Photos and article by Glenn Woodell

If you came out expecting very little light on the stage, and much of it red, and lots of F-bombs, then you came to the right show. It seems that hard rock and metal these days dictate that the stages shall be dimly lit in red, making it ever so difficult for the photographers, even with the latest gear, to get many decent shots. At least in the beginning, this was no different.

Or, if you came out expecting to see three really awesome bands, each fronted by a powerful woman, then you came to the right show.

Although New Year’s Day played in near red-darkness for the entirety of their show, they made up for it in the sound department. It’s a shame because they all looked so good on the stage, I think. Visually, this could have been a really exciting show on top of their great sound. But I guess they made up for it in the F-bomb department, if that’s what you came for.

You can usually tell who in the crowd came for what band from the clothing worn, and it’s almost always the headliner of course. For this show it was a split between those who came for Halestorm and those who worshiped In This Moment, with those for the latter dressing up beyond the basic T-shirt.

When In This Moment took the stage, the lights finally came on, along with the fog. If you’ve never seen one of their shows, it’s a combination of music and peri-spiritual/demonic choreography and lyrical, heavy chanting. There is no shortage of costume changes for Maria Brink and her “Blood Girls”, the latter of which keep the crowd entertained between the scene changes.

The sister-brother act, Halestorm, headlined the evening in front of an eager crowd. The photographers’ pit was larger than most but still provided the intimacy for the duet featuring guitarist Joe Hottinger as they sat at the front of the stage, bathed in spotlights, and surrounded by darkness.

For the guitar players out there, it was obvious that Schecter Guitars was a common theme throughout this show as both guitarists with New Year’s Day, and both guitarists and the bassist of In This Moment were on their products. While Fender and Gibson usually prevail, and both were found in the hands of Halestorm’s players, the Schecter line stood out prominently this night.

As a side note to the bands out there, if you want more and better photos, make sure you ask for a little more frontal lighting. We’re all trying really hard to make you, and us, look good.

New Year’s Day

In This Moment

Halestorm