Five Finger Death Punch, Shinedown, Sixx:A.M., and As Lions @ Blue Cross Arena, Rochester, NY 11-22-16

As we head into our winter months, concerts seem to be more sparse and great rock and roll packages become few and far between. One package that is nearing the end of its run is the Five Finger Death Punch, Shinedown, Sixx:A.M. and As Lions tour. A great package of some of the best rock bands all on one bill.

The show started promptly at 6pm with As Lions taking the stage. The band just released its first EP called “Aftermath” and is gearing up for a full length release in January of 2017. Vocalist Austin Dickinson (the son of legendary Iron Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson) led his band to give a hard ass good kick at it for 25 minutes. Dickinson has his father’s traits as he was all over the stage and showing lots of love to the fans in Rochester. The band was surprisingly very good, very tight and worth getting there to see.

Taking the stage at 6:50pm, Sixx:A.M. guitarist DJ Ashba led by running to the end of the stage to pluck the first few chords of “This is Gonna Hurt.” Then vocalist James Michael and bassist Nikki Sixx appeared with their backup singers. The new album “Prayers for the Blessed, Vol 2” just dropped on November 18. This was a follow up to “Prayers for the Damned, Vol 1” released back in April. The band really brought the crowd to life and as they dished out songs mostly from their previous work, but did do “We Will Not Go Quietly” which got a really good response. With their short set of 40 minutes, the band probably wanted to keep songs that the crowd would be familiar with; which would be understandable.

Shinedown made their presence known all night as they shot off an insane amount of pyro and some fireworks during their hour and 15 minute set. The show was built around a great stage show and the band truly did deliver a high energy set. The band members were all dressed in suits and ties which gave a subtle elegance to their look. Vocalist Brent Smith, after the 2^nd song, got everyone to know his/her neighbor and extend a hand to him before the next song would start. It reminded me of something almost like a Catholic Church service. Smith also made his way into the crowd to sing and talk to people during “How Do You Love.” They also slowed it down where bassist Eric Bass took on the keys for the song “Call Me.” For the popular cover “Simple Man,” guitarist Zach Myers and Smith were only left on stage to give a heartfelt rendition of the Lynyrd Skynyrd classic. Smith gave us a talk of what music should mean. It should move you emotionally, physically and spirituality, he said. I think Shinedown’s set just did that. Shinedown packed a punch with their one (1) hour and 15 minute set, so Five Finger Death Punch had to be up to the challenge as the co headliner.

Taking the stage a few minutes late, Five Finger Death Punch showed the Rochester crowd why the best was saved for last. They really mixed up their set quite well with lots of hard rocking tracks that contained a lot of punch and melody. For good measure they also threw in an eye catching drum solo by Jeremy Spencer, who was well hidden behind his massive drum kit, and a few acoustic songs. The acoustic songs “Wrong Side of Heaven” and “Remember Everything” were just guitarist Jason Hook and vocalist Ivan Moody on stage making a connection with the fans. Speaking about connections, you won’t find a more fan friendly vocalist than Moody. After the opening song, M oody picked out two lucky people from the crowd to watch the show from the stage. He also took time out to listen to a fan’s plea to get him to sign her poster as she didn’t have a chance to see him before the show. Moody said he wasn’t feeling well and needed to rest for the show so he gladly obliged and signed her poster. He also threw picks to fans throughout the show.

FFDP’s set may not have had the explosives that Shinedown did but the interactions of all band members, including guitarist Zoltan Bathory and bassist Chris Kael, made for a fun and just as entertaining set for sure. The band closed the set with a song they used to play at the top of the set in “The Bleeding.”

It was a great package for a Tuesday night in Rochester, New York, and the attendees sure did get a great night’s worth of hard rock music!

Five Finger Death Punch setlist:

Lift Me Up

Never Enough

Wash it All Away

Got Your Six

Bad Company (Bad Company cover)

Jekyll and Hyde

Drum solo

Burn MF

The Agony of Regret

Wrong Side of Heaven (acoustic)