Review By: Elle Tourjman | Photos By: Nadine Swiger

With the arctic weather blowing in to Glens Falls and temperatures of 10 below 0; The Monster Energy Music As A Weapon Tour 5 heated up the Glens Falls Civic Center with music performed by a few of my favorite metal bands.

One of Metal Cores’ sexiest female vocalists, Maria Brink and In This Moment band mates Chris Howorth, Blake Bunzel, Jeff Fab and Travis Johnson kicked off the night. The first song they played was “Blazin” off their 2010 release “A Star-Crossed Wasteland”. A fitting song for the kind of bone chilling temperatures we were experiencing outside! In This Moment’s set was powerful and tight and the guys in the crowd were mesmerized by the fiery vocalist Maria. They wrapped up with “Daddy’s Fallen Angel” off their 2007 release “Beautiful Tragedy” and Maria screamed her way through lyrics that would make an angel cry.

Sevendust’s engaging and vibrant Lajon Witherspoon along with fellow musicians, including their newest touring member B. C. Kochmit; were greeted by enthusiastic fans as they performed the first song in their set, “Splinter” from their 2010 release “Cold Day Memory”. I have had the chance to see Sevendust twice in the past year and Lajon never fails to deliver above and beyond with an emotionally stirring and electric show. Clint Lowery, Morgan Rose, John Connelly and Vince Hornsby each bring their talents and technical skill to the band which only come from hours of committed practice, making each and every performance damn near flawless.

Sevendust passed along their high octane energy to the audience with “Black”, “Driven”, “Forever” and “Pieces”. After finishing the song “Praise”, Lajon said his notorious catch phrase to the eagerly responsive fans; “You can love us, you can hate us, but you sure as hell can’t ignore us!” They wrapped up their set with my favorite track, “Face To Face”, leaving the crowd hungry for more, as any good entertainer should.

A black curtain was drawn across the stage as the crew worked to get everything ready for Disturbed. There was a big screen on the back wall and 9 smaller screens placed around Mike Wengren’s drum stand. As the set started, disturbing images of a mental asylum and various repulsive characters focusing on the tortured soul of a deeply troubled boy, played across the screens. This was all set to the songs “Remnants and Asylum”. Next they played “The Game”, one of Disturbeds’ more popular and well known songs. The mosh pits went wild as hardcore fans surfed the crowd as fast as security could catch them. I looked around and saw that most of the people with seats were up and rocking out to this song just as much, if not more than those on the floor.

Next song up was “Prayer”, another Disturbed fan favorite. This was followed by one of my own personal favorites “Liberate”, which was incredible to see performed live based on the fact that David Draiman could reproduce the same effects in person as what had been recorded in the studio. “The Animal” was followed by “Inside The Fire”, as images of flames played across the bright screens on stage. With the songs “Stricken” and “Another Way To Die”, I thought that the set list had been really well thought out giving the theme of the tour was ‘music as a weapon’. I liked the message that was undercurrent in “Another Way To Die”. It was pretty powerful and heavy stuff, communicating its intended meaning quite clearly.

Dan Donegan’s guitar work was inspiring to see but I thought he really took it to another level with the song “Another Way To Die”. John Moyer’s and Mike Wengren’s performances were a pleasure to watch as well as listen to. Donegan and Moyer worked the stage as much as Drainman, going to Wengren’s drum stand to play as a tight and dedicated group of brilliant musicians and not just as individuals; it was very impressive to see. Disturbed’s hit “Stupify” was followed by “Ten Thousand Fists” and they wrapped up their dramatic and solid performance with “Indestructible”. As they walked off the stage the crowd cheered and cried for more until Disturbed returned for their  encore “Down With the Sickness”.

The black curtain was lowered again as we all waited for KoRn to storm the stage. KoRn started their set with a roar as they ripped into “Blind”, followed effortlessly by “Here To Stay”, one of my all time favorite songs, not just from the band but period.

I was more than impressed with the flawless performances of Davis, Munky, Fieldy, Lazier and touring members Wes Geer and Zac Baird as they tore up the arena song after explosive song. It was nice to see the band mixing it up with newer songs off their latest album like “Pop A Pill” and still bringing out some classic fan favorites such as “Freak On A Leash” and “Chutes and Ladders”, which Davis broke out his unforgettable bagpipes for. I was amazed that Davis could perfectly duplicate all the sounds live that were done in the studio. I used to think those intonations and babblings were the result of carefully crafted studio effects. I had no idea Davis was so variegated. “Got The Life” blew me away and “Alone I Break” was perfectly executed. “Oildale (Leave Me Alone)”, one of KoRn’s newer releases was a turbulent and talented masterpiece worthy of sitting next to my other KoRn all time favorites.

I have to say that Lazier’s drumming style was dazzling as he seemed to be enjoying himself immensely. Throughout the night He kept twirling his drum sticks only to throw them up into the air and finally catching them again. His drumming was white-hot as he sizzled his way through every song. I couldn’t help but think he should be on the top 10 greatest drummers list soon.

Munky with his untiring energy, head banged and hopped about the entire set. He had on his distinct,custom long white coat and as usual was very entertaining to watch. On the other side of the stage I could see some people standing off backstage and I was amused to see them rocking out as much as the rest of the audience.

“Oildale (Leave Me Alone)” was followed by “Falling Away From Me”. Next was “Coming Undone” and “We Will Rock You”. No one should miss this tour! KoRn kept churning out hit after torrid hit with “Twisted Transistor”, “Make Me Bad”, “Thoughtless” and “Did My Time”. They wrapped up the night with “Clown” and “Y’all Want A Single”, giving a blistering performance that was worth braving every second of the below freezing temperatures outside. All of the bands gave great performances. As I left the arena I thought to myself that without a doubt really is the hottest tour this winter!!

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PHOTO GALLERIES:

* SEVENDUST :: PHOTO GALLERY

* DISTURBED :: PHOTO GALLERY

* KORN :: PHOTO GALLERY

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FOR MORE INFORMATION ON:

KORN : www.korn.com

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DISTURBED : www.disturbed1.com/

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SEVENDUST : www.sevendust.com

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IN THIS MOMENT :

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MUSIC AS A WEAPON : maaw.monsterenergy.com

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Remaining TOUR DATES:

Jan 26 Morgantown, WV @ WVU Coliseum
Jan 28 Uncasville, CT @ Mohgean Sun Arena
Jan 29 Portland, ME @ Cumberland County Civic Center
Jan 30 Atlantic City, NJ @ House of Blues
Feb 1 Winston-Salem, NC @ Winston-Salem Entertainment Sports Complex
Feb 2 Fayetteville, NC @ Crown Center Of Cumberland County
Feb 4 Nashville, TN @ Bridgestone Arena
Feb 5 Biloxi, MS @ Mississippi Coast Coliseum
Feb 8 Corpus Christi, TX @ Concrete Street Amphitheatre
Feb 9 San Antonio, TX @ Illusion Theatre
Feb 10 McAllen, TX @ McAllen Convention Center
Feb 12 Lubbock, TX @ Fairpark Coliseum