Dallas, Texas was packed for an amazing show through the incredible live show presented to the crowd by rock legends Skillet, Theory Of A Deadman, and Saint Asonia.
Taking a trip down memory lane, I remember hearing of Skillet and Theory Of A Deadman through my love of professional wrestling. As you know, Skillet and Theory both made the early 2000s a great time to be both a professional wrestling fan and a fan of rock music.
It was a total treat to be able to see them live after so many years of knowing their music, but never getting the chance to see them up close.
The night was full of hits, memories, and impeccable stage presence. The show opened up with Saint Asonia. The band is a supergroup made up of Adam Gontier of Three Days Grace (another nod to fantastic professional wrestling songs), Mike Mushok of Staind, Corey Lowrey of Dark New Day, and Cale Gontier. Sadly, Mike was not available for this tour, but Tavis Stanley of Adelitas Way/Art Of Dying did fantastic.
Saint Asonia recently dropped their full-length, ‘Introvert/Extrovert’, which I highly recommend.
Saint Asonia were the perfect band to get the night lit up. Not only is their music completely top tier, but they also played some hits of Three Days Grace. This was really a great move by them because not only was the crowd infatuated with their set as Saint Asonia, but the vibe just exploded once the chords to ‘Never Too Late’ started. The entire crowd sang the Three Days Grace songs in unison.
Next, Skillet would take the stage, and my God, what a stage show that they put on. Skillet are a band that always sounded great on their albums and I always wondered how that would translate live. Without a doubt in my mind – they do total justice to their recorded music.
The stage show that Skillet put on featured everything from fantastic background videos, to floating platforms, to fire extinguishers, and everything in between. Not only was the stage performance great, but the vocal work as well as the instrumentation was just so crisp and perfect. It honestly felt like we were listening to them on their recorded works. Skillet are a band that you want to see night after night. All of the hits were played and the stage show is second to none.
As we move forward, it has to be said that not only were all the bands just flawless, but we have to also give it up to the people behind the scenes at the venue and touring with the bands that make the magic happen as well. They ensured that they night went by smoothly and everyone was satisfied.
Closing this action packed night out was none-other than Theory Of A Deadman. A fun fact about Theory is that they were one of my first albums that I bought myself as a kid. Truly, all of the memories came back on this night.
It needs to be totally hammered home to you, the reader, that Theory just released their newest album, ‘Dinosaur’. I had the exclusive chance to give this a listen and, wow. This album may just be their best yet. I know, they’ve already had so much great material before, but the work here is really on a different level. That should say a lot for what’s in store when you take a listen.
Let me first say that all of these bands were some of the best live acts that I’ve seen. Theory is no exception to that rule. This band closed the night in a huge way. Not only were all the hits out there on the line, but what other band do you know that opens with ‘Sweet Caroline’? As you can imagine – that crowd was singing ever word and every “BAH BAH BAH” that goes with it. This is a pro move and bands need to take note.
We are giving this night a solid score of ten out of ten. Nothing here was missing and the night was filled with great music, great bands, great fans, and great people who make everything happen from the PR people, to the ticket booth, to the sound people, and the stage hands. We’re thankful for everyone.
Photos by Nick White.