Hot off the release of their 5th studio effort titled “Outlaw Gentleman & Shady Ladies,” Volbeat rolled into Niagara Falls, NY with one mission: to kick the crowd’s ass with various forms of hard rock and metal music. They also incorporated many other forms including western, rockabilly, and the blues.
In speaking with lead singer Michael Poulson before the show (stay tuned for the exclusive interview right here), he affirmed to me that “the band is a band” and doesn’t like to be categorized under any category. I’m mentioning this because it’s rare to see so many elements flow together so seamlessly during an entire sets worth of music.
Their new album incorporates many of these various nuances and the band didn’t disappoint. The song “Born to Raise Hell,” by Motorhead whetted the crowd’s appetite just before the Danish product Volbeat hit the stage. They played 5 tracks off of it, and with the addition of former Anthrax guitarist Rob Caggiano, the band have never sounded better. Bassist Anders Kjolhom and drummer Jon Larsen held the groove all night as the band, including Poulsen, sang from various microphones throughout the set.
Volbeat paid homage to Jeff Hennman of Slayer who recently passed away at age 49. The band played a snippet of “Raining Blood.” He said he recently heard someone say that people don’t need God they need Slayer!” They also did a snippet of Judas Priest’s “Breaking the Law.”
During another portion of the performance, Pouslon encouraged the men to lift up all their women on top of their shoulders to say hello to the band. It was the “PG” version, as no women were seen removing any articles of clothing, much to the dismay of this writer.
I just saw this band just a little over a year ago and the fans that are interested in Volbeat have grown leaps and bounds. They seem to be on the road up so hang on boys and girls, it’s going to get wild!
Set List:
Intro (End of the Road)
A New Day
Guitar Gangsters & Cadillac Blood
Pearl Hart
Heaven nor Hell
Sad Man’s Tongue
Lola Montez
The Human Instrument
16 Dollars
Warrior Call
MaryAnn’s Place
Dead but Rising
Raining Blood (snippet – Slayer cover)
Breaking the Law (snippet – Judas Priest cover)
The Hangman’s Body Count
Still Counting
Encore:
Doc Holiday
Fallen
The Mirror and the Ripper
Pool of Booze, Booze, Booza
We would like to thank Steve Karas from SKH Music for allowing BackstageAxxess to review the show. Stay tuned for an exclusive interview with Michael conducted before the show
