At the Fillmore

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Reviewed by Michael Busch

Metal has pulse and it comes in the form of Sevendust.

Being an avid Metal fan for years it’s sometimes difficult in Bay Area for heavy metal to get any attention or respect. The bay’s thirst for the latest and greatest music to jump on the scene is usually in the form of alternative and not rock/metal.

This is the second time I’ve seen Sevendust at the Fillmore in the last 3 years and they have gone through many changes on and off the stage since I saw them last. Lead singer Lajon Witherspoon and band were close with both lead singers from metal acts Snot and Drowning Pool which both died. Then to top it off Lajon’s little brother was killed by a gang a few years back. The band had issues with guitarist Clint Lowery and booted him out of the band.

Even a person aware of Sevendust probably wouldn’t know that they have put out six albums, a cd/dvd/unplugged package, and a greatest hits compilation. Sevendust has been around for a decade banging out hard riffs but has never reached the status of a band like Godsmack.

On this evening they had some intriguing opening acts, Invitro, Diecast, & Red. Invitro sucked, Diecast had potential until they got some sexual weirdness going onstage with a few guys, and Red actually tore it up and I became a new fan.

I was impressed with the number of fans that came out this night as opposed to a few years ago when there was just a huge pit of a few hundred. Now with the larger crowd I was swallowed up into the pit like the last outing.

A nice stage set up with a ramp that wrapped back around the drummer, Morgan Rose, that allowed the rest of the band to jump around and add to the euphoria of the crowd. I am amazed when a metal singer is able to actually come across with a solid voice of songs that require abuse on the vocal cords. Lajon was spot on deliver notes from singing to growling on tracks ”Hero” from the new album Alpha and perennial fire starters like “Bitch” and “Praise”. One of the more abstract things to happen in the evening was Major League Baseball’s David Wells was up in one of the boxes upstairs as the Padres were in town and their were two A’s fans continually giving him the middle finger during the whole show (entertainment within entertainment).

Probably the most amazing thing out of this show is what I got for what I paid. For the first 250 people that bought tickets online Sevendust charged a total of $50 for the right to go to the show, receive a copy of the new album, and have a meet and greet with the band. The quick meet & greet I enjoyed thoroughly as I was drunk enough not to worry about standing in line for a ½ hour while the band got showered and changed. I told each one of the guys I had a blast and Lajon at the end of the table that’s the kind of rock show I would see 2 or 3 nights in a row and they should think of lining it up at the Fillmore. He enjoyed my idea and enthusiasm and jumped up gave me a hug.

It reminded me of a t-shirt I once saw the Fillmore selling…

“This Is Fillmore Metal”

Setlist:

1. NiN intro
2. Hero
3. Pieces
4. Ugly
5. Denial
6. Waffle
7. Assdrop (aka Rumblefish)
8. Home
9. Deathstar
10. Clueless
11. Enemy
12. Black
13. Too Close to Hate
14. Bitch
15. Alpha
16. Trust
17. Praise