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REVIEW: BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE, HALESTORM, YOUNG GUNS, & STARS IN STEREO 4/12/2013
Gweedo
The Fillmore Auditorium has had no shortage of awesome shows this year. This particular evening had Bullet For My Valentine, Halestorm, Young Guns, and Stars In Stereo. There was a great spread of merchandise from the bands. Halestorm had signed copies of The Strange Case of..., their new CD. Bullet For My Valentine was selling their new CD, Temper Temper, but I was disappointed that it was not signed. The line was a block long when I got in it. If you don’t mind waiting, the Fillmore is nice for trying to get close to the stage since the floor is general admission. When the show kicked off, the floor was about a quarter full.
Gweedo
The Fillmore Auditorium has had no shortage of awesome shows this year. This particular evening had Bullet For My Valentine, Halestorm, Young Guns, and Stars In Stereo. There was a great spread of merchandise from the bands. Halestorm had signed copies of The Strange Case of..., their new CD. Bullet For My Valentine was selling their new CD, Temper Temper, but I was disappointed that it was not signed. The line was a block long when I got in it. If you don’t mind waiting, the Fillmore is nice for trying to get close to the stage since the floor is general admission. When the show kicked off, the floor was about a quarter full.
Bec Hollcraft of Stars In Stereo Stars In Stereo was a pleasant surprise. I had never heard of this band, but they were really good. The crowd was a little lethargic to start, but the band played a heavier song as well as a cover that got their attention. Even with this, the crowd would cheer but still stand there. It’s tough in the world of new bands. Stars In Stereo had a minimal stage that had the drummer off to the side. Center stage had three pretty sweet LCD screens that started out with pictures of speakers. They were crystal clear, bright, and later displayed visualizations. Lead singer Bec Hollcraft had a great voice and was very cute. She played guitar on a couple songs. I would classify them as a feel good band. They had nice energy to them. About halfway through, they loosened up and started playing better. They were a decent opener. I would expect to hear more from this band in the near future. They hung out and met people afterwards.
Gustav Wood of Young Guns Next up was Young Guns. The crowd increased from half to about three quarters full during their set. These guys have a song on local radio, so I was interested to see what they had to offer. They did awesome as an opener by hyping all the remaining bands. The UK lads got the crowd moving, energized, and moshing. Singer Gustav Wood was all over the stage and animated. It was a no bells or whistles kind of stage. People were disappointed that their set was only 30 minutes. The band hung out with fans after.
Lzzy Hale of Halestorm Halestorm had a great set. I've been watching these guys grow over the years, and I am very impressed. It seemed like the break in between bands was too long though. They had a rollercoaster of energy to their performance. The crowd loved it and showed their enthusiasm by moshing and crowd surfing. Even brother and drummer Arejay Hale partook. Bassist Josh Smith was using some cool triangular cabinets. For one song, singer Lzzy Hale played on an old saloon-esk keyboard. Lzzy is very talented with her voice and guitar playing. At one point, her guitar stopped working, and she just kept going without missing a beat – very professional. Arejay is also talented. He's one of the craziest drummers out there – up there with Keith Moon. He had a drum solo that was entertaining. He even brought out giant drum sticks and beat the hale out of his drums. I don't know how many cymbals he must go through on a tour. Halestorm's 45 minute set seemed a little short for their lineup placement.
Matthew Tuck of BFMV Bullet For My Valentine finally came out to close the show. They took too long to grace the stage, and the crowd lost some of their energy. Their excellent energetic performance made up for it though. The stage had a giant back drop for Temper Temper. Their Bullet logo speakers were awesome. Singer Matthew Tuck cut off all his hair, which was a different look than usual. Bassist Jason James was constantly rocking hard. There were two circle pits and crowd surfers for most of the performance. It only fluctuated slightly with slower and lesser known songs. An extremely obese girl kept trying to crowd surf and knocked into me while I was capturing some footage. Know your limits people. Lzzy Hale came out to sing a duet of “Dirty Little Secret” from Temper Temper. She did fantastic and was an awesome addition. Bullet For My Valentine had an encore with their last song being "Tears Don't Fall". It felt like their set was a perfect length, and they played most of their hits. Tuck expressed their appreciation to be able to come over from UK and be able to headline a tour in the US.
Matthew Tuck & Lzzy Hale This night had some great bands, all of which are gaining more popularity. Lots of people turned out to show their support. I believe this was the first stop on the tour. One glitch isn't bad for their first outing, but I hope they improve the flow of the show as they progress. If you haven't heard of Stars In Stereo, give them a listen. Take advantage of seeing any of these bands if you get the chance.
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