Buckcherry heated up a chilly, snowy night for sold out crowd at Average Joes , Jan. 10 by taking them back to the sleazy, seedy era of ’80s Los Angeles.
They played a hit heavy set of Motley Crüe style rock and roll heavily influenced by ’80s glam rock. There was plenty of energy, lots of big, dirty riffs and lyrics about sex, drugs and rock and roll. They focussed mostly on popular hits from the late ’90s and early 2000s.
There wasn’t a lot of chat at the beginning of the show, though there was a lot of intensity and good time feelings as the bassist Jimmy Ashhurst grinned about a mild wide while looking uncannily like Aerosmith’s Steve Tyler.
They had most of the audience singing along with most of the lyrics and jumping up and down in front of the stage where they were packed shoulder to shoulder with barely an inch between them.
“Rescue Me,” came early in the set.
Frontman Josh Todd took off his shirt and bared his heavily tattooed torso as he asked the audience how many of them had been listening to them since the very beginning of their career.
He played a few of them and broke out their first big career making hit, “Lit Up,” about mid-way through the show as Todd told the story of writing it about the first time he did cocaine at a house party around the corner from his high school around 1997.
Guitarist Keith Nelson kicked it off with some gritty slide guitar/
“You know what I learned from that?” he cried, as the band played a few bars of the disco hit “Ladies Night,” in honour of all the girls in the crowd.
“I found out that I could drink more,” he continued as the band crashed into another heavy riffed rocker.
The two guitarists took turn soloing, and, of course, there was a brief drum solo.
He noted the band was about to release a new record about the seven deadly sins and asked the crowd if they were sinners. They roared in response as the band played a few from that including a catchy number which had the crowd chanting “ I want it I need It.”
They broke out a few of their power ballads and played a few bars of the Rolling Stones’ “Miss You,” before breaking out an extended jam on their biggest hit “Crazy Bitch.”
I was almost more impressed with One Bad Son who tore it up right before Buckcherry with a heavily AC DC influenced set of mostly original music from their latest CD.
The played an unbridled, no holds barred, butt kicking set of high energy originals.
Lead singer Shane Volk had an impressive set of glass gargling pipes that were pretty much a spot on replica of AC DC’s Bonn Scott.
The band was very tight. There was furious drumming from Kurt Dahl and plenty of big rock riffs from guitarist Adam Hicks.
They took a brief break as lead singer Volk picked up a battered acoustic guitar and introduced their radio hit “Scarecrows.”
They concentrated on the music from their latest CD, but also played several upbeat, brand new songs which were in the same vein— big riffed rockers.
Unfortunately I missed the opening set by Heaven’s Basement.
