From The Vault - KID ROCK Part 2 of 2

Click on any of the pictures to see more photos of Kid Rock in 2000 on the Summer Sanitarium Tour (27).

My only other experience with Kid Rock (see From The Vault Part 1 from Lawrence, Kansas in 1999 here) was as part of Metallica's Summer Sanitarium tour on July 15, 2000 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (Kid Rock just played St. Paul this past Friday). I had a wonderful friend at Warner Bros. at this time, and I asked with less than a week before this event if it would be possible to get a photo pass. She told me that everything had to be approved personally by Metallica's management and hardly anyone was being given access at this show, but she'd see what she could do. Lo and behold, the day before the show I got the call that management had approved my request! My friend at Warner once let me know that she was a high school friend of Incubus singer Brandon Boyd and she remembered my interview with him in the very first issue of my magazine. She told me this was some of the first national press that Incubus had so she'd help me with anything I wanted. Never did I imagine this would eventually allow me to photograph Metallica (thank you I will never forget this!)!!

Alongside Metallica, this tour featured Korn, Kid Rock, Powerman 5000, and System Of A Down. I missed System as all 8-10 photographers allowed were shown backstage and given access to a blocked off section of the stadium where we could sit, and we were given instructions about where we were permitted. Basically, this isolated section of the stadium was for us when we weren't in front of the stage. The photo pass we were given is the biggest one I've ever seen - this thing is the size of three typical passes! Another funny story was the photographer who was banned from leaving our seating during Korn. As she told it, Korn was mad that she published some old photos from their early days and their management had her banned from any Korn show!

So on to Kid Rock - by this time Devil Without A Cause had exploded and he was a superstar. His band had undergone some changes and the stage production was bigger since I saw him the year before, but the intensity of his show remained. The late Ron Jeremy introduced Kid Rock, and Joe C (also late) came out to rap for a few songs. I can't tell you what he played, but I'll assume that only material from Devil Without A Cause was performed. Kid Rock is one of the few major artists I can think of who has been able to successfully transition between musical genres. This undoubtedly has enabled his long-term success, but hopefully these pictures will take you back to a time when he was briefly accepted by metal fans.

From The Vault - KID ROCK Part 1 of 2

If anyone is hated in metal more than Fred Durst, Kid Rock would be near the top of the list. Sure, he put out a couple rap-rock records, but not much qualifies him as metal. There was a time, however, when the metal community embraced him (over 11 million copies of Devil Without A Cause were sold in the U.S. alone).

Click on any of the pictures to see more photos of Kid Rock in 1999 (11).

I'll throw a couple Kid Rock posts out here anyways since he just played the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul with Bob Seger this past Friday (March 15). First up are some pictures of Kid Rock playing a club date at the Granada Theater in Lawrence, Kansas on April 16, 1999 - right before Devil Without A Cause took on a life of its own. To be honest, I went to this not knowing who Kid Rock was. I was there for opener Staind, whose major label debut Dysfunction had just come out a couple days prior. I had been given an advance, unfinished mix copy of Dysfunction in late 1998 and was really enjoying it so their label was eager to have me see them.

Not knowing anything about Kid Rock I was stunned that this 500–600 seat venue was sold out. Everyone was going crazy for him and you could tell that something big was about to happen. I've never been a fan, but I'll give him credit for putting on a very lively, entertaining show. As you can tell, I didn't have a decent camera at this time - yeah, these pictures aren't the best but I did with them what I could.

In Concert This Week - March 14, 2013

Tonight, Thursday, March 14 is a night a local metal at Station 4 in St. Paul with Prophets Of Aether, Solar Slaughter, Odin, Compassion Dies, Pademic, and Monster Of Creation.

One of the oddest billings I’ve seen in a while is Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band with Kid Rock at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul on Friday, March 15. Both artists are on their own headlining tours, and this is only one of two dates (the other being in Fargo on Saturday, March 16) where they are on the same bill as co-headliners. According to Ticketmaster the St. Paul show is nearly sold out. Local hard rock band Throw The Fight is having a 16+ release party for their new EP The Vault that same night at Station 4 in St. Paul with 3 Pill Morning, Aeous, and Forever Waiting.

South Carolina’s ancient-worshipping death metal masters Nile will play a two-set 16+ show with Face Of Oblivion, Daigoro, and Beauty Of Decay at Station 4 in St. Paul on Saturday, March 16. That same night, hard rock bands Buckcherry and New Medicine play a 21+ show at the Medina Entertainment Center in Medina. Buckcherry is currently out as direct support to Kid Rock, but this stopgap headlining show is taking place while Kid Rock plays two headlining shows with Bob Seger.

Rap/punk rock weed lovers Kottonmouth Kings bring their entertaining show to Mill City Nights in Minneapolis for a 16+ show on Sunday, March 17 with Killa Capone, Bobby James, and Lazy J.

Detroit hardcore band Tides Of War returns to town on Wednesday, March 20 for an all ages show with support from Athen’s Grace, Encryptor, A Moment In Time, and In Search Of Solace.

In Concert This Week - July 12, 2012

This week is a little quiet on the concert front, but the rest of the month is booked solid with shows of all kind.

There’s two rock shows tonight, Thursday, July 12. At Famous Dave’s Blues Club in Uptown Minneapolis you can catch guitar legend Edgar Winter (most would recognize the instrumental “Frankenstein”) with Blatant Youth starting at 7 pm. In the Dinkytown area of Minneapolis, Hoobastank is playing at the Varsity Theater.

Tomorrow is Friday the 13th, and what better way to spend it than with the area’s own Impaler at the 7th Street Entry in Minneapolis. Opening the show are Revengeance, Rivkit, and Mördwölf. Also on Friday, The Casualties, Nekromantix, Down By Law, Lower Class Brats, Flatfoot 56, and The Sheds play in St. Paul at Station 4.

Local industrial metal band Screaming Mechanical Brain has just wrapped a string of tour dates and return home to Station 4 in St. Paul on Saturday, July 14 with Brothers Loyalty, If I Ran The Zoo, Molly’s Worst Enemy, Our Judgment, We Follow One, and Pierre.

Kid Rock gears up for a headline show at Rock Fest next week with a sold-out show at Mystic Lake Casino Amphitheater in Prior Lake on Sunday, July 15. Also on Sunday, you can catch punk band The Dopamines with Lipstick Homicide, The Slow Death, and The Manix at the Triple Rock Social Club in Minneapolis, while Oh, Sleeper, A Plea For Purging, The Great Commission, Rest For The Weary, and Royal Ace play Station 4 in St. Paul.

Lastly, metal band God Forbid returns to play Station 4 in St. Paul on Wednesday, July 18 with support from Battlecross, Devilsex, Climactic, Reaping Asmodeia, Deretia, and Purified.