Three Days Grace Concert at the Cleveland HOB, Photo Courtesy of Jodi V

A Concert at the Cleveland House of Blues

July 19, 2015

The Adventure
My concert-attending friends and I make an evening adventure prior to each concert at the House of Blues. Sometimes we’re privileged enough to gain access to the The Foundation Room and hob knob with the elite before the show. Other times, we dine at a nearby establishment, as there are quite a few amazing choices in the East 4th district of Cleveland. Lately, we’ve been focused on Zocalo, a delectable Mexican restaurant with delicious tacos and margaritas.

The Venue
I really love the House of Blues. But this particular night was hot, very hot, as the air conditioning system was not working. Read: it was as hot as living, freaking hell. Normally, I’m very active at a concert; that night, I was able to stand, and that’s about it. I realize now that perhaps intense heat like this could be one of the causes of the impending zombie apocalypse because I, and most of the audience, were in a near dead-like trance throughout the evening. Feet were barely moving, heads tilted to one side, eyes glazed, and unable to speak coherently. But, there was a cure: ice water! And, lots of it. (Who knew that there were beverages other than beer at a concert? This information was previously unknown.) After finding the antiserum to the zombie virus, the audience was slowly able to start reacting to the exceptional music being presented to us. (If I’m not as vain as I’m learning that I am, I would post a before and after picture of my hair. The after shot: Picture curly dreadlocks caught in an electrical storm.)

The Concert
Heat? Ultimately, who cares? Music is the solution to many ailments. So, even though the audience wasn’t as hyper and crazed as normal (i.e., no crowd surfing) the killer music was being heard and absorbed. The place was packed, the show sold out. Devour the Day, a fairly new hard rock band fronted by Joey “Chicago” Walser and Blake Allison, opened up for the stars of the night, Three Days Grace.

Devour the Day
Wow! Talk about having absolute, complete, on-stage presence. Extreme energy and appeal. Powerful performance. Just watching them was fun.

The band was very engaged with the audience, talking about the music and telling stories. At one point, Joey said something along the lines of: When I was young, I had braces on my legs and all the kids would make fun of me. One day someone told me to run, so I ran, and the chains just broke away. (If you don’t know what this is referencing, click here.) Hilarious! Even in our walking dead-like state, the audience laughed. And zombies don’t normally laugh. The band then played, Move On.

And the music was fantastic: hard rock, strong lyrics. If you haven’t listened to Devour the Day, you should. Not a hard rock fan? Check out Good Man.

Find out more about the band in my interview with Joey Chicago!

Devour the Day Setlist, provided by the Band! (Move On not pictured)

Devour the Day Setlist
Courtesy of Devour the Day

1. Respect
2. Blackout
3. Get Out of My Way
4. White Rabbit (by Egypt Central; Walser and Allison were former members)
5. Heaven
6. Faith
7. Good Man

Three Days Grace
True to form, the band simply rocked the house that night. Like Devour the Day, if the band members were excruciatingly hot, they didn’t show it. (Sure, the band members themselves are each individually completely hot, but that’s another story altogether.) Three Days Grace songs have an excellent beat, powerful sound, and relatable lyrics. Over the past few years, the band has developed an evolving and addicting sound with the addition of a new lead singer, Matt Walst.

Personally, Three Days Grace is one of my favorite bands as many of their songs are in my iTunes Top 25 Most Played list. This was my third show; the first being at the Cleveland House of Blues, and the second at The Fillmore in Detroit. I look forward to seeing them a fourth time on Sunday, August 23, at the Pain in the Grass show at the White River Amphitheater outside of Seattle.

Crowd Gone Wild at the Three Days Grace Concert at The Fillmore, Detroit

Each band member is always fully engaged in providing an incredible performance. Neal Sanderson’s drum solos, Barry Stock’s guitar riffs, Brad Walst’s powerful bass, and Matt Walst’s strong voice create the recipe for an over-the-top entertaining show. And, the guys are fun (and nice). My friend Jodi and I have had cool conversations and drinks with the Walst brothers, and we’ve been photo-bombed by Sanderson. Good times.

Left: Nici, Jodi, Brad, and Matt ● Right: HOB Bartender, Nici, and Neil at City Tap, Cleveland

Online Adventure
Through screwing around on Amazon, I found a Lullaby Versions of Three Days Grace album. Yes, lullaby versions of eight Three Days Grace songs. I find this to be quite hysterical, especially the rendition of Riot. It’s actually pretty good! Because I’m always at a loss as to what to buy new parents, perhaps this album is it. And, if you really aren’t a fan of hard rock (gasp!), then you might take a shine to it yourself.

Three Days Grace Setlist
Courtesy of setlist.fm

1. I Am Machine
2. Just Like You
3. Chalk Outline
4. So What
5. Pain
6. Break
7. Human Race
8. Home
9. Drum and Piano Interlude
10. Drum Solo
11. Painkiller
12. Fallen Angel
13. The Good Life
14. I Hate Everything About You
15. Never Too Late
16. Animal I Have Become

Encore:
17. The Real You
18. Riot