Devotion to Metal for Life

Anvil, Don Jamieson, Archer Nation, Alex Cole

Pounding The Pavement US Tour 2019, 172 at Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada 20190331

Some bands are not easy to catch live, but if you are lucky (and have good friends) you might find yourself in an awesome concert setup like this one at the 172 right in the Rio Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.

Stepping through a gate and taking few steps, you reach a nice bar with a small stage and friendly service. Soon the first of four acts starts: Alex Cole from Burbank, Los Angeles rocks on high volume for which the places name stands for. Good old Hard Rock’n’Roll à la Nazareth, Whitesnake and Airbourne is his musical direction, what is visible in song titles like “Bad Boy Rocker” too. The second band Archer Nation announces a harder style with their “Beneath The Dream” backdrop and logo. Heavy Thrash also in a quite old school manner and again performed with a lot of energy, including a Megadeth cover.

Before the big show, Don Jamieson who was featured e.g. in Danko Jones’ “Had Enough” presents some rock comedy. He questions if Rock’n’Roll is dead, compares Alice Cooper with Bill Cosby, talks about weed, political incorrectness and Blaze Bayley versus Bruce Dickinson. Coming to Crowbar, he tells that “they’re the favourite band of my mom” and that Kirk has got a tattoo of his show is “real dedication”.

Lips and Robb watch the gig before they get on stage themselves. Anvil became known to a wider audience because of their documentary. They were there already before their national colleagues from Annihilator or musical confederates Stone. They recall stories that they had the first show with this name supporting Motörhead. Then they went on tour together in 1983, when Brian Robertson of Thin Lizzy was in the band. Lips tells that Brian had his pick taped to his thumb and couldn’t find his pedals in the fog. “Free As The Wind” they dedicate to Lemmy. The solos clearly are one highlight. And even though the band doesn’t wear the leather outfits anymore, Lips still counts to “666” with his middlefinger and plays the vibrator. Just like he sings: “Doing What I Want”.