Sunday, July 26, 2009

Nine Inch Nails & Janes Addiction 5/31/09

Nine Inch Nails & Janes Addiction

May 31st turned into an excellent late spring night to see the reunited “Janes Addiction” and “NIN” live for our first time. The Dogg & BLT arrived early to take in the sights and sounds of Pine Knob. A near sellout crowd mills around the concourses and souvenir stands eagerly awaiting the performances. The hot topic of the day is “Who is headlining”? As in the current fashion major twin bills, the two primary bands alternate headlining.

After a stroll around the venue, meeting old friends and making new ones, we retreated to the Starlight for a quick bite to eat and a couple of drinks. The VIP is packed and what a grand people watching crowd. An assortment of heavily tattooed men and women, multiple piercing, gothic, punk, and middle of the road rockers all gathered together in perfect harmony. One of the Dogg’s highlights was the skimpy attire on some really hot chicks. Makes the Michigan winter seem like a distant memory.

Onto the show we go. The question is answered, NIN comes on first to a power set of old and new classics. The crowd is on their feet from the front row, all the way to the top of the hill. Fists are pumping and heads are a bobbin. This is what metal bands are all about. The Dogg must admit that he has never been a big fan of NIN, never owned an album or CD, and really knew very little of their catalog. As usual it didn’t matter to us, we came, we saw, we rocked it out! A great set with splendid lighting, strong sound, and proper mixing. My personal highlight was when my lovely wife, BLT, nodded to a babe in front of us in the pavilion. She was nude from the waist up, with her chest airbrushed to look like a tuxedo jacket. We don’t see this everyday at the Knob. This rated a strong 7.5 on the impromptu boner scale!

At approx 9:20 Janes Addiction hits the stage in an explosion of sound and fury. The Dogg likes this very much! Dave Navarro & Perry Ferrell are in tune to each other and the interplay between the 2 is quite palatable. With spot on vocals and blistering guitar riffs the two jammed like it was Lollapalooza all over again. Throw in an excellent rhythm section, great lighting and stage effects, brilliant musicianship and a crowd thirsting for all things loud, it was a night to remember. The Dogg believes this will be the standard by which all Knob shows are judged this year. It’s early in the season, but what the hell.

Weather A-
Crowd A-
Staging A-
Lighting A
Sound A
Bands A
Atmosphere A+

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