2002 Tour Review

Since 1999, Poison has toured successfully to big venues. And since 1999 Poison has played the same music over and over again. That's not to say that Poison music is old or lacking, but Poison has some new music. So where is it? It is obvious to any one who is a fan that Poison keeps sounding better year after year. In 1999, it was safe to say that Poison only sounded decent. In 2000, the sound was better. Last year the sound and quality of play was superb. So it stands to reason that the sound and quality this year would be GOD Like. And it was, but where is the new music we heard on Hollyweird. During the entire set Poison played, two of the songs were from Hollyweird. What makes Areosmith great in concert is their ability to play their new music from their recent albums, not just the classics. That's what keeps the concerts fresh and keeps me coming back year after year. But with Poison, you get a fun trip down memory lane...over and over and over and over! How many times can you hear the classics. Yes, it is true that some of the songs are real classics, and I am a big Poison fan, but I attended the concert with the intent of hearing some of the new songs live. And as most of us know, that did not happen. All in all, the concert was one of the best I attended in a long time. The first band to open was Faster Pussycat who gave a great performance. Most of my favorite Pussycat classics were played with power and the show was definitely fun to watch despite Taime Downe's gothic look. Winger played next although I have never been a big fan of that band. For all the flack they took over the years, they certainly played with power, although the constant screeching of Kip Wingers voice made my ears bleed. Shortly after Winger, came one of my favorite bands of all time, Cinderella. Cinderella, lead by lead singer Tom Keifer, was sporting the Steven Tyler look and the rest of the band looked fresh, even Eric Brittingham who chopped his hair off. Cinderella played for about 1 hour and 45 minutes and, in my opinion, was the best of show. Again though, I found the lack of new material really disturbing. But regardless, the band played with more power than the space shuttle engines. They are well worth the price of the tickets and should be headlining their own tour. But as the sun set, the magic was about to begin. Poison took the stage and rocked the rest of the night away. On a side note, this is the largest crowd I have seen at a Poison concert at Nissan Pavilion ever. As Poison took the stage everyone rocked the rafters and gave their all to the band. Again, however, the set consisted of classic Poison and was lacking any of the new material as I had mentioned above. I will say, in defense of Poison, that the set was very powerful and loud. Have you ever noticed that the decibel level of the music seemed to rise some 13 points when Poison takes the stage? That noise really feeds the audience and makes everyone crazy. As the concert rolled on, everybody got their groove on. A great time was had by all. To finish this review, though, the band played well, but I stress again, the lack of new music. What you get is a trip down memory lane. So, if you want to go hearing new music, save your money. If you want to go for a flash back, then this concert is worth absolutely every penny. My review, 3 stars out of 5, decent concert.