Alice in Chains & Velvet Revolver

My entire body aches. I think that's what you get when you jump up and down, wave your arms in the air, and scream at the top of your lungs for an hour straight (plus sporadically for the next two hours). I don't understand how people stand still at rock concerts. If I didn't move during Alice in Chains' set I think my whole body would explode.

Velvet Revolver is kind of a joke next to Alice in Chains. A big silly cliche of a Big Rock Band. It's a travesty that Alice in opening for them, but that's about money, I get it. And VR has their good songs and their classic covers. They put on a good show even if it's ridiculous. They're corporate and money-driven and they're trying way too hard to prove they're "real," but underneath the bullshit there's still plenty of talent.

It's also stupid that Alice is playing for an hour while VR is playing for two. Split it, say, an hour and a half each. Seriously, VR barely has enough songs to fill their two hours, and they're playing three Stone Temple Pilots songs, three Guns N Roses songs, and a Pink Floyd cover. Plus they (well, Weiland, at least) owes Alice in Chains for being, y'know, infinitely better than he could ever dream of being. And having been around longer. Argh.

Anyway, it's probably fine that AIC is only playing an hour set. I'd probably pass out from hysterical excitement if they played any longer. And they manage to pack a lot in to an hour; they played:

( AIC Set List )

"Angry Chair" was my favorite--they rocked it so hard, and it's pretty much my favorite song *ever*. "Man in the Box" was so amazing that I couldn't stop jumping up and down for the entire thing. "Down in a Hole" was so beautiful that I almost started crying. Every one of these songs is awesome.

The new singer, you know, he fills his part well. He's charismatic and all that. Layne's words are living through him, and I'm glad of that. But I have to say, he doesn't even come close to approaching that transcendent quality that Layne had. Layne's voice was so beautiful and powerful it was like he could embody heaven one moment and hell the next. It's not like anyone on the planet could capture that, but someone has to sing, and this new guy is probably as good as it gets.

(Can you tell my feelings are mixed about this? I'm not mad at William for being in the band--I even respect his skill. I'm just fucking PISSED at nature/the universe/whatever that Layne is gone. Go read the letters section at AliceinChains.com--it's one "Thank you Layne for saving my life" after the other. I know how cheesy that sounds and how it doesn't make any logical sense that hearing someone you don't even know sing about his pain could save your life or make you see the beauty in the world, but it's true and no logical analysis can ever account for it.)

Seeing Jerry, Sean, and Mike was amazing as always. I am a huge fan of Sean just from seeing his personality through interviews and videos (not to mention him being an amazing drummer). And Jerry, of course, is Jerry Cantrell. He's one of the greatest guitarists of all time and seeing him in person completely blows my mind. He was an idol growing up and it's like seeing a childhood dream made real. Jerry is the solid backbone of the band which is why I understand that they are continuing.

( details of the individual shows )

And I'm doing the whole thing again tomorrow (Camden) and Saturday (Atlantic City). With me luck with all these crazy busses and trains!

[Cross-posted to my InsaneJournal]