SEVENDUST – THE ANIMOSITY 21ST ANNIVERSARY TOUR
Mothers Day and the Sevendust Animosity 21st Anniversary Tour rolled into Hartford with a strong four band lineup. The crowd was a wide ranging age group. I saw quite a few kids under 10 rocking out along with us old timers that remember Sevendust’s third album 21 years ago.
Opener DEEPFALL got the crowd amped form the start. Hailing from Michigan they could have been local and I wouldn’t have been surprised from the crowd reaction to their set. My apologies to the band as I tried to find a set list, even hitting them up on twitter but came up empty. Songs that I did know were a cover of Lenny Kravitz’s “Are You Gonna Go My Way” where lead singer Terry DeWit’s soulful voice shined and their latest single “Revolution” that kept the place grooving. Tim King (Keyboards) also was a nice compliment on backing vocals. Other members include Jim Sully (Drums), Tim Ossenfort (Lead Guitar) and Taylor Brandt (Bass).
Next was the all female group Plush who I saw about a month ago and they continue to impress. Opening with “Athena” the girls were all head banging in unison. Lead guitarist Bella Perron is a joy to watch as musically she is right on and she has all the rock guitar moves down. Moriah Formica (Vocals/Rhythm Guitar) sounded better as the set went on. Latest single “Better Off Alone” led into “Barracuda” a Heart cover where she would have made Ann and Nancy Wilson proud. Closing song “Hate” is a winner to my ears. Brooke Colucci (Drums) and Ashley Supra (Bass) fill out the lineup.
A pleasant surprise of the night was All Good Things. The band led off strong with “Kingdom” followed by “Machines”, “Break Through This Wall” and “Fight”. Lead singer Dan Murphy then made a great Hartford Whaler reference telling the crowd he tried to get the band to learn “Brass Bonanza”. “Hold On” was next.
“Push Me Down” led into the bands latest single “The Comeback” with a toast to lead guitarist Andrew Bojanic who was celebrating a birthday. The whole band actually did take a drink. The band did their take on Destiny Child’s “Survivor” and closed with their first #1 single in the U.S. “ For The Glory”. Liz Harper (Bass), Miles Franco (Rhythm Guitar) and Tim Spier (Drums) round out the group.
Now the moment everyone was waiting for, Sevendust. The light show started and the band came out, leading off with “T.O.A.B.” There weren’t surprises in this set list as the Animosity Album was being played in full. The first circle pit of the night appeared during “Praise”. Lead singer Lajon Witherspoon talked about the band staying together for all these years. It was one of a few times he did seemed to be chocked up during the night. “Trust” led into a Mother’s Day dedication for lead guitarist Clint Lowery’s mom and “Xmas Day” where Lowery shares vocal duty. Witherspoon encouraged a circle pit during “Dead Set” and the crowd obliged along with fists pumping in the air.
During “Follow” I laughed as bassist Vince Hornsby seems to be a fan up on stage. He has a mic to use by the drum riser but more often than not is just running around singing into the night. Speaking of laughs, drummer Morgan Rose is quite the sight pounding the skins with red hair in dreads, a collared shirt and tie, shorts and red sneakers. Witherspoon chocked up a bit again thanking everyone for 20 plus years of support before “Shine”. Prior to “Damaged” he pointed out that the band never thought they would have to play the song live and then this tour came along.
The majority of the crowd was singing along to “Live Again” and the first crowd surfers started to appear for “Beautiful”. “Redefine” was followed by a dedication to the souls lost during covid and the people of Ukraine before “Angel’s Son”. The crowd brought out the lights and Lowery shared vocals. “Crucified” closed out the main set. I don’t want to forget the great job of rhythm guitarist John Connolly who could pass for brothers with Lowery. They play off each other like the seasoned musicians they are. The encore consisted of “Blood From a Stone” that had the crowd singing along and “Face to Face” where the Webster was in a frenzy.
It’s rare when a smaller venue gets four solid performances in one evening but this was one of the special nights.
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