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REVIEW: ALTER BRIDGE, CALIFORNIA BREED, & THE CRINGE - 10/20/2014
Gweedo
The beautiful Paramount Theatre presented The Cringe, California Breed, and Alter Bridge. Even though this was a later show, 7pm doors, the line reached to the end of the block. For me, this was the first show I’ve been to at this location where they removed the first 15 or so rows and had moshing. There was the typical nook at the front with band merch. Of note, Alter Bridge only had a few t-shirts. The design that I liked was only a woman’s shirt. Also California Breed had a signed CD but at $40 it was a little much for me to grab.
Gweedo
The beautiful Paramount Theatre presented The Cringe, California Breed, and Alter Bridge. Even though this was a later show, 7pm doors, the line reached to the end of the block. For me, this was the first show I’ve been to at this location where they removed the first 15 or so rows and had moshing. There was the typical nook at the front with band merch. Of note, Alter Bridge only had a few t-shirts. The design that I liked was only a woman’s shirt. Also California Breed had a signed CD but at $40 it was a little much for me to grab.
Everyone was introduced to the New York City indie band, The Cringe. At start they were playing to a quarter full house. I liked these guys. The sound engineer did them a disservice but that’s a common practice with opening bands. The Cringe are a four piece with the lead singer playing guitar and synthesizer. Some fun facts about the band are that lead singer John Cusimano is married to TV cook, Rachael Ray. Also drummer Shawn Pelton is an accomplished drummer that has recorded tracks for artists that are too long to list. He’s also the drummer for the Saturday Night Live band and stand in for the CBS Orchestra on Late Show With David Letterman. So now that the name dropping is done, they are a modest band. Starting with low energy they picked up quickly as the crowd bobbed their heads. I liked their sound with a gritty guitar and smooth bass and lyrics. Cusimano was a great front man trying to keep the crowd’s attention. At the end they played two fantastic covers. Black Sabbath “Paranoid” was one and Cusimano had a nice Ozzy voice. California Breed guitarist, Andrew Watt, came out for the second cover, Pink Floyd “Comfortably Numb”, while Cusimano played synthesizer and guitarist James Rotondi sang. The Cringe are a great little band, go check them out.
California Breed is a new LA band that rose from the ashes of Black Country Communion. This band is sick and entertaining. Glenn Hughes is one of the most talented front men I’ve seen. It’s no surprise since he’s spent time playing bass with Deep Purple and Black Sabbath. As mentioned before, Andrew Watts shreds guitar for the band. To round it out Joey Castillo of Queens of the Stone Age pounded the drums. Glenn brought his years of experience to the stage rocking a half full venue from start to finish with lots of energy and dancing. This was the first time that I’ve seen a front man singing off to the side instead of center stage. Unfortunately Joey was in the shadows most of the show but I bet it was nice not having hot lights on you the entire time. California Breed had a modern classic rock feel. Andrew, who was celebrating his 24th Birthday, had some awesome riffs and guitar solos. Joey kept everyone locked in. Glenn has some amazing pipes that reminded me of Steven Tyler and Robert Plant. Also he knows his way around the bass. His complex riffs eliminated any need for a rhythm guitarist. It was great to be introduced to this band.
Alter Bridge came out for a ¾ full audience. Wow, they sounded fantastic and had a mass amount of energy. Mostly coming from Creed, these guys are no stranger to performing. This was the first time I’ve seen lead singer Myles Kennedy outside of his Slash performances. Somehow he sounded even better. The majority of the show he backed up Mark Tremonti on guitar. Tremonti had lots of solos and was mesmerizing to watch, especially with all his beautiful guitars. He even borrowed one song to sing lead. Brian Marshall held down the bass with a stern face and a couple smirks. Scott Phillips was elevated with a nice looking drum set. Myles brought out an acoustic guitar and got a little intimate. The crowd absolutely loved them, moshing during a lot of the songs. I never took Alter Bridge as a moshing band but to each their own. To everyone’s delight they came out for an encore. These guys all around are extremely talented. Myles and Tremonti even had a solo-off that was impressive.
Paramount Theatre hosted a show that brought out a good crowd for a Monday night. Alter Bridge, California Breed, and The Cringe all performed well. I’m glad I got to see the two opening bands. Check all these guys out and you won’t be disappointed.
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