People knew that they were going to get their money’s worth when it was announced that Sevendust and Gemini Syndrome were hitting the road together. Sevendust released their last studio album Black out the Sun in March of 2013 and have been burning up the roads ever since then to promote it. Gemini Syndrome was already tearing up the circuits long before their debut album Lux was released in September of 2013. With almost twenty years of touring under their belts, Sevendust may be seasoned veterans, but Gemini Syndrome was going to set the bar high on each stop of this tour.
This dynamic double bill rolled into Lynchburg, Virginia on July 25. This would be Gemini Syndrome’s first visit to the venue, although Sevendust had already visited the establishment before and managed to blow the roof off of it while leaving the rest of the building intact. The venue was packed very early into the evening, which was a great indication of how hungry people are in this area for a great rock show. As I looked out over the crowd, I could see that the synners were present all throughout the venue as the Gemini Syndrome shirts were in abundance at a rate of one of theirs to every two Sevendust shirts, which isn’t a bad ratio for the supporting act.
The house lights went dim as Brian Steele Medina appeared from the shadows. He quickly climbed up to his drum kit and sat there in a moment of prayer, which is a ritual of his that he does at the beginning of every performance. The opening chords of “Lux” began to echo throughout the packed venue and you could feel the energy from the crowd begin to grow. The remainder of the band took to the stage and they launched into “Resurrection”, quickly followed by “Falling Apart.” The crowd was fully engaged with the band by the time they launched into their powerful song “Basement”.
On this run, the band has been playing a new piece entitled “Diablo” which gives lead vocalist Aaron Nordstrom a vocal break before having to tear into the challenging bridge of their next song “Mourning Star”. Their set ended with the mighty one-two punch of “Stardust” and “Pleasure and Pain”; a combination that any fighter or rocker would love to have in their own arsenal as it proved to be a knockout. As the houselights came back up, the crowd was hot, sweaty, out of breath and feeling as if they had just had sex, but with all of their clothes on. You might laugh at that description, but I think if you’ve ever been to a great show before, you know exactly what I am talking about.
Although Sevendust’s latest release Time Travelers and Bonfires is an all acoustic album, this was a plugged in show and it was full of the passion and aggression that you have come to expect at a Sevendust show. Even after doing this for almost twenty years, the band still seems young and hungry when they take to the stage. The band took to the stage and didn’t waste any time as they ripped into “Pieces” from their 2005 album Next followed by “Face to Face”. The crowded floor began to surge forward at this point as the energy in the room was beginning to grow even stronger. If you’ve been to a Sevendust show before, then you know that energy just continues to increase because the band almost never lets up on the throttle.
Now, with that being said, the band did slow the pace down just a little with “Angel’s Son”, but the intensity was still there. The dual guitar attack of Clint Lowery and John Connolly kept the musical assault on the audience going with almost no break in-between each song. The audience barely had a chance to catch its breath before they cranked out song after song including such favorites as “Enemy” and “Decay”. Lead singer Lajon “LJ” Witherspoon divided his time between rocking out on stage and going up to the railing to mix it up with the crowd. There were plenty of sing-alongs, fist bumps, hugs and even a few kisses.
Times are tough right now for a lot of people and money is tight, so people have to weigh their choices carefully when choosing how to spend their hard earned money. It would be tough to find someone who walks away from a show on this tour who doesn’t feel as if they got their money’s worth. Two bands comprised of a total of ten guys who deliver more passion, power and intensity on-stage than quite a bit of the so-called “music” being churned out in the industry today. If you get the chance, catch one of these shows before the tour’s run is completed and you’re mad that you missed out.
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