May 1, 2015
It’s hard to believe that it’s been more than two months
since the M3 Festival. M3 2015 was another year of absolute fun had by all. Once
again I met Rob Rockitt in Maryland and we geared up for our annual M3 Festival
of rock and roll. There was a lot of food, drink, and fun to be had in the days
leading up to the show, but on May 1st it was all about the music. The
opening night lineup featured KIX as the headliners and brought Quiet Riot, Dio
Disciples, Trixter, and Dokken to the party.
Trixter
25 years since their debut album landed, Trixter still
has it going on. The band has kept busy and even released a new album on June 9th,
Human Era. It’s good to see that Trixter
is still making new music and working hard. And while their M3 performance was
short and sweet, Trixter managed to perform a new song, play a track from their
last album, Tattoos and Misery, and
pull out the obligatory classic hits. Trixter sounded terrific and the audience
sing along for “One In A Million” and “Give It To Me Good” was in full effect,
showing that Trixter still has their fare share of fans as well. It was a great
way to kick off M3 2015.
Dio Disciples
Dio Disciples are a band of rockers who have gathered
together to keep the memory and the music of Ronnie James Dio alive. Some of
rock’s greatest including Simon Wright, Vinny Appice, Tim “Ripper” Owens, and
Oni Logan are in the lineup. Having never seen Dio live (a shame I will take to
my grave), I knew this was the closest I was going to get. What I love most
about this band is the fact that it takes two
vocalists to match the late great Ronnie James Dio. Both Oni Logan and Tim
Owens take vocal duties in this band, and neither of them disappointed. Dio
Disciples was flat out excellent, performing all of the greatest Dio hits. I
was extremely grateful that I had the opportunity to witness them in concert
and do hope that they plan to take this show on an extended tour. They were sensational!
Quiet Riot
When I heard that Jizzy Pearl was singing for Quiet Riot
and that they would be performing at the M3 Festival, I was ecstatic! I love
Jizzy Pearl. I was a huge fan of Love/Hate, and have followed Jizzy’s career
through LA Guns, Ratt, solo material, and now Quiet Riot. He is definitely one
of my favorite singers of the 80s era. Having the opportunity to see him front
Quiet Riot was a delight. The band’s M3 performance was amazing showing that
Quiet Riot is still a force to be reckoned with! Classic hits from the first
two albums were performed and sounded as great today as they did in the early
80s. Jizzy Pearl fit in perfectly with the rest of the band and the end result
was stunning. If this version of Quiet Riot were to come to a club near me, I’d
have tickets in my hand immediately.
Dokken
I will be completely honest---I did not see one minute of
Dokken’s performance. I heard most of it, but I was not in my seat for it. I
have never been a huge Dokken fan. They have some songs that I like and I own a
couple of their classic albums, but I’ve never been all in with them. And
without George Lynch, they are almost not worth seeing. Don Dokken is a shell
of his former self, and the songs don’t sound the same without Lynch playing the
leads and solos. So, when Dokken came on stage, I took it as an opportunity to
get some food, drink, and hang out with Rob Rockitt and a few other guys that
he knew. And they didn’t bother to play my favorite Dokken song anyway
(“Burning Like A Flame”), so I really didn’t miss much.
Kix
What can I say about this band that hasn’t been said
thousands of times already? Every year when they give their performance at M3
it is absolutely amazing. I am always left stunned at how talented this group
is on stage. This year was no exception. And as an added bonus, Kix had some
new music to perform. Having purchased and fallen in love with their new CD, I
was extremely pleased with their decision to play new material. Five songs from
Rock Your Face Off were pulled out
live. And while my favorite of the disc, “Rolling In Honey,” was not given a
live performance, the tracks they did play were superb.
Kix has been rocking the masses for over 30 years and
still bring the talent every time they perform. The Maryland crowd loved seeing
their hometown heroes and everyone showed positive response to the new
material, even singing along to the songs. That pleased me, because I hope that
it encourages the band to consider another new album in the future. And if a
new album doesn’t happen right away, perhaps it will encourage them to continue
to include the new material in their setlist.
The night was well rounded with familiar classics too.
“Sex,” “Girl Money,” “The Itch,” “Cold Blood,” and “Blow My Fuse” were all
performed. Each one of them sounded exceptional in their own right. Steve
Whiteman still has amazing stage presence. Mixing in jokes and stories between
the songs, setting the crowd up for the appropriate sing along, and dancing
like a madman possessed on the stage, his energy is second to none. Bands with
singers half his age would find it hard to keep up with his vitality and
stamina.
When Kix closed out the night with “Yeah, Yeah, Yeah,” we
were exhausted but satisfied. A grin filled my face. Kix had once again blown
me away and already had me yearning for next year, when I can hopefully see
them again. 2016 can’t come soon enough!
Kix Setlist
Wheels In Motion
Girl Money
No Ring Around Rosie
You’re Gone
Sex
The Itch
Midnight Dynamite
Mean Miss Adventure
Don’t Close Your Eyes
Get It While It’s Hot
Cold Blood
Love Me With Your Top Down
Blow My Fuse
Encore
Can’t Stop The Show
Yeah, Yeah, Yeah
