STONE SOUR – Oslo – Rockefeller
- Posted on 19-12-2012
Before the stage was to be well handled by the Iowa based Stone Sour, Rockefeller was first the host of the Norwegian hard rockers from Audrey Horne. A band with a lot of good mood and drive once they begin their performance and whose classic rock beats was well received by the numerous audience. They will probably never win an award for being too innovative in the genre, but they sure have some nice ideas in going out of the standard verse-chorus-verse-chorus pattern. We got a mix of nostalgic and dynamic songs, with pretty classic drumming and guitaring, but the plus of the band is their stage presence. All the musicians are part in various projects and have touring experience, and that can be seen when the two guitarists meet up to play a solo face to face or when the singer entertaining the crowd through screams and talks and no less, by jumping off the stage and singing while climbed on the fences that mark the photopit. If you’re a fan of the genre, I’m pretty sure the songs become catchy pretty quick and I guess many were happy with the choice for tonight’s support act.
The main act went few levels up though. Everything from lights to sound and to music was meant to build an incredible rock show. And above all, Corey Taylor’s voice. This is the reason I started listening to Stone Sour and this is what made the concert such an incredible experience. A simple backdrop and an immense drum kit is what we see while we hear the intro of Gone Sovereign, the opening song on their latest release, House of Gold & Bones (part 1). After that, we are treated with an explosion of classics that quickly raise the temperature in the huge hall by several degrees. Hell & Consequences, Made of Scars, Blotter, perfect combo to get most of the hands up in the air and continuous cheering.
Taylor know how to get the audience wrapped around his small finger. Despite the fact that sometimes he’s somewhat close to rude. Like, for example, spilling a glass of water over the mobile phones and cameras of the people in the first row, or, later during the show, directing the crowd to do some ‘ooooooooooooo’s and in the end showing them the middle finger. Yet, we hear a big ‘I love you’ from a woman in the audience, statement to which he replied that, unfortunately, he’s married. But he also is generous in telling the crowd how much they rock and asking them to sing along and simply gesturing for more applause. I admit that during the comeback, when he played a bit of an Alice in Chains song and then Bother, followed by Through glass, I got big goosebumps when more or less everyone present would sing along. Especially since the other band members had left the stage and only Taylor was singing, accompanied by his guitar.
After watching Corey Taylor’s show for a while, I focused my attention on the band he plays with and I did really enjoy when my eyes stopped on the drumkit. Besides pounding the cymbals and toms with as much power as he had, Roy Mayorga fools around a lot with his sticks and it’s fun to watch how oddly he bends his hands in order to kick the hi hat or some cymbals. The guitarists are tightly holding on to the rhythms, not going much to very extreme riffs, simply working together to get the best out of each melody. And all these is really well sustained by a mad light show, such as a band of their caliber should have on tour.
It all ended on the rhythms of 30/30-150 and Taylor stated that since this is part of a two year long tour, Oslo will most likely see them again soon. I can only recommend you give them a try, next time they are in town!