CONCERT REVIEW: STAIND
All photos taken by Kirstyn Kristiansen at the House Of Blues, Myrtle Beach, SC
Staind was always rather unfairly grouped into the nu-metal trend. They didn't rap or jump around like idiots, and their members didn't really fit into the nu-metal quota of "dude with dreads, dude with long goatee, bassist that plays with his instrument hung down to his feet". In fact, during that time I remember thinking that years later they would be the only band in the trend to cross over into classic rock radio. In other words, their music is timeless, while lets face it, bands like Limp Bizkit seem more than a tad silly in retrospect.
For some reason I had never crossed paths with the band over the years and hadn’t seen them perform live, so photographer Kirstyn Kristiansen, Thalia (who had won the recent WWE Raw tickets) and myself checked them out on the final night of their 2006 tour. Honestly, the only songs I had ever heard from Staind was their biggest hits, most of which were ballads, so I wasn’t sure what to expect from this show. I immediately had my expectations thrown for a loop though when I saw that the band had brought in extra speakers, more than I had ever seen at this venue. Poor Kirstyn had to climb over speakers to get her pictures, but she’s a hell of a trooper, so it was cool.
Just as I thought, the band took the stage and tore the roof off the building. Who knew that Staind is a metal band? I sure didn’t, but they rocked pretty hard right out of the gate. Guitarist Mike Mushok knew though, as he banged his head like a madman the entire show. When a band is fronted by a singer as captivating as Aaron Lewis, the other musicians have a tendency to get lost on the stage, but Mushok wasn’t about to let that happen. In fact, he was one of the most entertaining guitarists to watch that I’ve seen in a long time.
Bassist Johnny April and drummer Jon Wysocki held their own as well. This band was tight as hell, and played their songs to perfection despite the frenetic performance. I had seen reviews that said that Staind were a sloppy, even boring live act, but I can tell you that those people couldn’t be more wrong. I’ve said it before, but it bears repeating. Most concert reviews are written from the parking lot, or backstage, by people who usually don’t even like the band that they are writing about. They write their assumptions instead of actually watching the concert. We watched from the front row, with never-ending waves of crowd surfers going over our heads. This was not boring at all.
Speaking of which, a great moment came when after an emotional ballad, where I personally dealt with 18 crowd surfers, Lewis made a statement that crowd surfing may be fun for the few doing it, but it was rude to those who weren’t and asked for it to cease. It did not. Personally, I don’t mind crowd surfing, but during a ballad it’s just disrespectful to the artist. In fact, an artist is exactly what he is. Lewis doesn’t so much sing as pour his heart out. In an age of bands writing about subjects they know nothing about, you could feel the pain, the loss, with every sentence that he uttered. In fact, on the few rare occasions when he briefly went into a death metal type growl, it felt meaningful, unlike the hordes of singers who spend the entire set screaming about nothing. He is quite an effective communicator of his emotions and I could tell that his words were resonating inside the hearts of people in the crowd who had been through similar situations.
Remember how I said that I wasn’t very familiar with Staind’s music? Scratch that, as I ended up recognizing just about every song in the set. They were no one hit wonders, and as they went through their set, which focused on all the hits from their greatest hits package The Singles: 1996-2006 I developed an appreciation for just how good of a career these guys have had. “Mudshuvel“, “It’s Been Awhile“, “So Far Away“, “For You“…not a bad song in the set. The highlight of the night was the song that introduced many of us to the band, their spectacular hit “Outside”. This is one of the most heart-wrenching songs of the past few decades, and Lewis delivered it with every bit of the pain that he must have felt when he wrote it. Amazing.
I’ve never been the world’s biggest Staind fan, so I was really surprised by how much I liked this show. It just goes to show you that a good band, with good songs played with emotion, can connect with just about anyone. If you get the chance on their next tour, ignore whatever negative presumptions you may have about nu-metal and give this band a shot. They are a class act all around. I'd like to thank our friends at Atlantic Records, as well as Staind and their management team for treating us so well.
Of course, thanks to Kirstyn Kristiansen as well! For you Staind fans I've included some more pics for you to check out. If you are in the Myrtle Beach, SC area and would like for Kirstyn to photograph your event, band, modeling portfolio, or other occassion, please email your request to anarchy@anarchymusic.net.
