Styx in Charlotte June 30 2015

[swwskj]

Here's the Setlist from tonight. My third Styx related show in 3 months. Styx as a headliner in Cherokee Harrahs Casino in March, Dennis in Charlotte in May and Styx with Def Lep and Tesla tonight.

The Grand Illusion
Too Much Time on my Hands
Fooling Yourself
Miss America
Lady
Blue Collar Man
Come Sail Away
Rocking the Paradise
Renegade

I've seen them on a couple package tours and while it's nice to see a couple bands, it does reduce the Setlist to the expected same old songs.

Nice stage lighting and they used the album covers by and large as backdrops, hence the aforementioned use of the Paradise Theater art.

Not their best show ever and no deep cuts. They did sound great otherwise and I count myself lucky to have heard Lady, The Grand Illusion and Come Sail Away live 3x in 3 months.

Scott

[Baron Von Bielski]

Here's the Setlist from tonight. My third Styx related show in 3 months. Styx as a headliner in Cherokee Harrahs Casino in March, Dennis in Charlotte in May and Styx with Def Lep and Tesla tonight.

The Grand Illusion
Too Much Time on my Hands
Fooling Yourself
Miss America
Lady
Blue Collar Man
Come Sail Away
Rocking the Paradise
Renegade

I've seen them on a couple package tours and while it's nice to see a couple bands, it does reduce the Setlist to the expected same old songs.

Nice stage lighting and they used the album covers by and large as backdrops, hence the aforementioned use of the Paradise Theater art.

Not their best show ever and no deep cuts. They did sound great otherwise and I count myself lucky to have heard Lady, The Grand Illusion and Come Sail Away live 3x in 3 months.

Scott

I totally get the triple bill approach these days especially for bands that are no longer headliners and may have trouble filling mid sized venues, but limited set lists due to time constraints make for a pretty boring show.

[swwskj]

On a side note, it can't be said enough how well Tommy, Dennis, JY and Gowan have held up voice wise.

Listening to them and then hearing Joe Elliot straining to hit most higher notes makes me appreciate our guys voices.

Then I really feel sorry for Van Halen fans. DLR is simply horrible. Not only is his voice shot, but he hardly sings preferring instead to talk over the lyrics. That's when he remembers the lyrics or keeps in time with the band.

[masque]

joe elliot does struggle on certain things but he still puts on a great show and I personally appreciate that he leaves it all on stage when he performs......while he may struggle with certain notes he still tries his hardest to get up there and do them justice.

[Baron Von Bielski]

joe elliot does struggle on certain things but he still puts on a great show and I personally appreciate that he leaves it all on stage when he performs......while he may struggle with certain notes he still tries his hardest to get up there and do them justice.

I agree, for the most part Joe Elliott sounds fine, it's really only during the screaming or high vocal key parts that can come across cringeworthy. Like Run Riot or parts of Photograph for example. Don't get me wrong, they are still a band worth seeing and are not disappointing.

Since we are on the subject of vocalists, what sucks for me is that I'm a big KISS fan. Paul Stanley since about 2008 lost all his high note ability and now seems to even struggle with low key parts. His voice once was insane. He was just as impressive live as he was on their albums, maybe even more so. It's gone, cracking like a young male hitting puberty or someone who REALLY needs to clear their throat. If they didn't have all the bombast of an amazing visual show and even though Gene Simmons was never really a "singer" he still pulls off his part, without all that they wouldn't be worth seeing. It's borderline for me. Knowing what they once were, it's too hard.

It's great to hear Tommy and Dennis having not lost a step. They sound great. JY can't really hit the notes he used to. It's not horrific or anything, just not impressive.

[Baron Von Bielski]

On a side note, it can't be said enough how well Tommy, Dennis, JY and Gowan have held up voice wise.

Listening to them and then hearing Joe Elliot straining to hit most higher notes makes me appreciate our guys voices.

Then I really feel sorry for Van Halen fans. DLR is simply horrible. Not only is his voice shot, but he hardly sings preferring instead to talk over the lyrics. That's when he remembers the lyrics or keeps in time with the band.

I agree about DLR. He does struggle and do things melody wise that make one scratch their head. Funny things is, that when he actually sings the song or at least tries to sing the song the way it was intended it doesn't sound too bad.

[Boomchild]

joe elliot does struggle on certain things but he still puts on a great show and I personally appreciate that he leaves it all on stage when he performs......while he may struggle with certain notes he still tries his hardest to get up there and do them justice.

I remember sampling Mirror Ball and couldn't get through it due how his voice has deteriorated.

[Boomchild]

I agree about DLR. He does struggle and do things melody wise that make one scratch their head. Funny things is, that when he actually sings the song or at least tries to sing the song the way it was intended it doesn't sound too bad.

DLR was never a good live singer to begin with. I think VH chose him more for his onstage antics and how he could work the crowd. Now the act just seems stale.

[Baron Von Bielski]

I agree about DLR. He does struggle and do things melody wise that make one scratch their head. Funny things is, that when he actually sings the song or at least tries to sing the song the way it was intended it doesn't sound too bad.

DLR was never a good live singer to begin with. I think VH chose him more for his onstage antics and how he could work the crowd. Now the act just seems stale.

It pretty much breaks down to the fans. More VH fans consider DLR the true and only frontman for them. I'm a VH fan, but not a huge fan like I am of Styx. I prefer Roth easily over Hagar, but I like Sammy as a solo artist.

[willspups]

When Gowan joined the band, I wonder if he had any idea he would be playing the same 10 songs 15 years later...

[Archetype]

It's great to hear Tommy and Dennis having not lost a step.

Fully agree, and would love to hear them work together again because of this. They have their health, their voices, and the ability to tour. It's really a shame and a lost opportunity that they aren't.

[Toph]

If I am a Styx fan seeing Styx, the 9 song set list bothers me. Its just not enough. I think they are playing for what, an hour? It goes to the ultimate tradeoff - play an album's worth of material for an hour for 7,000-10,000, many of who are there for the headliner or play 22 songs and 2+ hours for 1500-2000. I guess it comes down to the $$$. It may actually help this version of Styx given their reluctance to play many of DDY's songs - its about the right setlist length without having to dig too deep.

[Baron Von Bielski]

It's great to hear Tommy and Dennis having not lost a step.

Fully agree, and would love to hear them work together again because of this. They have their health, their voices, and the ability to tour. It's really a shame and a lost opportunity that they aren't.

Exactly, every year that passes is just another proverbial nail in the coffin. Such a huge shame.

[Boomchild]

It pretty much breaks down to the fans. More VH fans consider DLR the true and only frontman for them. I'm a VH fan, but not a huge fan like I am of Styx. I prefer Roth easily over Hagar, but I like Sammy as a solo artist.

I always considered DLR a showman that sings.