It was probably something like eight to ten years ago that I had the need to cross over to Finland for a Halestorm gig. For one thing or another it was not to be at that particular time, and with all that’s been happening since, the idea of such a gig kind of fell off the radar for me. Well, somewhat unexpectedly the band themselves decided to pay a visit instead.
Living in a small, peripheral European country makes one very aware of how a majority of tours don’t touch this neighbourhood. I habitually refer to this location as the ass-end of nowhere in this context. It’s not all bad, of course, and things are slowly getting better. Nevertheless, I may be slightly mean here–surely an understatement on my part for what I’m going for–when I say that everything drifts over here, eventually. Broadly speaking, usually the main question by that time is whether a band in question that is 10, 15, or even 20 years past their prime and personal relevance are still the real deal or, you know, the actual proverbial floater.
In a way it was this misalignment with personal relevance in time that I was subconsciously dreading from this Halestorm gig. Not that the band have peaked but that my interest in them has. As things stood, however, I was glad not to be disappointed. In front of the massive wall of the 28!–yes, I counted, twice–identical stacked Marshall speakers an utterly free, informal, and down-to-earth evening-with type of concert took place. Which is not to say that it was lacking in professionalism or decorum. It was all running smooth with a share of joy and good spirits that come when everything expectedly falls into place. From what could be glimpsed even the tour manager and the stage hands looked jovial.
As is sometimes customary with these longer evening-with shows it was divided into two sets. It was a good call from the band to stack the acoustic material in the front and then rock the house towards the end of the first set and in the second half of the show. Back when I reviewed their Into The Wild Life album I found it utterly frustrating that they managed to totally break the flow by sandwiching rockers between two ballads. I’m glad they’ve turned to a live format that works wonders and gives both sides of their repertoire a fair exposition. Or, in other words, man, I loved to hear Lzzy charmingly sing the ballads and then go no-restraints and flat-out together with the band.
What I found interesting was the interaction with the crowd. I mean, every band is different and some prefer to leave the audience engagement to the music. Which is excellent when it really does work seamlessly. Short of stepping into the crowd, Halestorm went to great lengths to bridge the gap between the stage and the audience by trying to establish the feeling of familiarity, trust, and emotional connection. Here their own on-stage banter and the years collaborating together go a long way to set the scene. Despite them paying us a visit, it’s evident that the stage is their home and it’s them who welcome the audience with open arms and a warm embrace.
I’m not sure it mattered much to me which exact songs they picked to perform. It’s always been more of a state of mind and a feeling of the moment with them. It’s about immediacy–the here and the now. As long as they manage not to trip the flow mid-stride, pretty much anything goes and, as I mentioned earlier, on that they delivered. Of course there are always more memorable moments–like Arejay wanting to do a tambourine solo but only getting promised a future slot; here I can suggest attaching the tambourine to his drum kit so that he can have a 2-in-1 drumbourine show-off instead and…
Uh, where was I? Right, what I think is memorable about this gig is not so much individual (your favourite) stand-out songs but the well-rounded cohesive whole of a performance instead. Halestorm as a band have not peaked yet but they are also far from being the upstarts that need to justify their very existence. They know they are good, and the audience know that the band will be good. In this no-pressure environment of mutual understanding, fun and good times can be had by all involved. Which, incidentally, is exactly how it went. Good times.
Set 1:
1. Bad Girl’s World
2. Do Not Disturb
3. White Dress
4. I Remember You (Skid Row Cover)
5. Heart Of Novocaine
6. I Am The Fire
7. Gold Dust Woman (Fleetwood Mac Cover)
8. Dear Daughter
End of acoustic part:
9. Darkness Always Wins
10. Uncomfortable
11. I Like It Heavy
Set 2:
12. Rock Show
13. WATCH OUT!
14. Freak Like Me
15. Rain Your Blood On Me
16. Familiar Taste Of Poison
17. Mz. Hyde
18. Amen
19. I Miss The Misery
20. Love Bites (So Do I)
21. (Drum Solo)
22. Fallen Star
23. Back From The Dead
24. I Get Off
Encore:
25. Here’s To Us
26. Everest
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Written on 21.06.2025 by
I shoot people. Sometimes, I also write about it. And one day I’m going to start a band. We’re going to be playing pun-rock. |