That’s right kids! It is the one year anniversary of FromPitToLawn.com! Thanks to all our readers and friends! Today we are gonna look back at the year with some top 3 action.

Zyner’s Picks

Best Show – The Crue is a band full of energy, loved the non stop hits! They left me wanting more.  I’ve been waiting years to see Prodigy and it was so worth the wait.  Every song they did was just great.  The Weenie Roast is a show that I always look forward to being at.  Good chance to see a lot of new band and old bands doing their hits.
1. Motley Crue
2. The Prodigy
3. Weenie Roast

Best New Band – TCV, what can I say went to see them twice in a week and both times left in aw by John Paul Jones.  Love the way the singer from Cage the Elephant is full of crazy energy!  SSPU just love their LA sound.
1. Them Crooked Vultures
2. Cage the Elephant
3. Silversun Pickups

Best Crowd – Offspring’s crowd in OC just rocked.  Everyone was on their feet.  Prodigy just had everyone jumping to their beats.  Got a good workout at that show.  The Outside Lands festival crowd in SF was just so carefree and friendly. Loved the vibe there.
1. Offspring
2. The Prodigy
3. Outside Lands Festival

Best Pit – The Crue pit was great!  Everyone just there to have a good time.  For those of you that have been to the HOB on Sunset you know how big the floor is well  Bad Religion turned that into an entire pit.  Slipknot pits are always crazy and some how I always make my way out.  (Although I’m not complaining about Shawn Crahan stepping on me as he left the stage.)
1. Motley Crue
2. Bad Religion
3. Slipknot

Best New Singer
1. William DuVall (Alice In Chains)
2. Ryan McCombs (Drowning Pool)
3. Rome Ramirez (Sublime)

Craziest Thing Seen At a Show – Omg, all I have to say is that the Wall of Death is scary.  I don’t know how Q doesn’t get hurt.  Ewwww…this drunk guy pissed in the pit that was DISGUSTING!  The media dog in the pit was just so cute.
1. Wall of Death – Killswitch Engage
2. Guy pissing in the pit – Mayhem Festival
3. Media dog in the pit – Smokeout

Best Comeback Show – I think Prodigy coming to LA was the highlight of all my concerts.  We all waited about 10 yrs. for their return.  Glad I got to see STP but I think Scott Weiland was not acting himself.  The Zombies now that was a blast from the past.  Never thought I would see them.
1. The Prodigy
2. Stone Temple Pilots
3. The Zombies

Best Encore – Well lets just say that these are bands that I wish had never left the stage.  I like what Josh Homme of TCV said, “We don’t do encores we just give it to you all now!”
1. Motley Crue
2. Sevendust
3. Them Crooked Vultures

Q’s Picks

Best Show – Prodigy hands down. VNV had everyone into it and the place was packed, especially on a Monday night. The lineup of the No Fear tour: Devildriver, Children of Bodom, Lamb of God. Nuff said. So much energy in all three of these shows.
1. The Prodigy
2. VNV Nation (@ The Glasshouse)
3. No Fear Energy Tour

Best Crowd – It might sound like a broken record with VNV but it’s all true. Lacuna Coil, I was amazed at how loud it was at the HOB and Sevendust’s following is just as great. These are the shows where it felt like everybody in attendance sang every song with the bands.
1. Lacuna Coil
2. Sevendust
3. VNV Nation (@ The Glasshouse)

Best Pit – Did somebody say “Zero Bullshit?” KsE was my first wall of death. Devildriver was just the biggest pit I had ever seen.
1. Slipknot
2. Killswitch Engage
3. Devildriver

Best New Singer – Arnel just rocks! And I’m not just saying that because he’s from my country. He owns his spot in Journey without showing any signs of, what EVH once referred DLR of having, LSD (Lead Singer Disease). McCombs was out to make sure we all remembered and respected Williams. Travis Neal was all about making sure we had a great time.
1. Arnel Pineda (Journey)
2. Ryan McCombs (Drowning Pool)
3. Travis Neal (Divine Heresy)

Craziest Thing Seen – It wouldn’t be Cruefest if somebody wasn’t on fire, and that somebody was me. The Puppy’s stage was unsane, from the holographic lights, to the broken tv screens, to the blood. And to the guy pissing in the pit at Mayhem, nobody wants to see your small weenie.
1. Cruefest 2 – pants on FIRE
2. Skinny Puppy’s stage
3. Mayhem Fest – guy pissing in the pit

Best Comeback Show – Sure it was only for 2 songs, but seeing Burton and Dino play together for the first time since they split was just… here comes that word again, AMAZING. Both Prodigy and AC/DC were just epic.
1. Fear Factory
2. The Prodigy
3. AC/DC

Best Thing Taken Home – I’m starting to have a whole drum stick collection! Unfortunately catching the stick from Bodom meant no wall of death when Lamb of God played after.
1. stick from Psyclon Nine
2. stick from Children of Bodom
3. pick from Sevendust

Best Encore – VNV = 3 encores! Depeche Mode always gets the crowd more pumped during their encore, mostly cause they play all the old songs. And KISS promised the best encore ever, they delivered. Honorable mention, Skinny Puppy played their set without any breaks or speeches. Nothing but music. Then when they came back for the last song Ogre looked completely gassed. But he still managed to give us an awesome performance of Worlock!
1. VNV Nation (@ the Glasshouse)
2. Depeche Mode
3. KISS

Them Crooked Vultures @ Jimmy Kimmel Live 4/12/2010

I have been to a lot of Jimmy Kimmel outdoor concerts and it has been a long time since I’ve seen the line go around the block.  Everyone waited in anticipation and excitement to see Them Crooked Vultures.  But really, how could you not be excited to see Dave Grohl (Nirvana, Foo Fighters) on drums, John Paul Jones (Led Zeppelin) providing bass guitar, and Josh Homme (Queens of the Stone Age).
I, like a lot of people were thrilled to have the chance to see a legend, John Paul Jones.  What can I say he was amazing!

Josh Homme provided lead vocals.  Although Homme may be the least famous he seems to be doing a great job as the frontman of TCV.

Dave Grohl is an incredible musician.  I never got a chance to see him play drums with Nirvana but as my friend Jose said, “He’s a beast!”  He beat the shit out of his drums. Dave Grohl also provided back-up vocals.

TVC performed Gunman, Mind Eraser, No Chaser, Dead End and New Fang.

Should you ever have a chance to see TCV I highly suggest you do.  I know I will see them again!!!

Zyner

VNV Nation @ The Glasshouse 4/12/2010

Sometimes you’ll go to a show and just wish it would never end. Last night was one of those shows. This was probably my 5th time seeing VNV (losing count). Zyner thinks they’ve replaced Static-X as my “band I will always see when they come to town.” Yeah just about. Static-X is on hiatus anyway…

The band opened with Tomorrow Never Comes, off the new album Of Faith, Power, and Glory, a hard, fast track to get the crowd pumped early. Speaking of the crowd, despite the size of The Glasshouse, this was one of the best audiences I’ve been a part of to see not only VNV, but any band. We were singing along with every track and not one person wasn’t dancing. As Ronan said on stage, the audience is half of the show. He was amazed at how many people came out, especially on a Monday night in the Inland Empire.

Then they went into a couple old tracks like Joy, Darkangel, and Further before going into another new track Sentinal (yes it’s spelled that way on the cd). The place really got moving when they played Chrome and of course Illusion meant lighters out. I can’t remember the order of the rest of the tracks, but I do know they did three encores! The first featured Ronan on the keyboard playing the touching track From My Hands while one of the other keyboard players had his camera aimed at the crowd. The second they did classic tracks Standing and Legion, which Ronan said if you didn’t know these songs then you REALLY needed to catch up. Finally they ended the night with the uber industrial anthem Beloved and the soccer anthem Perpetual.

If you haven’t seen VNV Nation, they really are a must see band. Their interaction with the audience is unlike any other bands I’ve seen. If you’ve ever went to a show where the singer just talks and talks and you wish he would just play the next damn song *cough* Rob Zombie, then VNV is the exact opposite.  They really make you feel like you are a part of the show.

:Q:

Black & Gray Affair @ Gallery 1927 4/8/2010

Since I unfortunately had to leave early, I’ll let Zyner’s pics do the talking… Also check out the review by Eric Ellis of Hot Bike magazine! Hit it C.C.!

(I was just holding it for JJ)

:Q:

(PS – Dear Ingrid, aka Zombiegrrrl, yes you did in fact walk right by…)