Cruefest 2008 Review

I had the opportunity to go to the inaugural Cruefest, the soon to be annual touring festival organized and headlined by Motley Crue. I was at the Charlotte, North Carolina show on July 5, 2008. In addition to the Crue, the other bands were Buckcherry, Papa Roach, Sixx AM and Trapt. Make sure to visit my Cruefest 2008 Photo Gallery.

Being the opening band in a festival of this size is a big disadvantage. The lines at security to get into the venue were really long, so a lot of people who wanted to see Trapt didn't get inside in time. The crowd was sparse, and they played a decent set. The biggest reaction was to "Headstrong."

By the time Sixx AM hit the stage, much more of the crowd had filtered in. I really like their CD The Heroin Diaries Soundtrack, and their live performance was excellent. Vocalist James Michael has a great set of pipes, and for a guy that's worked behind the scenes as a producer for a long time has a lot of stage presence and charisma. DJ Ashba is a very good guitarist, and Nikki Sixx stood over to the side and let the rest of the band take the spotlight.

I've never been much of a Papa Roach fan. Their early stuff was rap metal, which I don't care for at all. I was really surprised with how much I enjoyed Papa Roach's set. These days they are more of a modern rock band. Frontman Jacoby Shaddix is very energetic, and actually jumped into the pit and interacted with the fans. I knew a lot more of their songs than I thought I would, and was very impressed with their performance.

I wasn't as impressed with Buckcherry. They were decent, but nothing to write home about. The crowd was much more into Papa Roach. Frontman Josh Todd sounded good, but his off color banter was causing some cringing from some. Buckcherry finally got the audience going when they launched into "Crazy Bitch."

After four hours of music, the crowd was pumped and primed and ready for the Crue. The tour is in support of their new CD Saints Of Los Angeles, and the set incorporated a giant Los Angeles sign similar to the Hollywood sign. They launched the show with "Kickstart My Heart" and immediately the crowd was in a frenzy. All the typical Motley elements like pyro and racy pictures on the big screens were there.

The set included their biggest hits along with two songs from the new CD. In a festival setting they can't play as long, but they made the most out of the time they had. Vince Neil's voice was in good form. He was able to hit the high notes, and although he let the crowd do quite a bit of singing, he sounded better than when I last saw him a couple of years ago.

Tommy Lee didn't do his trademark drum solo, which was disappointing, but he did break out his video camera to showcase certain body parts of females in the crowd. Mick Mars has a debilitating arthritic condition that he's battled for years, but he still soldiers on and is a great guitarist. He also moved around on stage a lot more than he has in the past. Overall, Cruefest was a success. The bands were good, the crowd was huge, and it looks like it will become an annual event.

Kickstart My Heart
Wild Side
Shout At The Devil
Saints of Los Angeles
Live Wire
M.F. of the Year
Don't Go Away Mad
Same Old Situation
Primal Scream
Looks That Kill
Girls Girls Girls
Dr. Feelgood
Encore - Home Sweet Home