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diversions
Anaheim learns
'Values' of diverse rock show
By Greg Smith
On-line Forty-Niner
IThe Family Values
Tour rolled into Anaheim Saturday night with a sold-out show
at the Arrowhead Pond. This third incarnation of Limp Bizkit
frontman Fred Durst's brainchild featured a diverse lineup
including four new editions to the tour with Deadsy, Static
X, Linkin Park and headliners Stone Temple Pilots and one
veteran, Staind.
As a whole, the concert was marked by an incredible loudness
that carried through the arena, multiple guest vocalists,
nudity and a little of what some might call "pseudo-patriotism."
With the oddest lineup yet in this third edition of the Family
Values Tour, the show was diverse enough to not get bogged
down, but a little too diverse for the younger audience.
The night opened with newcomers Deadsy, fronted by Cher and
Greg Allman's son Elijah Blue. Deadsy's lightly electronic
pop-metal was a nice start to the evening. The band had a
bright and colorful stage design with grassy looking hills
that the drums and synthesizers perched on. Blue's voice stinks
of a rough Neil Diamond, punctuated with some nice screams.
Static X took the stage next with the loudest and hardest
set of the night. Singer Wayne Static has probably the strongest,
most viciously loud voice in popular music. The band brought
an intense energy to the crowd in their short set led by bassist
Tony Campos' non-stop energy. Although the music is deafening,
it is still bland at best but Static X's energy redeems the
song's standardization.
Linkin Park is following in Limp Bizkit's footsteps as a rap-rock
hybrid that depends on less than impressive lyrics laced through
tight rhythms and grooves and intricate guitar riffing. It's
a shame that Linkin Park is just breaking onto the scene in
full force because the musical style seems to be beginning
its death throes.
Linkin Park was by far the crowd favorite, getting enormous
applause at each mention. The band played an energized set
marked by its recent singles that kept the crowd moving and
singing along. The band's vocalists, Chester Bennington and
Mike Shinoda, ran rampant around the stage, keeping the crowd
immersed in their performance. Staind frontman Aaron Lewis
made a small guest appearance towards the middle of the set,
lending backup vocals to Linkin Park's hit song "One
Step Closer."
Lewis stepped on the stage next with his band Staind. With
the most sedate performance of the night, the emotional intensity
of the music bled into the crowd. A soft break drained energy
from the crowd, but a sea of flames replaced the energy. Lewis
is a ball of unbridled emotion on the verge of breaking into
a rage, but he never quite does. This underlying intensity
gives the band strong credibility for not falling into the
standard rock performance mode.
The headliners of the tour are 1990's stars Stone Temple Pilots.
STP was the least well received band of the night, mostly
due to the fact that the majority of the crowd was still in
elementary school when the band was huge. The band wisely
stuck to hit songs from their first two albums that most people
would recognize and played only two songs from its new release
"Shangri La Dee Da."
STP used a rotating stage to set up the "STP Living Room"
set, where the band played while sitting down. Lewis helped
Weiland with the vocals to the STP hit, "Creep."
STP also brought out Linkin Park vocalist Chester Beenington
to help out on "Interstate Love Song," which excited
the crowd to no end.
STP's energy died towards the end of their set when bassist
Robert DeLeo's equipment failed, stopping and restarting a
song twice. For their encore, Weiland stripped down to his
birthday suit and wrapped an American flag around him like
a sarong. Most of the audience was unphased by the seeming
desecration and enjoyed Weiland's nude escapade.
The Family Values Tour struggled at times but as a whole it
proved to be a loud, energetic show that entertained the entire
audience fully.
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