During the state of the pandemic with no bands actively touring, many of them have taken to the internet to perform for the fans. Livestreams have become the new norm and the production quality has been up to par as the actual live shows. On October 23rd, metal band Sevendust, took to the internet to perform their only show of 2020. The performance perfectly coincided with the release of their 13th studio album, Blood & Stone (Rise Records). You can read my review of the album HERE. Sevendust is one of the best live performers out there today with their energy, interaction with the crowd, and their songs, which are just perfectly crafted for a live audience. So, I was excited to see this performance. And to sum it up in two words; HELL YES! Lajon Witherspoon (vocals), Clint Lowery (guitar), John Connolly (guitar), Vince Hornsby (bass), and Morgan Rose (drums) made this show memorable for the Sevendust Family.
The livestream pre-show had the album Blood & Stone playing while the fans waited. The chat sidebar literally was maxed to capacity and the chat was all buzzing with excitement. Right after 9 PM ET, the production started off with a very old video of Lajon talking how they feel their music has matured over their first 3 albums and how their fans aren’t fans, they’re family. The band logo appeared and video clips of live performances were displayed while going through the band’s discography and showing the album covers, title, and years. Seeing these album covers one by one made me feel nostalgic and truly appreciate why I’ve followed this band for their 26 years together. And then it was showtime!
Before anything else, I will give absolute kudos to the production of this show. Introducing each song with the title and the album it came from was awesome to see. The studio they used was beautiful, the lighting was absolutely perfect matching what you’d see at one of their shows, and they did an excellent job with the camera angles. I’ve heard people complain about some livestream where they switch camera angles every 2 seconds and getting dizzy in the process. That wasn’t the case here as they focused on the main things at the right moments. And on top of that, throw in fog machines at appropriate times, huge spark fountains from the drumstage, and the screen displaying various images and the Sevendust logo during the show made it a top notch production.
Sevendust started us off with the opening track from Blood & Stone titled “Dying To Live”. As I said in the album review, all of the songs from this album were perfect for live shows and last night proved it. With great vocals, heavy riffs and drums, it makes a fantastic lead off song for their shows. They also played two other songs from the new album. “Blood From A Stone” is one of my favorite tracks from the new album and delivered perfectly. And of course, Sevendust had to pay tribute to Soundgarden playing their cover of “The Day I Tried To Live” which was so awesome to hear live.
The band’s catalog of music is so vast there are so many choices of songs they could have selected. They went deep in to the archives playing some of the Sevendust Family’s favorite tunes from both Sevendust and Home. “Denial” as always is a fun song to see live and “Black” from their self-titled was delivered with that hard-hitting sound (and smoke for effect). But, when they performed “Bitch” right towards the end of the show, the energy and vibe was so strong I could feel it without even being there with them! Morgan was an absolute beast on the drums during the song and the band was, as the fans said multiple times during the chat, “Tight!”. And of course how could you not love hearing “Waffle” being played with those recognizable riffs.
Sevendust’s selections outside of those legacy albums were also just right for this show. “Splinter” has those rapid guitar chords right up front, the drumbeat to match, and those guttural vocals that Lajon and Clint share, whips out that heavy sound we know and love. This is a song that should always be part of their live show. “Pieces”, “Till Death”, and “Thank You” all kept the heavy metal vibe through the show. But it was the three songs from Animosity that had some of the most impact during the show. “Angel’s Son” pulled on the heartstrings hard and I swore even Lajon was tearing up as he sang it. “Shine” to me has that quintessential Sevendust sound while “Praise” brought in Morgan’s screaming from the drums.
The band was having fun all night and joking around in between songs. Vince was all over the studio has he played, smiling and looking like he enjoyed every minute. Clint and John were ripping out the sounds as only they could and providing intense backup vocals. Morgan was his normal self looking at home behind the drums, flipping his head around, having his dreadlocks flying everywhere. And Lajon was singing as he always does, gesturing to the viewers and telling them to get up and sing along.
And when it was time to wrap up, how does Sevendust finish the show? By Morgan screaming into the mic, “You can’t stop fucking my head! Stop fucking with my head!” as the band jumped into “Face To Face” from Seasons. As soon as I heard the lyrics I nearly jumped out of my seat and started moshing in the living room. It is one of those songs that just pushes the energy and gets a crowd moving. And Lajon was strutting in between lyrics. Morgan laid down that mid-song rap so good and when he screamed “….fuck me for the last time!” brought chills. I felt even more amped up when he screamed out “Fuck you!” right before they wrapped up the song. Just amazing!
Sevendust thanked the crowd for watching and being part of their family for all these years. The full setlist with song and album is below:
- Dying To Live – Blood & Stone
- Denial – Home
- Splinter – Cold Day Memory
- Waffle – Home
- Pieces – Next
- Till Death – Black Out The Sun
- Blood From A Stone – Blood & Stone
- Black – Sevendust
- Angel’s Son – Animosity
- Thank You – Kill The Flaw
- Shine – Animosity
- The Day I Tried To Live – Blood & Stone
- Praise – Animosity
- Bitch – Sevendust
- Face To Face – Seasons
Overall phenomenal show from Sevendust last night. You can order the show on-demand over at http://sevendust.nocapshows.com/. Don’t forget to pick up their new album Blood & Stone (Rise Records) over at their website https://sevendust.com/. And a wonderful surprise was the announcement of Morgan Rose’s debut EP titled Controlled Chaos coming in November 2020!
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