Raleigh, NC - Fan Reviews

Fan Review - By Frankie F

What a great show last night in Raleigh! My fifth time seeing the band and my favorite in terms of energy from the band and overall good vibes. They smiled often and were very engaging. They really seemed to be happy as ever and the smiles returned from fans like myself were beaming right back to the stage. What I was most surprised in is the set was the exact same as Charlotte. Yup, just 15 songs. I thought going in this was going to be too short and it kind of was but somehow managed to fill an entire 90 minutes. For Those About to Rock....blared through the speakers at 9:25 on the dot and Undefeated kicked off right at 9:30. By the time the members were shaking a lot of hands and doing an extensive wave goodbye to the audience it was 11pm on the dot. Also known as CURPHEW time for Raleigh...so their show with Heart playing over an hour does not really afford them any more time.

For those going to future shows that like to clock watch like I do for knowing when the bands take the stage. The first guy Evan Watson (note. It was not full band...just him and guitar) played a short under 20 minute set that started just before the ticket time of 7:30 and ended at 7:45. Heart was on stage after a brief intermission at 7:50 and played for an hour and 5 minutes. They were off after a Led Zeppelin cover encore (What is and What should never be) at 8:55. That left a good half hour changeover to the monstrous, elaborately lighted stage I've seen Def Leppard on in some years. Great video background. Great lights! Lots of use of the catwalk tonight. Noticed that Heart has gotten the approval to use it as the two sisters were on in plenty. Never saw other openers use it.

During the catwalk acoustic segment, Joe was very funny and full of smiles even though he mistakenly said "Last time we were here the roof came off this place". That was actually in 2007 and they had played there again in 2009 with Poison and Cheap Trick to a beautiful albeit humid, hot night. Well, this night was hotter and why artists choose my state to play in late June or July is insane and I'm a skinny boy. While there were some empty seats in the pavilion as many fans at the back of the pavilion opt for the huge price cut of the lawn..the lawn filled nicely and to say there were 12000 out there or more is not a stretch. Good turnout for sure!

Again, this was my 5th time seeing the band, and my first was not until 2006. The show itself in terms of song selection and mannerisms seems repetitive. They maybe change one or two songs from tour to tour it seems. They've broken out the catwalk the past few times I've caught them. I swear it feels at times like you are just catching a play over and over every year that's scripted. But, here's the thing. I'm not complaining! It does not get old! The songs they are playing, they play them great and they don't seem to go through the motions. They really put everything into them and I feel I get everything I paid for. And, If I had the means, I'd be in the car right now heading to Virginia Beach to do it all again tonight. Joe promised "We'll be back! I promise! Don't forget us and we won't forget you!" Good! Sounds like a plan to me. I hope to see them sooner than later. Great night!

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