Sevendust w/Drowning Pool @ House of Blues Sunset 3/10/10

Drowning Pool is a band that I had never seen live and that I’ve loved since the release of their 2001 album Sinner.

I have to say that DP are fighters.  After the tragic death of frontman Dave Williams in 2002 and after Jason Jones left the band they bounced back with a new vocalist Ryan McCombs, former frontman of Soil.  He sounds amazing.

I got to enjoy 37 Stitches, Feel Like I Do and Tear Away which McCombs dedicated to Williams, finishing with Bodies their smash hit off their first album.

Georgia’s SEVENDUST performed next. The House of Blues-Sunset is the perfect place to unleash their metal onslaught.  This was the first time I’ve seen this band so I was really excited to see them.

The bond between the band and the audience was evident as lead singer Lajon Witherspoon was very friendly with the crowd all night.  He was constantly interacting with the crowd, especially those upfront.  The band connected with the crowd more than most bands I’ve seen.  Or perhaps it was because I made it to the front of the pit due to my height.  Sorry Q for leaving you behind but had to take advantage of the situation.

Whether it was John Connolly or Vince Hornsby singling out someone from the crowd to give them a pick or Morgan Rose personally picking out someone in the crowd to throw a drum stick, it was clear Sevendust was there to please the crowd.

They played a series of songs from the launch of their career to some of the more recent, plus a couple of amazing covers – Masters of Puppets and Walk.

The highlight for me came when Lajon introduced Angel’s Son, a tribute to Lynn Straight, the singer of the band Snot, who died in a car crash.

They performed some fan favorites like Driven, Black, Face to Face and Unraveling.  The raw energy of the show was sick!!! I highly recommend Sevendust live.  You can’t call yourself a true hard rock/metal fan until you’ve seen them rip the stage up!!

*Thanks to my friend Q I got a pick.  Not before he got his hand stepped on by a girl.

[Don’t worry, I made the bitch cry. – Q]

Zyner