3 Doors Down + Pop Evil + The Fallen State @ o2 Academy, 3rd November, 2016
American rock band 3 Doors Down are in the UK for their second date of their 4 day tour which tonight is in Birmingham. There is a sell out crowd ready and raring to go.
These guys formed in 1996, then rose to stardom with their massive hit Kryptonite. Their first album The Better Life being certified 6x Platinum, something great to shout about. Like many bands there have been changes In line-ups and configurations. Earlier line-ups included Daniel Adair (Nickleback) playing drums from 2002 — 2005 followed by (Puddle of Mudd)Greg Upchurch replacing Adair. The band have also started The Better Life Foundation in 2003 with a single goal – to give as many children as possible a better life, charity begins at home.
Starting off the night we have newcomers The Fallen State, having spawned in 2013 and obtaining their spot with 3 Doors Down by supporting many successful rock bands previously, including Black Stone Cherry, Halestorm and Trapt, the latter two being more popular in the US than here in England though personal favourites of mine. The five piece band open up with heavy riffs into Hope in Revival having created a variety of catchy tracks with deep attitude. They have been compared to Alter Bridge, though they maintain a fairly consistently heavy presence. The sound is infectious and they finish with Burn it to the Ground, easily the favourite of the night. You Want It, followed by Sinner, it’s pretty safe to say this was a great opening act well received by the crowd, with some good guitar riffs with lots of squeals.
Pop Evil is an American rock band,formed in 2001,by other Michigan based bands. Their debut studio album Lipstick on the Mirror didn’t hit until 2008, personally I’m not aware of of these guys, who have successfully released 4 studio albums since 2008. Onyx really kicked things off for them featuring hits such as… Footsteps and Trenches will they play these tonight?
Opening up with guitar riffs and heavy drums with immediate focus on new drummer Hayley Kramer playing Deal with the Devil. There is no doubt from the outset the fans were enjoying this early on with some good guitar riffs and as he sings “Somebody Scream” the crowd do exactly that. Moving to a slower number Behind Closed Doors asking to hear our voices and again as the crowd respond well, “get your fists in the sky” as we move into Boss’s Daughter, with a great catchy chorus. We have a good balance of style and substance, the sounds are a mixture of aggressive heavy and softer elements in Ways to get High.
Last man Standing sees the audience being asked who wants to get rowdy, heavy drums and guitar riffs are back, leading to the heavier great sounding tracks.
As we move into Trenches we see Leigh Kakaty jump down to the crowd barrier asking the crowd to get their hands up and get tighter together, then he proceeds to stand on the hands of the crowd “Make some “Fcking Noise………I caaaant hear you” something fantastic to see, hear and capture.
Leigh then returns back to stage for another slower number Torn to Pieces. Another fantastic song with one of the best chorus’s so far. Footsteps follows, easily being the best track of the night so infectious and known by many who don’t know the band feature in many commercials.
It is at this moment the heart and soul of the band shows as they bring a young girl from the crowd on stage and Leigh asks how old are you?” She Replies “12” and you’re at a rock show instead of a Justin Bieber show?” How many Pop Evil fans in the crowd now and they roar, followed by “I have good news and bad news what do you want first, “followed by I don’t give a sh*t what you want I have the microphone” Bad news is the show has officially ended, and the good news, we don’t feel ready to go home” as the proceed to play Take it All. There’s no denying I didn’t know them to start with but will guarantee I can never forget tonight or these guys and neither will the crowd – surely these should be a headliner?
3 Doors Down are currently playing their Us and The Night tour. The set opens with the drummer and a small thundering intro, an interesting backdrop of a pair of withered silhouetted trees one either side setting an intense mood. This is a strong look combined with very bright lighting. Opening up with Danko, followed by better known Not My Time as Brad Arnold struts around the stage (lead vocals). 3 Doors Down show heaps of charisma making their way through Time of My Life and Believer and everything being on key and sounding awesome. Yes this is what we came to see and as the set list progresses into Away from the Sun and Duck And Run the crowd bounce. I find 3 Doors down one of those bands that seem to be low-key, having been an avid listener for a while now this has gone exactly as I hoped it would.
Landing in London has the 3 Doors Down logo in red, centrally with a UK flag surrounding it, flanked by the withered trees, it looked so cool. The show goes on and the hits pour in and we get some slower numbers throughout tonight’s set such as Pieces of Me being as close to a tear jerker track as the crowd stand in silence. Better Life and then Kryptonite (oddly spelt on set list) which was an amazing finish, but we all know more is coming.
The encore is Here Without You showcasing Arnolds vocals and this is the highlight of the night for me, second highlight as Kryptonite was great too, following I Don’t Wanna Know from their latest album. It’s a mix of an upbeat track with a solid beat but for me away from their usual style though contains a great a guitar solo, Loser and finally When I’m Gone, quite fitting for the band now departing the stage and on their journey to Manchester for their 3rd out of 4 days. These guys still have what it takes and having Pop Evil on tour has if anything increased how enjoyable tonight’s show was, it started well with The Fallen State and just got better as the night progressed.
Set List
Danko
Not My Time
Time of My Life
Believer
The Broken
Let Me Go
Away From The Sun
Duck And Run
Landing In London
Road I’m On
Pieces of Me
Us and The Night
In the Dark
Better Life
Kryptonight (as spelt on their setlist)
Encore
Here Without You
I Don’t Wanna Know
Loser
When I’m Gone
Review and Images – Chris Bowley