Excited to bring you coverage of five killer bands at the 80’s Rock Invasion by HB Concerts at the Promenade Park Pavilion in Toledo, Ohio from Friday night. The weather was beautiful as fans made their way to the venue on the riverfront in the city. And, as the sun shined down and continued to heat things up, Vixen took the stage just before 6:00 pm.
It was our first time at the venue, which we were told recently brought in reserved seating in front of the stage in addition to elevated and stacked lawn seating behind front of house that allowed fans to spread out and bring in their own seating if warranted.
This was my also first opportunity to catch the band since new front woman Rosa Laricchiuta, who joined Vixen last month. The band made their debut with Rosa at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California, sharing the stage with legendary acts, Great White, Slaughter and Quiet Riot on June 21, and contributor Joe Schaeffer had great things to say about the new line-up in the review linked above. So, I’m here to echo his praise and report that with just a few shows under the Vixen fold, the chemistry with the Canadian vocalist was undeniable.
Joining the hard-hitting and always smiling founder Roxy Petrucci, bassist Julia Lage and guitarist Britt Lightning continue to bring hair-flipping energy to the band and impress us with their fretwork while Rosa impressed us with her vocal range and electrified delivery. With Tyson Leslie keeping up with one-time all girl band behind the keys, Vixen was on fire. Our only complaint was the length of their set, but we were still very excited to see Vixen return to Toledo, where Britt made her own debut with Vixen back in 2017.
This was our second time catching drummer Steven Adler this month as his solo band also played a couple shows the previous weekend in Ohio, including a lengthy headlining performance at Picktown Pallooza just outside of Columbus. This evening’s performance focused on favorites from the Guns ‘n Roses album Appetite for Destruction (with the exception of “You Could Be Mine” from the Terminator 2 movie soundtrack) to everyone’s approval.
It was fun to watch the always smiling drummer filming the action with a camera strapped to his head before passing it off to Argentinian frontman Ari Kamin for a live crowd view… For those who haven’t seen Ari in action, he brings a youthful energy to the fix reminding us of a young Axl Rose as he kills it on lead vocals. He is joined by guitarists Michael Thomas and Alistair James and bass player Christian Sturba, who took us on a journey to the jungle so to speak and it was it was a wild ride to say the least. And, for myself it was an absolute pleasure to have the chance to visit Steven’s office and capture some cool views of his beautiful Soultone cymbals and the venue with a vantage point from behind the kit.
Continuing with some drummer love as noted in our social posts foreshadowing the event, it was a bit of a reunion with our long-time friends from Slaughter having both their original drummer Blas Elias and touring drummer Jordan Cannata in the house. With Blas now on tour with headliner Stephen Pearcy, one may wonder if Jordan had a little something to prove. But, if you’ve ever seen him play, you’d know for certain that it is not the case. From walking on his kit to tearing away his cymbals in a thunderous farewell, Jordan has nothing to prove.
As I introduced my seventeen-year-old daughter to the Slaughter family this weekend, I can’t help but look back at the history we’ve had with this band, especially given the recent loss of Beverly Hills 90210 actress Shannen Doherty who made an appearance in the video for “Real Love” when I was in high school. I’ve been covering the band for three decades now, and I never tire of watching them live.
This makes it hard for me to believe that there are still new fans emerging and old fans who have never seen them before. So, for those who aren’t familiar with the band, the line-up features Mark Slaughter on lead vocals, Dana Strum on bass guitar, Jeff Blando on guitar and previously mentioned dummer Jordan Cannata. And, I’m here to tell you that these guys show no signs of slowing down their pick-throwing, hair-flipping, anthem-delivering set from the sentimental ballad of “Fly to the Angels” (which seems to hit harder as more losses haunt us) to the anthem of our youth “Up All Night, Sleep All Day” (which I definitely took to heart after my drive back from Toledo on Saturday)!
For those ‘in the know’, there was a sentimental vibe that continued with Great White hitting the stage with their new frontman Brett Carisle who takes the lead after several others tried to fill the void left when original frontman Jack Russell parted ways with the band decades ago.
Following performances on the Monsters of Rock Cruise and at last year’s M3 Rock Festvial, I had whispered to Brett that his voice was the closest fit to Jack’s distinct delivery, and I wished him much success with the band. We’ve been rooting for this kid since we caught his band All or Nothing (AON) live and we are so happy to see that he found his home fronting one of our favorite bands!
We take comfort in watching the young frontman vibe with the core band knowing that the music will continue on as we grieve from the news that the original voice of the band, Jack Russell has retired from his solo band due to a recent diagnosis of lewy body dementia and multiple system atrophy closing the door for good on any hopes of any reunion opportunities.
The Grammy-nominated hard rock band who caught our attention with a cover of Ian Hunter’s “Once Bitten, Twice Shy,” continues to hit the road heaving this year with Mark Kendall on lead guitar, Michael Lardie on guitar and keyboards, Scott Snyder on bass, and Audie Desbrow on drums. We plan to catch them again along with Vixen and Slaughter at the Mountain Music Festival which kicks off on August 23.
As the evening cooled off and the stage lights grew brighter under a nearly full moon, frontman Stephen Pearcy (Ratt), took the stage with one of the strongest solo band line-ups we’ve seen him perform with to date.
As previously mentioned, Blas Elias (Slaughter, Trans-Siberian Orchestra, Raiding the Rock Vault) is touring with the band as Scot Coogan is now out with Ace Frehley (who coincidentally joined the other bands from this line-up in Michigan the following evening while Stephen Pearcy joined Quiet Riot at the MGM Northfield near Cleveland, Ohio). Bass duties are now being handled by Matt Thorne of Rough Cutt and Johnny Monco (formerly of Enuff Z Nuff) and Erik Ferentinos are on guitar duties.
Johnny Monaco continues to perform as a solo artist with his latest release She Said She Found Her Soulmate now available on iTunes and Spotify. While Stephen Pearcy focused on the classic Ratt that started it all in 1984. Yes, as hard as it is to believe, that was 40 years ago!
Given the restrictions of their set-length on the five-band line-up, the band wasn’t able to perform the Ratt band’s debut of Out of the Cellar as they’d done back in May at the M3 Rock Festival, but they still pulled out some rarities like “The Morning After” in honor of the anniversary as well as must-hear favorites like “Round and Round” and “Back for More.” The band continues to add dates to their schedule and can be found on the Monsters of Rock Cruise next March.
Follow us @ThePureRockShop on Facebook and Instagram for more local shows like Halestorm at Stage AE and festival coverage including the Mountain Music Festival next month in Gaitlinburg, TN. Also, be sure to hit our archives for more from captures and interviews from the 80’s Invasion line-up.
Coverage by Editor and founder Kara Marie Uhrlen posted on 7/21/2024. All event photos © Kara Uhrlen and The Pure Rock Shop.
