Nancy, Sarah, Steph, and Nanci READY & WAITING at the Pageant in St. Louis, MO (Photo by security)
ALTER BRIDGE—A Perfect Storm, St. Louis Show
If you asked me before December 13, 2010 if it were possible for any band to cram 2 hours of energy into a one-hour performance, I’d have said no. I was wrong.
Alter Bridge, as a result of opening for the Sick Puppies at this venue, was limited to a one-hour set. You read that right: We went through a five-hour blizzard, endless hours out in the cold, and two not-so-cheap hotel rooms to see ONE HOUR of Alter Bridge live. If that does not attest to the quality of this band, I don’t know what does.
Brian and Myles--Flip's back there somewhere (Photo by Stephanie Munoz)
Needless to say, the two-song acoustic set was eliminated from the set list, as were “White Knuckles” and “Broken Wings.” Regardless, they poured everything they had into the remaining 13 songs, and I in no way felt shorted when they left the stage at the end of “Rise Today.” (Well, not anymore than I usually do, since I would love for my favorite bands to all play four-hour sets the way R.E.M. used to, back in the day…)
Set List (highlighted have video—better visual than audio because we are so close):
Slip to the Void
Find the Real
Before Tomorrow Comes
Brand New Start
Cut: White Knuckles
Metalingus** A MUST WATCH
Ghosts of Days Gone By
Cut: Broken Wings
Ties That Bind
I Know It Hurts (partial)
Come To Life
Blackbird
Open Your Eyes
Encore:
Isolation
Dueling guitars and Rise Today
(SM)
I highly recommend that you
The sound was tight, though always somewhat distorted when you are 4 feet from the stage—a price we are willing to pay. The stage here was also higher than your typical stage, so there was a bit of neck-craning going on. (Yes, more than usual. You think I don’t know what you’re thinking? Wrong.) I was located almost directly in front of Myles’ microphone, with Sarah to my left, then Steph and Nanci. If you’re clever you already noticed that in the picture security took for us.
I mention the height of the stage because it was immediately clear to us that Myles could not reach down to grab hands without landing on his head, so that was out. Made us glad we went to the Chicago show (not that we needed another reason).
As for the show, it was GREAT. (I can already tell I’m getting better at reviewing with every show!) Myles voice was spot-on, and no wobbly strings heard on any guitar. The band played the set as if they were headlining, with full energy and smiles all around. People in the line had been trumpeting that this was really a Sick Puppies crowd, and not an Alter Bridge crowd, but they were clearly misinformed, as Myles was not disappointed each time he held the microphone out to us to sing along. The kids next to me may not have known the words, but someone did, because the crowd seemed to sing just as loudly in STL as they did in Chicago. And it made Myles smile—which makes us smile.
I highly recommend that you
The sound was tight, though always somewhat distorted when you are 4 feet from the stage—a price we are willing to pay. The stage here was also higher than your typical stage, so there was a bit of neck-craning going on. (Yes, more than usual. You think I don’t know what you’re thinking? Wrong.) I was located almost directly in front of Myles’ microphone, with Sarah to my left, then Steph and Nanci. If you’re clever you already noticed that in the picture security took for us.
I mention the height of the stage because it was immediately clear to us that Myles could not reach down to grab hands without landing on his head, so that was out. Made us glad we went to the Chicago show (not that we needed another reason).
As for the show, it was GREAT. (I can already tell I’m getting better at reviewing with every show!) Myles voice was spot-on, and no wobbly strings heard on any guitar. The band played the set as if they were headlining, with full energy and smiles all around. People in the line had been trumpeting that this was really a Sick Puppies crowd, and not an Alter Bridge crowd, but they were clearly misinformed, as Myles was not disappointed each time he held the microphone out to us to sing along. The kids next to me may not have known the words, but someone did, because the crowd seemed to sing just as loudly in STL as they did in Chicago. And it made Myles smile—which makes us smile.
Now just enjoy a few pictures...
Blackbird (Photo by Nanci Kripal Freed)
Money shot of Blackbird guitar solo (NKF)
(SM)
For some reason this tour, the song that is really sticking with people is “Blackbird.” I read this as recently as today, after a fan (Ryan—Hey!) in Hollywood said that "Blackbird" was truly off the hook in L.A. It’s a very personal song for Myles, referring to a friend of his who lost his or her battle with cancer, and he has mentioned that the solo he wrote for it had to be extremely moving for him—and consequently, for us. He puts so much emotion into that solo, working his guitar like a dance partner, and throwing his head back as far as he can in certain parts. It is indeed something to both hear AND watch, as you can see from the pictures above and below.
For some reason this tour, the song that is really sticking with people is “Blackbird.” I read this as recently as today, after a fan (Ryan—Hey!) in Hollywood said that "Blackbird" was truly off the hook in L.A. It’s a very personal song for Myles, referring to a friend of his who lost his or her battle with cancer, and he has mentioned that the solo he wrote for it had to be extremely moving for him—and consequently, for us. He puts so much emotion into that solo, working his guitar like a dance partner, and throwing his head back as far as he can in certain parts. It is indeed something to both hear AND watch, as you can see from the pictures above and below.
(SM)
Blackbird (NKF)
Blackbird (Photo by Nancy Dietrich)
The head toss I wait for in Myles' Blackbird solo (ND)
The other song that stood out, jumped out, slapped us all in the face—was “Metalingus.” I can’t say that it was all that different from when he sang it in Chicago, but either the angle of the audience relative to the stage or leaving his jeans too long in the dryer made for a somewhat distracting, if pleasant, spectacle. If you only watch one video of Steph’s, it must me this one. We are just one phrase into the song when she throws in a well-timed “Oh. My. God.” I think Nanci’s pictures help shed light on the situation.
Picture of the Night captured during Metalingus (NKF)
Trying out new moves to Metalingus (ND)
Cranking out Metalingus (ND)
This is also the song during which he approaches the front of the stage to sit on a monitor and sing a few bars from there. I think I almost took a knee to the nose, we were so close. It was at this time that the tall kid next to me and I noticed a smaller, young girl clutching a red rose behind us. It wasn’t for either of us. As I watch Myles fairly closely, I saw that he saw her as he approached the monitor. She, meanwhile, was freaking out. “He’ll never see me! He’ll never take it!”
Approaching the front of the stage (ND)
I leaned over to her and yelled in her ear “He sees you—just wait. He will take it.” And then hoped I was right. Tall dude and I moved aside and pulled her up to the rail so she could hold it up—like I said, it was a reach—and he did not disappoint, reaching down and taking it from her. She was sobbing. Then we kicked her back off the rail.
Belting out Metalingus, holding a rose in his right hand (ND)
As the song neared its end, he got up and walked back to the mic stand, nodding a thank you to the young girl.
“Pretty hardcore song to get a rose during,” he said, laughing. “More like, ‘Every Rose Has Its Thorns’…” at which point he took the guitar Wookie was holding out for him and played a few strains of Mötley Crüe. Who knows… if this singing thing doesn’t work out for him, he might just have a future as a stand-up comic. Hey, I’D still go see him! (Yeah, I know. Shut up.)
Looking at the pictures I posted, one may wonder if Myles played this show solo. In fact, he did not. Mark Tremonti was still there shredding his guitars (LOVE the one with the Another Animal sticker on it—shout-out to the GREAT super-band that toured with them in 2007. Click here for more on them. Robbie Merrill RULES!!) And Brian was a smiling force just to our left. Flip continued to destroy on the drum kit behind his Plexiglass shield.
So it was over before it started, but any doubts we had about whether or not it was worth what we had gone through to see a one-hour set were wiped clean. They gave it everything they had and more, and delivered yet another priceless performance.
There was no sitting around when the lights rose at the Pageant—we headed for the buses. On the way, we grabbed our coats—nice and crispy from the zero degree temperatures—from the car out in front of the venue. Nothing like throwing on an ice-cold coat over a sweaty body… I think this was the first time I heard Stephanie mention that she was finally feeling the cold. No time to gloat—we had stalking to do.
Looking at the pictures I posted, one may wonder if Myles played this show solo. In fact, he did not. Mark Tremonti was still there shredding his guitars (LOVE the one with the Another Animal sticker on it—shout-out to the GREAT super-band that toured with them in 2007. Click here for more on them. Robbie Merrill RULES!!) And Brian was a smiling force just to our left. Flip continued to destroy on the drum kit behind his Plexiglass shield.
So it was over before it started, but any doubts we had about whether or not it was worth what we had gone through to see a one-hour set were wiped clean. They gave it everything they had and more, and delivered yet another priceless performance.
There was no sitting around when the lights rose at the Pageant—we headed for the buses. On the way, we grabbed our coats—nice and crispy from the zero degree temperatures—from the car out in front of the venue. Nothing like throwing on an ice-cold coat over a sweaty body… I think this was the first time I heard Stephanie mention that she was finally feeling the cold. No time to gloat—we had stalking to do.
The Woman from Houston (NKF)
We bundled up as we jogged around the building to get to the buses. Sarah and I will never forget he times we have seen (or heard of) Myles running directly to the bus after the encore, and with the temps this cold we knew there was a good chance he might do that.
As we reached the midpoint between the bus and stage door, however, it was clear from the bored stance of the security guards that no one (from the band) had come out yet. Man, those guys looked cold. And so it began.
The Waiting. If a band doesn’t make a run for it right away, chances are they are taking a quick shower, doing a Meet and Greet, and maybe grabbing some food and drink before they retire to the bus. This typically takes 90 minutes.
During our vigil, security repeatedly came up to us to tell us encouraging things like, “The venue has a 2 a.m. close, so they could be in there awhile.” I rolled my eyes. “This band doesn’t sit around until 2 a.m., but thanks.” Another security guy, whose job included trying to drive over our toes every 5 minutes as he circled the block, stopped and rolled down his window to add his two cents. “I don’t think they’re coming out for a long time. I wouldn’t wait around if I were you.” Which proved that we were not him. And watch the toes!
Jill, Julie and Nanci (SM)
I almost forgot to mention that we were not alone. To my surprise, the Midwest Mamas were being incredible troopers and had also come out for the vigil. Now I KNOW they would do that for Cornell, but I took that as a sign that they had enjoyed Alter Bridge that they ran out on the Sick Puppies to wait in that weather to meet whomever might eventually emerge. My gas gauge was on empty, as was Sarah’s patience with cold and waiting, and I know we came off as both obsessed (true) and unsocial (not so much, under normal circumstances) as we hopped from foot to foot and stared with glassy, frozen eyes at that magic door.
We bundled up as we jogged around the building to get to the buses. Sarah and I will never forget he times we have seen (or heard of) Myles running directly to the bus after the encore, and with the temps this cold we knew there was a good chance he might do that.
As we reached the midpoint between the bus and stage door, however, it was clear from the bored stance of the security guards that no one (from the band) had come out yet. Man, those guys looked cold. And so it began.
The Waiting. If a band doesn’t make a run for it right away, chances are they are taking a quick shower, doing a Meet and Greet, and maybe grabbing some food and drink before they retire to the bus. This typically takes 90 minutes.
During our vigil, security repeatedly came up to us to tell us encouraging things like, “The venue has a 2 a.m. close, so they could be in there awhile.” I rolled my eyes. “This band doesn’t sit around until 2 a.m., but thanks.” Another security guy, whose job included trying to drive over our toes every 5 minutes as he circled the block, stopped and rolled down his window to add his two cents. “I don’t think they’re coming out for a long time. I wouldn’t wait around if I were you.” Which proved that we were not him. And watch the toes!
Jill, Julie and Nanci (SM)
I almost forgot to mention that we were not alone. To my surprise, the Midwest Mamas were being incredible troopers and had also come out for the vigil. Now I KNOW they would do that for Cornell, but I took that as a sign that they had enjoyed Alter Bridge that they ran out on the Sick Puppies to wait in that weather to meet whomever might eventually emerge. My gas gauge was on empty, as was Sarah’s patience with cold and waiting, and I know we came off as both obsessed (true) and unsocial (not so much, under normal circumstances) as we hopped from foot to foot and stared with glassy, frozen eyes at that magic door.
Nanci, Jill, and Tina (SM)
We watched as someone in a golf cart (with useless plastic wind guards) delivered a few boxes of pizza to the AB bus. Briefly encouraged, until we saw it was just the roadies (okay—no disrespect—these guys are INVALUABLE to the show, and we all know it) ran out to grab a few pieces. When we saw Myles’ tech, Wookie, we made a lot of noise and got a wave. Our hope was that he would mention to Myles that “those women” were out there again, and might be about to die from the elements.
Early on, we also saw Shim from the Sick Puppies as he ran from his bus to the stage door for their set. I was instantly awash in guilt. Our cover was blown. We weren’t the die-hard SP fans he thought—we were Myles’ girls. He DID recognize us (damn it) and yelled to us, still smiling, “Get back in there!” Turns out we might as well have. They played their entire set as we stood outside. But it just wasn’t a risk we were willing to take.
We were out back by 10 p.m. Just before 11, I told Sarah I didn’t think I could make it, and was “calling it” at 11. Being able to see my hotel room from where we stood frozen to the ground was NOT helping. Sarah, who had brought the car back around to the rear lot (my PRIMO spot was being held hostage by other fans who had the engine running to keep warm—BASTARDS!!) ran over to it and came back with the propane heater. Though I felt I’d have to stuff the entire machine down my pants to make a difference at this point, I tried to ease the pain in my toes as we all gathered around it. Eleven O’clock came and went, but I stayed. There’s something about standing at the front of a brave line of 20-25 people that makes it VERY hard to be the first one to give up.
“11:15,” I told Sarah. She just nodded. She wouldn’t have stopped me, but her tenacity was helping to keep me from fleeing. It all went without saying.
About this time, one of the security guys who had told us they might not be out until 2 a.m., and who had been watching us from the warmth of his van for 75 minutes, came over and leaned in close to me, like he had a secret. I am all for secrets—especially when they probably involved finding out if Alter Bridge is EVER going to come out.
“Soon, I think,” he said, looking both ways like someone else might hear. “They just turned on our radios.” He nodded a knowing look, which I returned solemnly. He then over-casually strolled back to his car, doing his best to pretend he hadn’t just dropped critical intel on one of “us.” Of course I immediately turned and related the news, adding that it didn’t really mean much, but was better than nothing. God bless ‘em, the Midwest Mamas appeared to be having a blast—albeit a frozen one. I was envious. I felt like a disgruntled popsicle—like the last one in the box that is left stuck to the bottom of the freezer that no one ever notices. I wanted my band. I wanted heat. I wanted this to be OVER.
On the dot at 11:30 p.m., the stage door opened and out came drummer Flip and Mr. Myles Kennedy. I probably would have peed myself in relief if all my bodily fluids weren’t already frozen sold. But I did have the wherewithal to PANIC: Sarah had just run back to the car for her snow pants and was nowhere in sight. So I did the only thing any normal stalker would do.
Breaking formation (we had been strictly instructed to stay in a single line behind this point!) I jogged over to Myles, saying to him—and even as I type this I can’t believe it came out of my mouth—“It is SO FUCKING COLD out here, Baby!!” Then capped it off by throwing my arms around him in a bear hug. Luckily for me, security was much slower than I was, and Myles had forgotten his bear repellent. I can only imagine the look on his face. I did see Flip’s, and he was laughing hysterically. I loosened my grip on Myles and found him to be grinning—thank God. I still had my arm around his waist.
“I can’t let go of you,” I told him. “Sarah just ran to the car and she’s not here and if she misses you and…”
“I’m not going anywhere,” he told me. That may have been true, but I kept my arm around him just for good measure. He then turned to me and in his typical, quiet, off-stage voice, thanked me for the book I gave him in Chicago. “And the letter. Thank you for the letter.”
I was floored. I had just tackled him in a moment of madness and instead of closing off and calling for help, he remembered and thanked me for my gifts. His humility seemed to know no bounds. Slightly thrown, I jokingly asked, “and the 600 tweets..?”
“Well now, those are just impressive,” he laughed.
At this moment I saw a black knit cap bobbing up and down between the cars in the parking lot. “Here she comes,” I warned Myles. And like a pro baseball player, she rounded third base, saw home plate and came running. About ten feet shy she slammed on the brakes and slid the rest of the way, coming to rest with a gentle body slam right in front of where Myles and I were connected. And Nanci took the shot.
What we came for. (NKF)
I let go of the man and finally let the others in. Flip was sort of just standing there, so I asked him for a hug. Steph and Sarah were still talking to Myles so I took the opportunity to ask Flip about the shield for his kit, and he explained how it was put in place to protect Myles damaged hearing. We agreed it was kind of a bummer, caging him off, but also agreed it was a very worthwhile cause.
I felt by this time that everyone behind me (all of whom I fear I had forgotten the moment Myles appeared) were about ready to mutiny. I tapped Myles on the shoulder and told him I was heading in.
“But we’ll see you in Houston,” added Steph, “and it should be a helluva lot warmer!”
“I’m going to hold you to that!” Myles said, pointing at her. Then to me he quickly added, “See you in Twitterverse!” I smiled (had I ever stopped?)
Then without a word to anyone—and now I feel badly about it, but I was seriously SO FAR over my cold limit it is beyond description—I RAN for the hotel doors. Probably only 50 yards, but they lasted forever. I just broke through the glass doors like an action movie since I was done waiting for things like automatic sliding doors. That was probably going to add quite a bit to our bill, but I didn’t care. I was IN A HEATED BUILDING.
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