If KISS and Def Leppard were looking for an ideal spot to open their American summer tour, they found it in the friendly confines of West Valley City’s Usana Amphitheater, as more than 20,000 fans filled every space in the place for a Monday night of classic rock hits.
Considering there were all manner of ticket-sales specials and Groupon deals for the show, I was expecting maybe an undersold venue. Au contraire–it was probably the most packed I’ve ever seen the place, with cars filling the lots and the shoulders of roads for probably a mile in every direction of the venue.
The vibe inside was celebratory, to say the least. It hardly mattered that it was a Monday night–when KISS’s Paul Stanley asked the crowd how many of them had to work on Tuesday, the roar was as deafening as at any moment during the show. Beer options sold out early, as did earplugs at the concession stand–but there were plenty of new KISS and Def Leppard t-shirts to go around.
I was sitting in the traffic approaching the venue during the first act, but made it in time for Def Leppard’s 75-minute set. Clearly, a band with Def Leppard’s track record is no typical opener, but they are smart to deliver their straightforward hour-plus before KISS takes the stage with all their over-the-top theatrics. Def Leppard simply let the music make their mark on the crowd, starting off with “Let It Go” from their 1981 album High ‘n’ Dry.
That’s my favorite era of singer Joe Elliott and Co., but they mostly stuck to the monster hits that came for them later in the ’80s during their 15-song set. “Rockit” and “Animal” led into what Elliott told the crowd was “Uncle Gene’s favorite Leppard tune,” referencing KISS’s Gene Simmons in introducing “Foolin'”.
The rest of Def Leppard’s set could have been pulled from a 1986 MTV programming guide–“Armageddon It,” “Love Bites,” “Hysteria” and “Pour Some Sugar On Me” all were there, as was “Bringing on the Heartbreak,” another older tune. Their encore held two songs from their Pyromania album, and both “Rock of Ages” and “Photograph” sounded as good now as they did when the lads were three decades younger. Def Leppard deserves props for remaining a strong live act all these years later, and for delivering the goods with a minimum of bells and whistles on stage.
Of course, bells and whistles to the nth degree have been part of the deal with KISS since the ’70s, and they still put plenty of thought into the visual production of their shows. This tour marks the band’s 40th anniversary, and first since their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and they blasted through 75 minutes of bombastic tunes abetted by firebombs, flashing lights, smoke effects, Simmons spewing blood, and Stanley howling at the crowd in that raspy New York accent of his.
KISS opened with “King of the Night Time World” and “Cold Gin,” two stone-cold classics from the KISS catalog, before launching into an impressively harrowing version of “War Machine” from the band’s Creatures of the Night album. That was the first of a few surprises during the night.
The band didn’t only deliver the obvious monster hits, although the set certainly leaned most on those. “Makin’ Love” from the band’s Rock and Roll Over album was unexpected. And Stanley’s take on “Hide Your Heart” from the band’s 1989 Hot in the Shade album featured a couple of missteps, as Stanley repeated a singalong chorus a couple times with the crowd before the band locked in to start the next verse–chalk up that glitch to it being the first night of the tour.
The inclusion of the forgettable title track from the band’s Psycho Circus album is what I would consider a rather unpleasant surprise, but for the most part KISS delivered what the fans love about them–massive visual effects set to the sound of old favorites like “Christine Sixteen,” “I Love It Loud” and “Shout It Out Loud.”
No doubt the 20,000+ on hand went home happy from the combined efforts of KISS and Def Leppard. That’s a hard-rock double-bill that’s tough to beat, even in 2014.
MERLE HAGGARD, KINGSBURY HALL, Tuesday, June 24, 7:30 p.m., $$35-$45-$55-$65
When you start talking about the Mt. Rushmore of classic country songwriters, the man known to fans as the “poet of the common man” certainly warrants consideration alongside the likes of Willie Nelson, Hank Williams and Johnny Cash. Merle Haggard helped establish what came to be known as “the Bakersfield sound,” and he wrote no less than 28 No. 1 country hits. He grew up dirt poor and spent some time in prison before he started focusing on music, and his rough-and-tumble background have always informed Haggard’s songs. In the past decade or so, Haggard has established himself as one of country’s most beloved elder statesmen, delivering strong live shows and a series of albums that showcase a rootsy country sound seldom heard anymore on commercial country radio. Consider his show Tuesday an invitation to see a living legend.
KISS/DEF LEPPARD, USANA AMPHITHEATRE, Monday, June 23, 7 p.m., $22.50-$159
It’s pretty easy for the hipper-than-thou crowd to poke fun at this double-bill. But when it comes to amphitheater-sized hard-rock excursions this summer, it doesn’t get much bigger or better than this one. Some will look at KISS’s less-than-graceful induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame earlier this year, when they couldn’t let bygones be bygones with founding members Peter Criss and Ace Frehley, as proof that the band showing up Monday for their summer tour opener isn’t the “real” KISS. Those folks conveniently like to forget that the band led by Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons has recorded and toured for more about as much (or more) of its 40-year history without Criss and Frehley as with them in the band. It might be heresy for hardcore fans to see other guitar players and drummers wearing the ’70s-era makeup, but for casual fans like myself, the bombastic show full of familiar hits will be just fine, thanks.
Def Leppard doesn’t have the same divided fan base as KISS. Indeed, the British quintet has persevered through their own tragedy-driven lineup changes and come back all the more popular, like when drummer Rick Allen lost an arm in a car wreck and the band returned after a lengthy break to sell even more copies of Hysteria than they had of breakthrough hit Pyromania. Some older fans might have felt the band got a bit too glossy as they evolved into the ’90s, but at their best, the band remains a straightforward rock band with a knack for writing hook-filled hits. A few bars into “Photograph” on Monday night, and many in the venue will forget it’s 2014, not 1984.
Canadian rockers Kobra and the Lotus open the show.
Jason Isbell has come through Utah probably a dozen times to play shows large and small, at venues ranging from Salt Lake City’s downtown library amphitheater during the Utah Arts Festival to a free gig at Park City’s Newpark amphitheater to several stellar gigs at the State Room.
It’s safe to say his first stop at Red Butte Garden with his band the 400 Unit will stick out in his memory, and not just because it was another in a long line of excellent Utah performances. Near-freezing temperatures and a crowd dressed to weather a day full of rain–including a shower through opening act The Lone Bellow–combined to make Tuesday night a colorful, and muddy, night out.
Thankfully, the clouds parted right as Isbell hit the stage at 8:30, bringing blue skies and the driest part of the day to Isbell’s set, and the band didn’t let the cold slow them down at all–save for some extra between-song tuning of instruments.
Isbell started with a couple of songs from his excellent 2013 release Southeastern, and both “Flying Over Water” and “Stockholm” sounded great, a harbinger of the show to come. “Tour of Duty” followed before Isbell played the first of several songs from his time in Drive-by Truckers. “Decoration Day” is not only one of Isbell’s best recorded songs; live, it gives him the opportunity to flash his slide-guitar skills. His solo Tuesday was a killer, and all night he and guitarist Sadler Vaden traded monster guitar parts.
From there, Isbell and Co. bounced around his catalog, focusing on Southeastern and 2011’s Here We Rest, but diving into his Truckers tunes as well. “Codeine,” “Cover Me Up,” “Elephant” and “Alabama Pines” were all on point, as was Isbell’s acoustic-driven “Different Days.” The band’s cover of Candi Staton’s “Heart on a String” was a nice bonus.
The main set ended in a burst of Isbell’s Truckers songs, and the raucous “Never Gonna Change” and stirring “Outfit” were a fine combined capper to the show. The encore started with another Truckers tune, “Danko/Manuel” before the night came to a close with “Super 8” from Southeastern.
The crowd was surprisingly hardy, with most who had braved the cold and rain staying until the end. No doubt most on hand were serious Isbell fans–the VIP and Sponsor seating areas were mostly empty throughout–and he and the 400 Unit made it well worth the effort.
The Lone Bellow deserves credit for an energetic set full of some killer vocal harmonies–all sung through a torrential downpour. The view from the stage was full of open umbrellas during their hour or so on stage. “Green Eyes and a Heart of Gold,” “The One You Should’ve Let Go” and their cover of John Prine’s “Angel from Montgomery” all stood out.
WORLD PARTY, THE STATE ROOM, Wednesday, June 18, 8 p.m., $25
This week, my patience as a fan of British rockers World Party pays off as they visit Salt Lake City for the very first time. World Party is led by Karl Wallinger, a songwriter I first fell in love with back in 1986 when the band released their first album, Private Revolution. I discovered the band as most Americans found British acts in the mid-80s, by watching MTV’s shows dedicated to so-called “alternative” music. World Party made striking videos for songs like “Ship of Fools”, revealing an unabashed reverence of Beatles-style pop-rock in the process. Only later did I find out Wallinger formed World Party after departing another of my favorite ‘80s bands, The Waterboys. Wallinger and World Party followed up Private Revolution album with a series of strong releases into the early 90s before going on hiatus. During the break, Wallinger suffered an aneurysm that kept him out of music for a few years, but he eventually put together a new version of World Party and has been touring and recording again for nearly a decade. Gabriel Kelley opens the show.
JASON ISBELL & THE 400 UNIT, RED BUTTE GARDEN, Tuesday, June 17, 7 p.m., $35
Regular readers of this spot know all about my love of Jason Isbell’s music. Last year seemed to be the tipping point of his songwriting brilliance finally getting some of the recognition it deserves. The release of his Southeastern album was hailed far and wide as one of the best albums of the year, earning Isbell praise from national media outlets like NPR and The New York Times Magazine–all of them inspired by both the music and Isbell’s personal redemption tale after kicking a drinking problem before making Southeastern. Isbell has been a touring animal since his days as part of Drive-by Truckers, and we’ve been lucky to have him come through Utah several times through the years. This will be his first visit to Red Butte Garden, though, so it’s sure to be special gig. Helping that happen will be openers The Lone Bellow, a country-rock trio out of Brooklyn who released a fine album of their own last year. Some Red Butte regulars might remember their gig opening for Brandi Carlile last year.
Daniel Nailen 