Live-Metal.Net - Concerts: Staind, Seether, Papa Roach - Wicomico Youth & Civic Center

Here on the Eastern Shore of Maryland we don’t get too many big rock concerts. It’s not uncommon for country music stars to hit Salisbury or Ocean City, but an established rock act that has yet to hit the where-are-they-now file is a rarity. Getting three bands who are each a rock radio staple and legitimate headliner on their own is virtually unheard of.

I have never been a Papa Roach fan, but these guys easily put on the best show of the night. Taking the stage at the early hour of 7 p.m. didn’t seem to bother Jacoby Shaddix and his bandmates a bit. They, especially Shaddix, played with so much energy and enthusiasm it was easy to get swept away by it as they revved up the crowd and, in Shaddix’s case, ventured out into it. Their music has improved over the years, too, moving away from the rap-rock of their first hit single, “Last Resort.” Highlights of their set included “Getting Away with Murder,” “… To Be Loved” and, from their new album coming early next year, “Hollywood Whore.”

Up next, Seether had the difficult task of following Papa Roach. They didn’t quite meet that challenge—due to a muddy sound mix more than anything else—but still delivered a solid set of hits. Standout moments included “Gasoline,” still a great opening number, and a cover of Alice in Chains’ “Nutshell.” (Looking around at the mostly college-age crowd, I couldn’t help but wonder how many of them even knew Alice in Chains. I remember seeing the “We Die Young” video on Headbangers Ball back in 1990; many of the people near me were probably in diapers. Concerts are starting to make me feel old and I haven’t even hit 30.)

SEETHER SET LIST:
Gasoline
Needles
Breakdown
Rise Above This
FMLYHM
Fine Again
Broken
Nutshell
Fake It
Remedy

Staind has come a long way since bursting onto the scene nearly a decade ago. I am a fan of the more singer-songwriter direction their music has taken, but I have to admit the highlight of the entire night for me was “Spleen,” the ultra-aggressive song from their 1999 album Dysfunction. Staind could have been—and still could be—a top-notch metal band if they wanted. But frontman Aaron Lewis has a few things he needs to get off his chest and chooses to do so with songs in which you can actually hear what he’s saying. Nothing wrong with that.

Though touring in support of their latest release, The Illusion of Progress, it was their megahit album from 2001, Break the Cycle, that was represented the most—by favorites “Fade,” “Epiphany” (featuring backing vocals by Seether’s Shaun Morgan), “For You,” “Outside” (the full band version, as opposed to Lewis solo) and “It’s Been Awhile.” The set list included only two new tracks: “Pardon Me,” which guitarist Mike Mushok stole with a solo, and the current hit single “Believe.”

Lewis noted he was a little hoarse on this night and it showed early in the set on songs like “Fade” and “So Far Away.” Luckily, his voice grew stronger throughout the show and was no longer much of an issue after the first five or so songs. Lewis and bassist Johnny April were essentially stationary throughout the entire set, maybe because Mushok stole all of their energy. He never stopped moving and it was nice to someone on stage obviously enjoying himself.

Appropriately, “Mudshovel,” the band’s first hit, brought the night to a close after 75 minutes (Papa Roach and Seether each played sets close to an hour in length). Papa Roach might have stolen some thunder from the acts higher on the bill, but a fan of any of the three bands should have gone home satisfied.

STAIND SET LIST:
Suffocate
Falling
Right Here
Fade
So Far Away
Pardon Me
Epiphany (with Shaun Morgan of Seether)
For You
Tolerate
Outside
Spleen
Believe
It’s Been Awhile
Mudshovel