a Backstreet Boys cover of “I Want It That Way”. I was like “Is this for real?” So unexpected. The fans eat it up. Danny states “That’s the best song you’re gonna hear tonight, promise you.”
An acoustic version of “Someone, Somewhere” off of Reckless & Relentless is served up before the band finishes the set with from Death To Destiny’s “Moving On”, Stand Up & Scream’s “The Final Episode (Let’s Change The Channel)” and another from Asking Alexandria, “Alone In A Room”. It was a great sounding energetic set (sans Danny) and got us pumped for the next act.
A seether is defined as “a person who is in an agitated state”. The band Seether, that was up next, formed in South Africa in 1999 and released eight studio albums that delivered multiple number one hits. The venue is about 90% full now and very pumped. Seether takes the stage, John Humphrey – drums, Dale Stewart – bass, Corey Lowery – lead guitar and Shaun Morgan – lead vocals and rhythm guitar.
Shaun is the frontman but he’s off to the side, not under any spotlights, equal to the band. I get that the focus was on the band and not just the singer, but my heart went out to the photographers cuz it was dark up there. Seether hasn’t released new music since 2020. Didn’t fucking matter. They delivered a tight set of nine songs from seven of their LPs.
“Gasoline” set the pace, Shaun gave a subdued “Thank You” before giving us another cut from Disclaimer I & II, “Fine Again”. They sounded flawless and we were eating it up. Enter a very long changeover that introduced “Broken”, the Disclaimer I version (Shaun on guitar and singing accompanied only by an acoustic guitar player and no Amy Lee). The audience was heavily relied on for this one, and there was this weird echo happening. Shaun’s straight up vocals were genuine and beautiful but that echo thingy did not enhance the song.
Back to the good shit with “Country Song” off of Holding Onto Strings Better Left to Fray, “Rise Above This” from Finding Beauty in Negative Spaces, and “Nobody Praying for Me” derived from Isolate and Medicate. The crowd was jumpin but there were no mosh pits. Security tightened up a bit after the Asking Alexandria pit incident.
The band sounded great, totally on point. The short set wrapped with “Dangerous” from Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum (a Latin motto that translates to “If you want peace, prepare for war”) and fan favorites “Fake It” off of Karma and Effect followed by “Remedy” another track from FBINS. It ended too soon, but we still had a full set from Staind on the horizon. Seether is working on new music and has mentioned fans can look forward to a new album in the fall. The band made it tricky for the photographers with their subdued lighting and checked my writing chops with their album titles, but as you can see Seether, Challenge Accepted.
The crowd was 100% there for the hometown Massachusetts boys in Staind. Place was packed, looked damn near sold out. I’ve seen Staind probably a dozen times and I’ve never seen a bad performance. Do you love Aaron Lewis and Staind? The jury is out in my circle of friends, it’s 50/50. If they are one of your favorites then you know, their live show is going to deliver a damn near perfect sound. Staind’s dossier includes eight studio albums, with multiple platinum and golds, that spawned twenty-five singles.
First up was “Lowest in Me” from 2023’s Confessions of the Fallen. It was my first time hearing it live and they nailed it. “Eyes Wide Open” off of Staind was followed by “Fade” from Break The Cycle. Break The Cycle was released in 2001 and the live version transports you back to whatever the fuck you were doing
twenty-plus years ago when you wore the LP out. These guys are ageless sound wise.
One of my faves “Raw”, a slice of Dysfunction, got me really excited. I love it so much when they lay down a heavy setlist. None of that “Epiphany” crap. Staind kept the hits coming: “Not Again”, another from Staind and “Here and Now” a second track off of COTF. It all slowed down for a beautiful rendition of Staind’s “Something to Remind You” with Aaron on vocals and Mike Mushok on guitar. Bass player Johnny April and drummer Sal Giancarelli sat this one out. Aaron smokes cigarettes a couple times while performing and it makes me want a bogue so freaking bad!
They ramp it back up Chapter V’s “Right Here” and then the unapologetic jab at online trolls that is Staind’s “Wannabe”. The audience is lame movement wise, but again we did have that incident earlier. Staind’s “Freebird” which is “Outside” from Break the Cycle woke the people up, they lost their damn minds over this anthem.
Back to their latest LP, COTF for “Better Days” before they had the audience involved in a sing-a-long again for a cut off of 14 Shades of Grey, “So Far Away”. They revisit Break to wrap it up with “For You”. The fans earn an encore with their shouting & chanting. Aaron addressed them “It’s a pretty good crowd for a Saturday night. Thanks for coming out to see us and forget about life for a while.” They go back to Break
again to feed us “It’s Been Awhile” and end the show with the classic track from Dysfunction, “Mudshovel”, which gives us one lone crowd surfer. They join together for a customary bow and exit.
I found a Mike Mushok guitar pick on the floor! It’s the color of every concert floor I’ve ever stood on. If the light hadn’t hit it just right to outline the shape I would’ve missed it. You’re not gonna get extravagant light shows and pyro and dance moves at this type of gig. The thing is, the music is strong enough to give ya the feels and is performed at an optimum level. With music this good, you don’t need all that other bullshit.
Thank you faithful readers and rockers! Stay tuned, we got a lot more concert stories coming
your way!
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I just love this dynamic duo of hotties! Great pictures and combined with writing that makes you feel like you were there. And obviously the K knows her stuff