Attended the first annual Cruefest yesterday – the Motley Crue headed tour that also features Buckcherry, Papa Roach, Sixx AM (Nikki Sixx’s side project) & Trapt.  First off, this is the first time I’ve been to Riverbend in over 10 years & I really hate the layout now. Who in their right mind puts EIGHT very large, steel beamed supports partitioning the more expensive pavilion seats & the lawn? People smack middle to the stage, but in the lawn, had to sneak a peak between these huge girdered columns – which didn’t allow nearly enough viewing space for an entire crowd. Easily 40% of the lawn seats were forced to watch the show in this manner. Fortunately, on the far sides of the lawn there were no supports so you could sit in that small area & still see the show (which is what my group was forced to do). I would really hesitate to go to this venue again unless I was willing to pay pavilion prices.
Trapt was first up and was incredibly average. It’s always tough to go first & the crowd just wasn’t into them all that much. It didn’t help that the band has only one real hit (‘Headstrong’, which is really annoying to me) and didn’t have much presence on stage.
Next up was the much ballyhooed Sixx:A.M., who pulled in a much larger portion from the beer lines – and deservedly so.  Aside from Sixx, vocalist James Michael & Guitarist DJ Ashba are both Sunset Strip vets & their expertise is evident from the moment they hit the stage. Songs included opener ‘Xmas in Hell’, ‘Tomorrow’, ‘Accidents Can Happen’, ‘Pray for Me’ & video phenom ‘Life is Beautiful’.
Then came Papa Roach, probably the most energetic band all night. To me, they don’t have as many recognizable songs but I did love hearing ‘Forever’ & ‘Last Resort’.   The rest was unfamiliar but ‘almost’ moshpit heavy. They were all dressed predominantly in black, with spikey hair, tats and thrashing about the stage like jet-fueled hooligans. Pretty fun, even if I didn’t know what I was listening to.
Buckcherry was a disappointment & I know many will disagree with me. They’re a perfect opener for Crue, don’t get me wrong, as their subject matter & delivery is very remniscent of old Aerosmith. But y’know, two good songs won’t carry a set – especially when you drag ‘Crazy Bitch’ out to 18 minutes because of a pointless dialogue by singer Josh Todd where, among other things, he describes various sexual positions he enjoys etc. etc. Look Josh, I’m sure the chicks will help you out AFTER the show but for now, can you just play!? Really expected them to keep pace with Papa Roach but nope, too busy strutting & trying to urge enthusiasm out of an unimpressed crowd. Like I said, I was expecting better.
After a brief shadow play on the stage curtains showing an angel walking over & then going down on a devil, the mighty Crue took the stage. Easily one of the top 5 live acts in rock n’ roll, and out to prove it, the self-proclaimed ‘Saints of Los Angeles’ took CinciNASTY (as they called it) by storm. There was pyro, fireworks, smoke, enough flashing lights to fritz out 100 epileptics, 4 video screens (which often showed blurry porn & S&M scenes) and a set with the words ‘Los Angeles’ (spelled backwards) sprawling like Stonehenge from end to end. No strippers this time out, but we still got Tommy’s Tittycam, a smokin’ guitar solo by Mick Mars and just about every hit you would hope for (although no ‘Smokin’ in the Boys Room’, surprisingly). Here’s the setlist;
- Kickstart My Heart
- Wildside
- Shout at the Devil
- Saints of Los Angeles (where they were joined by all four singers from the other bands)
- Guitar Solo (including Voodoo Chile)
- Live Wire
- Sick Love Song
- Motherfucker of the Year
- Don’t Go Away Mad, Just Go Away
- Same Ole’ Situation
- Primal Scream
- Looks That Kill
- Girls, Girls, Girls
- Doctor Feelgood
- Home Sweet Home [ENCORE]
I don’t believe there was anything else, but I did have to leave to make the 2 hour drive home at that point – so feel free to correct me if I missed anything.
It was a very strong performance, even this late into their two month tour – and I would heartily recommend catching the show if you get a chance. I will definitely try to see Cruefest 2.
In fact, & to be honest, I spent most of the night thinking the Crue would’ve been an equally good first concert for my twins (instead of Iron Maiden), but after watching the smokin’ hot girls next to me dirty dance each other all night, and then the porn started on the big screens, and then Tommy’s Tittycam (he later handed a full bottle of jager into the crowd for his “homies in the lawn”) etc etc.  well, let’s just say it might be better to keep some things to yourself after all.