On Sat. July 16th, Rob Zombie and CO. decided to stop by Bonner Springs, KS and headline a show at Sandstone Amphitheater.
After a long set up and waiting in the extreme heat, the lights dim and the eyes of the giant robot in the middle of the stage start to glow as well as it’s teeth. The band begins to play music and then the entire front torso of the robot opens up and Rob Zombie himself pops out. With a 3 foot arm extension that was sorta like those robot arms you could play with in the 90′s, Rob looked fucking cool. The stage was a sight to behold, video screens in the back and mini screens on the front of the risers. Skeleton mic stands and things everywhere to look at and enjoy.
They opened up with “Jesus Frankenstein” and that song is really kick ass live. The band sounded great and you could hear Rob loud and clear. Tons of low rumbling bass rolled on through the set as well. Rob Zombie’s setlist was good up until “Sick Bubblegum”, that song as well as “Mars Needs Women” and “Never Gonna Stop” are incredibly boring live. They ended their show with White Zombie’s “Thunderkiss ’65″. After that John 5 played a guitar solo but the crowd was more focused on Rob Zombie walking around through the crowd. I saw him up close and personal at this time. I dunno what he was doing, but then he returned on stage to finish off the night with 3 more songs.
Performance wise, they played well. Nothing went wrong and they had a good time playing. The sound was loud, clear and done very very well. No complaints here, it sounded as if we were listening to the real albums. The only problem that my fiance actually caught was he fumbled up on some lyrics.
Stage Presence was phenomenal. Tons of video, chicks came out on stage and wouldn’t leave (the bouncers came out and grabbed them up), awesome monsters and robots came out to entertain as well as terrorize. There was nothing tame about the lighting and pyro as well. The bands costumes and face paint also added to the entire set as a whole. They really know how to put you in the right state of mind for this show.
The crowd was as exciting as watching a slug crawl across the wet pavement. Hardly anything was sung back, no horns or fists in the air (unless Zombie requested it), hardly any pits or movement and worst of all, I saw hardly any head banging. Seriously, the only time the crowd interacted with the band is when Zombie literally had to ask for it. That’s pathetic. I am not a big Zombie fan but if all of these people are hardcore Zombie fans, then I feel sorry for the band. If I was the band I would have had more fun throwing freshly cooked spaghetti at a wall and watching it peel off and fall.
Setlist was great for the first 7 songs. Classic Zombie: Sex, drugs and rock and roll all the way. Playing only a few bad songs and a couple of White Zombie songs, the set was full of energy and the band themselves had a great time on stage.
I had a mild amount of fun. Like I said, I’m not the biggest Zombie fan. The crowd was dull however the band themselves were really good. I feel like if the crowd would have been better, I would have enjoyed myself a little more as well. Crowds really do matter, it creates a more entertaining atmosphere. John 5′s guitar solo was really good even though I’m sure no one was paying attention to it at all. This band had everything from strippers to giant robots, pyro to bubbles. Rob Zombie came and rocked the place and besides a few lyric problems, the band played flawlessly.
Scoring (out of 5)
Performance – 5
Stage Presence – 5
Crowd – 1
Setlist – 3.5
Fun – 3
Overall – 3.5
Overall I had a decent time and heard some great songs being played flawlessly as well as being visually stimulated. I would recommend seeing Rob Zombie atleast once if they happen to come through your town. It is a fun time.
Setlist:
Jesus Frankenstein
Superbeast
Scum of the Earth
Living Dead Girl
More Human Than Human (White Zombie cover)
Pussy Liqour
Demonoid Phenomenon
Sick Bubble-Gum
Mars Needs Women
Never Gonna Stop
Thunderkiss ’65
(encore)
Dragula
House of 1000 Corpses
Lords of Salem
