First off I'm just going to say that SymphonyX are absolutely incredible! This is the second time I've seen them and this show blew away the previous (which was at the Agora in Cleveland back in March). Here's a quick recap...
I arrived at about 9:30 and got to the door. They didn't take credit cards so I had to run into the Station Square Mall to find an ATM. I got my cash and as I was heading back across the street Mike Romeo, Mike Lepond, and Jason Rullo step out of the tour bus right in front of me. Being that I have a severe cold and have almost no voice I just said "Symphony X" and gave them a thumbs up. Mike Romeo smiled and I went into the club as it was freakin' cold outside.
Once inside I saw Devin Townsend playing. He must have only been 2 or 3 songs into his set as he played for a while. I have to say, I'm not a Devin fan as I don't know his music, but the guy isn't that bad. He's got a great voice, even though he screams alot, and his band is pretty solid. His songs were a bit slow for the most part but the last song he did, I think it's called "Bad Devil" or something like that, was pretty cool. If more of his stuff had that sort of feel or tempo I think his reception would have been better. Anyway, the crowd was pretty receptive although Devin himself said at one point "Not too animated out there tonight, I see?". Then he made his mistake and expressed his frustration to the crowd over the mic. He steps up and says "This sucks major ass" in a sort of under his breath way. Someone in the crowd yelled out "Fuck You", although I don't think Devin heard him. Then his own crew guys started throwing paper airplanes at the band which they thought was funny but was kind of insulting, I thought. Anyway, the guy gave it his all and got a decent reception from the crowd when he was done. He seemed like a decent guy as I was close to him talking to some of the fans after their set. The only thing I can say is that he should keep his frustration to himself. Maybe he thinks he's a big star who deserves more attention, I don't know. Also, his band needs to be a little more lively. They all just stood there looking down at their instruments and barely moved. And Devin needs to cut back on the long, overly chorused guitar solos. Nobody wants to see that except from a real virtuoso, which he is not, although he is very good. If they would do this I think their crowd response would have been better.
OK, enough about DTB. SyphonyX take the stage to a nice ovation from the crowd while the Star Wars "Imperial March" (or whatever it's called) played over the PA! They kick in with the traditional "Inferno" and work there was through the set list posted many times here. They were awesome! The only thing I can say was that I was surprised at how little energy there was from the people right up at the front of the room. There were some people that were getting into it, but most of them were kind of just standing around watching. I was about 5 or 6 rows back and having a blast jamming and head banging with the band! I couldn't scream so it was a little weird for me, but I got the fists pumping none the less. Russell was on top of his game. He was absolutely incredible for a show this late in the tour. He hit just about every note perfectly and then had the humble attitude when I shook his hand at the end of the night to say "I've been better" in reply to me saying "Russ, you were awesome man!" MJR was as you'd expect, awesome! The rest of the guys were fantastic as well, and I loved the fact that you could actually hear Mike Pinnella in the mix. Even the bass was audible in most songs, although it could have been a little louder. The drums were mixed pretty well but the snare punch seemed to be missing in some of the accents in certain songs. Overall it was a good sound mix. It could definitely been better, but it was leaps and bounds better than the Agora back in March.
Anyway, they pulled off "The Odyssey" without a hitch. It was awesome to see them do that without orchestrated samples. They did everything live, with much help from Mr. Pinnella. And just so everyone here knows that MJR is human, I did notice he missed a note in the acoustic vocal intro part, although it was minor and didn't make any difference. I just figured I'd throw in that little fun fact on my favorite guitarist!
Overall, it was an incredible show! They are just as good live as any band I've ever seen which is a real compliment when you add in the technicality of their music. With a little tweaking of the sound they would have been close to the best show I've ever seen! I almost turned around and went home half way there because I couldn't breathe with this cold I have, but now I'm glad I went. It would have been a shame to miss them perform "The Odyssey" as they will probably not ever do it again.
Hey, does anyone know anything about the crew? The drum tech looks an awful lot like Jason Rullo, only with short blond hair. Is that his brother?
Also, who from this forum was there last night? I was the guy with the dark T shirt and leather jacket, about 250 with the short black hair and a goatee standing a little in front of the sound board. I was behind an older guy wearing a white and black/grey striped shirt and a black baseball hat that said "Pyramid" on the back. I thought that might have been Pharoah (intentionally misspelled) from this forum, although I don't think he's from this area (?).
I arrived at about 9:30 and got to the door. They didn't take credit cards so I had to run into the Station Square Mall to find an ATM. I got my cash and as I was heading back across the street Mike Romeo, Mike Lepond, and Jason Rullo step out of the tour bus right in front of me. Being that I have a severe cold and have almost no voice I just said "Symphony X" and gave them a thumbs up. Mike Romeo smiled and I went into the club as it was freakin' cold outside.
Once inside I saw Devin Townsend playing. He must have only been 2 or 3 songs into his set as he played for a while. I have to say, I'm not a Devin fan as I don't know his music, but the guy isn't that bad. He's got a great voice, even though he screams alot, and his band is pretty solid. His songs were a bit slow for the most part but the last song he did, I think it's called "Bad Devil" or something like that, was pretty cool. If more of his stuff had that sort of feel or tempo I think his reception would have been better. Anyway, the crowd was pretty receptive although Devin himself said at one point "Not too animated out there tonight, I see?". Then he made his mistake and expressed his frustration to the crowd over the mic. He steps up and says "This sucks major ass" in a sort of under his breath way. Someone in the crowd yelled out "Fuck You", although I don't think Devin heard him. Then his own crew guys started throwing paper airplanes at the band which they thought was funny but was kind of insulting, I thought. Anyway, the guy gave it his all and got a decent reception from the crowd when he was done. He seemed like a decent guy as I was close to him talking to some of the fans after their set. The only thing I can say is that he should keep his frustration to himself. Maybe he thinks he's a big star who deserves more attention, I don't know. Also, his band needs to be a little more lively. They all just stood there looking down at their instruments and barely moved. And Devin needs to cut back on the long, overly chorused guitar solos. Nobody wants to see that except from a real virtuoso, which he is not, although he is very good. If they would do this I think their crowd response would have been better.
OK, enough about DTB. SyphonyX take the stage to a nice ovation from the crowd while the Star Wars "Imperial March" (or whatever it's called) played over the PA! They kick in with the traditional "Inferno" and work there was through the set list posted many times here. They were awesome! The only thing I can say was that I was surprised at how little energy there was from the people right up at the front of the room. There were some people that were getting into it, but most of them were kind of just standing around watching. I was about 5 or 6 rows back and having a blast jamming and head banging with the band! I couldn't scream so it was a little weird for me, but I got the fists pumping none the less. Russell was on top of his game. He was absolutely incredible for a show this late in the tour. He hit just about every note perfectly and then had the humble attitude when I shook his hand at the end of the night to say "I've been better" in reply to me saying "Russ, you were awesome man!" MJR was as you'd expect, awesome! The rest of the guys were fantastic as well, and I loved the fact that you could actually hear Mike Pinnella in the mix. Even the bass was audible in most songs, although it could have been a little louder. The drums were mixed pretty well but the snare punch seemed to be missing in some of the accents in certain songs. Overall it was a good sound mix. It could definitely been better, but it was leaps and bounds better than the Agora back in March.
Anyway, they pulled off "The Odyssey" without a hitch. It was awesome to see them do that without orchestrated samples. They did everything live, with much help from Mr. Pinnella. And just so everyone here knows that MJR is human, I did notice he missed a note in the acoustic vocal intro part, although it was minor and didn't make any difference. I just figured I'd throw in that little fun fact on my favorite guitarist!
Overall, it was an incredible show! They are just as good live as any band I've ever seen which is a real compliment when you add in the technicality of their music. With a little tweaking of the sound they would have been close to the best show I've ever seen! I almost turned around and went home half way there because I couldn't breathe with this cold I have, but now I'm glad I went. It would have been a shame to miss them perform "The Odyssey" as they will probably not ever do it again.
Hey, does anyone know anything about the crew? The drum tech looks an awful lot like Jason Rullo, only with short blond hair. Is that his brother?
Also, who from this forum was there last night? I was the guy with the dark T shirt and leather jacket, about 250 with the short black hair and a goatee standing a little in front of the sound board. I was behind an older guy wearing a white and black/grey striped shirt and a black baseball hat that said "Pyramid" on the back. I thought that might have been Pharoah (intentionally misspelled) from this forum, although I don't think he's from this area (?).
