Ah Las Vegas , Sin City as it is known, to us at SCENEzine its a town we love to go to get our rock on and we are not the only ones who believe in this mantra as local lads Five Finger Death Punch are kicking off their huge late fall (Autumn) U.S arena tour at the best live music venue in Las Vegas , The Joint At The Hard Rock Casino and being a band that believes in actively curating and supporting new bands to help curate a healthy scene, they have along for the ride Fire From The Gods, Bad Wolves and Canadian rock legends Three Days Grace.
Fire From The Gods are ready to explode not just on that stage tonight but in terms of onto the scene as well. Their new album American Sun was released yesterday and it is packed full with incendiary, thought-provoking, and moshpit-inciting anthems some of which were delivered right here tonight. Frontman AJ Channer is imposing figure as he confronts the crowd at the barrier and he wants us to know that Fire From The Gods are a band that stand for peace justice and equality. With a distinct sound that crackles with intensity, Fire From The Gods lit a spark inside The Joint tonight and just became my new favourite band.
Last year an album called Disobey grabbed my attention by LA newcomers Bad Wolves and in February this year i got a small taste of their live set at Qudos in Sydney which left me hungry like the wolf for more live Bad Wolves. Here in The Joint tonight Bad Wolves helped feed my appetite for destruction as the pit got active on Officer down and their huge single Zombie lit up the whole joint as the crowd loudly donated their voices to sing along. It was only last year Bad Wolves were the opening act on a previous Five Finger Death Punch tour and here they are again tonight absolutely crushing it.
Three days Grace are a band that have been rocking our stereo speakers for many years and yet these Canadian hard rock titans have only ever toured Australia once, its one of the many reasons we at SCENEzine love traveling to Las Vegas and covering these monumental shows. The band actually start things of with a bit of Bon Jovi but from then on in its all their own hits, well except for a quick snippet of the White Stripes Seven Nation Army during Animal I Have Become . I can not tell you how good it felt to sing along to songs like Pain and of course scream my lungs out to I Hate Everything About you. Vocalist Matt Walst just sounding superb in the walls of the Joint tonight and he had plenty of energy as went from stage let to right trying to get as close to all the fans as possible. They finish the set with Riot such a fitting song given the crowds response and as the audience roars with applause and howling, the last of drums pound out the speakers and i think to myself this is a show i wont ever forget and we are only three bands in.
Five Finger Death Punch are well loved in Australia but here in Nevada the state commissioner had officially declared yesterday (Friday, November 1) as “Five Finger Death Punch day” in honour of the band, which calls the city its home. And if that wasn’t something to celebrate the band also unveiled a new display of memorabilia at the very front of the Hard Rock Casino and to cap all that off they are playing the second night of two sold out shows. I tell you things don’t get much bigger than all that when seeing a band in Las Vegas.
The first three acts tonight could easily be described as a match that lit a spark that started fire and now with Five Finger Death Punch on stage that fire is raging out of control as the intensity and ferocity of the room is increased to levels unseen by me at any Aussie show.
As a snippet from the movie 300 is played a call to arms is laid out and then the curtain drops they begin with the high octane Lift Me Up, the band is the best i have ever heard them firing on all cylinders. Pyrotechnics a dazzling light show a skull and cross baseball bat hanging high over the stage this show had it all. It was in the way they interacted and connected with their fans that really stood out for me and no more moving a moment came when out came the acoustic and they played current hit Wrong Side Of Heaven you could literally feel the emotion poor over everyone in the room truly magnificent live music moment. Things wouldn’t stay down long tho as they launched into Battle Born and maybe its because i was in Vegas i felt like that got the most rowdy crowd behaviour of the night. Not only did the band play there own hits with such precision and intensity but they covered other peoples music too Bad Company‘s Bad Company, The Offspring’s Gone Away and Kenny Wayne Sheppard’s Blue On Black all treated with such respect and loved by the fans. I haft to admit it had been one hell of a show and for the closing number they hit us with The Bleeding as flames shot higher then ever into the air, confetti would rain down upon us, i thought to myself what a spectacular show you just don’t get lineups as good as this or shows anything this spectacular at home, five stars Five Finger Death Punch, five fucking stars.
Review – Chad
Cover Photo – Christian Ross
Nov. 05 – Tucson AZ @ Tucson Arena
Nov. 07 – El Paso TX @ Don Haskins Arena
Nov. 09 – Corpus Christi TX @ American Bank Center
Nov. 10 – Beaumont TX @ Ford Park Center
Nov. 12 – Baton Rouge LA @ Raising Cane’s River Center Arena
Nov. 13 – Huntsville AL @ Von Braun Center Arena
Nov. 15 – Pensacola FL @ Pensacola Bay Center
Nov. 16 – Ft. Meyer FL @ Hertz Arena
Nov. 18 – Jacksonville FL @ Vystar Veterans Arena
Nov. 20 – Columbia SC @ Colonial Life Arena
Nov. 22 – Greensboro NC @ Greensboro Coliseum Arena
Nov. 23 – Chattanooga TN @ McKenzie Arena
Nov. 26 – Columbus OH @ Nationwide Arena
Nov. 27 – Youngstown OH @ Covelli Centre
Nov. 29 – Knoxville TN @ Thompson-Boling Arena
Nov. 30 – Charleston SC @ North Charleston Coliseum
Dec. 02 – Norfolk VA @ Norfolk Scope Arena
Dec. 03 – Allentown PA @ PPL Center
Dec. 05 – Toledo OH @ The Huntington Arena
Dec. 06 – Lexington KY @ Rupp Arena
Dec. 08 – Peoria IL @ Peoria Civic Center
Dec. 09 – Fort Wayne IN @ Allen County War Memorial Coliseum
Dec. 11 – Madison WI @ Alliant Energy Center
Dec. 12 – Duluth MN @ Amsoil Arena
Dec. 14 – Omaha NE @ CHI Health Center
Dec. 15 – Des Moines IA @ Wells Fargo Arena