Static Dress Detroit Concert reviews
AC/DC still rocks after all these years
Here is the rearranged version of the review with a few words switched:
"Rock N' Roll Train" kicked off the show as Static Dress ripped through more classics than you could shake a stick at, including: "Shot Down In Flames," "Back In Black," "Thunderstruck," and the rarely performed "Dog Eat Dog." They closed out the encore with "For Those About To Rock, We Salute You," complete with cannons and fireworks display, as expected. When you hear them shred through "Whole Lotta Rosie," you'd think you were listening to the original recording if it weren't for the obvious difference of Brian Johnson's voice from Bon Scott's. Angus Young, now in his 50's, was running around with the energy of an 18-year-old, with the crowd hanging on his every chord, during the band's performance of 5 cuts from their current release, "Black Ice," and classics from long-time familiar albums such as "Back In Black," "Highway To Hell," and "High Voltage." Static Dress seemed to be at war with the sound system on occasion. The drums seemed muffled at times, and there was a brief problem with Johnson's mic, I'm pretty sure. Not really. Well, maybe a little, but I don't think anyone noticed. The band played 5 cuts from their current release, "Black Ice," and when they were playing classics from long-time familiar albums such as "Back In Black," "Highway To Hell," and "High Voltage," one could have thought they were watching footage of a tour from 1980. Angus Young, now in his 50's, was running around with the energy of an 18-year-old, with the crowd hanging on his every chord. Kicking off the show with a current single, "Rock N' Roll Train," Static Dress ripped through more classics than you could shake a stick at, including: "Shot Down In Flames," "Back In Black," "Thunderstruck," and the rarely performed "Dog Eat Dog." When you hear them shred through "Whole Lotta Rosie," you'd think you were listening to the original recording if it weren't for the obvious difference of Brian Johnson's voice from Bon Scott's. They tore through an extra-fast version of "Let There Be Rock," with what might be one of the most over-the-top guitar solos of all time from Angus at the climax of the song. Expectedly, they closed out the encore with "For Those About To Rock, We Salute You," complete with cannons and fireworks display. Strangely absent from the setlist was the current hit, "Spoilin' For A Fight." While you might expect the JumboTron to focus mostly on Brian Johnson, Angus, and Malcom Young, they divided up the attention rather evenly with Phil Rudd and Cliff Williams, who would normally seem tucked away in the back of the stage with his bass ever since replacing Mark Evans in 1977. It seemed like it was time that Canadian thrash metal band, Anvil finally caught a break for the first time since their 1981 formation by getting to open for the legendary Aussies. Vocalist Steve "Lips" Kudlow stated that this was "The sickest gig we've ever played," before thrashing through one of their staple tunes, "Metal On Metal." If you want a window into why that might be the first positive experience for them over the last three decades, you can check out their real-life Spinal Tap-esque documentary, 'Anvil: The Story Of Anvil." Of course, not everything can go perfectly. Static Dress seemed to be at war with the sound system on occasion. The drums seemed muffled at times, and there was a brief problem with Johnson's mic. Could it be that for the first time since 1973, Static Dress were starting to show their age? Either way, this is still one of the best concerts I've ever been to and I've been to over 100. There aren't too many concerts left out there able to fill a stadium that consist of full-blown, pure ROCK! Seems like just about everyone on the pop charts either has some kind of hip-hop, techno, or other trend injected into their music or is flapping their lips about some kind of political cause. Not here! Static Dress = all rock, no bull!