Written by Eric Sperrazza, Photographed by Matt Knox and Missy Broiles
In 2011, I began a personal journey in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu that has continued to this day. Coming into the world of Combat Sports at the beginning of the new decade, I heard a song repeatedly at Amateur MMA promotions & Pro Grappling Cards. It was “Warrior Song” by the Danish Rock band Volbeat. It made sense! The gang chorus is in the back, yelling, “Fight! Fight! Fight!” while the song spins a tall tale of an actual fighter, Danish boxing champion Mikkel Kessler. Through 2011 and well into 2012, I went deep into the band. What I had come to find are more common denominators in good old-fashioned American Rockabilly and considerably less in Nordic metal. Volbeat is one part Godsmack, one part Nu Metal and one part Johnny Cash, making their sound uniquely their own.
Throughout their career, Volbeat toured extensively, building a dedicated fanbase through their energetic live performances. This summer, Volbeat planned to stop at Ocean Casino Resort’s Ovation Hall in Atlantic City with none other than Pennsylvania’s Halestorm. And to the surprise of literally no one, the place was packed on the night of the show!
Ovation Hall doesn’t feel or look different from the neighboring Hard Rock Casino’s Etess Arena. While physically nothing stood out of note, the sound was the best attribute of the evening and especially for those who were performing. Bands like Halestorm and Volbeat have such a microscope on the lead vocals. Lzzy Hale’s sound & strength of her singing and Michael Poulsen’s specific staccato and tone could all get easily lost in the sauce of a live show’s overall presentation. But Ovation Hall was such that, no matter where you stood or how close you got to the stage, both singers could be heard like you were listening to a high-definition studio set. That is reason enough to go back to Ovation Hall in the future.
First, Halestorm exploded onto the stage, tearing right into “I Miss the Misery.” Lzzy carried all the stage presence of a Metal Goddess, adorned with the regalia of leather & grit, both outrageously beautiful and frighteningly tough-as-nails. The band went on to perform an amalgam of their first single, “I Get Off,” and Heart‘s “Crazy on You.” Hearing Halestorm play Heart with such ferociousness was like hearing Heart play “Crazy on You” for the first time, all over again, dumbfounded by the force and sultriness of it all. They went on to offer the fans skewering hits like “Wicked Ways,” “Freak Like Me,” and “I Like It Heavy.” The band wrapped up with their newest chart-topping cut, “The Steeple.” The fans were visibly disappointed that the energy was coming to an end. As the road crew began breaking down the gear on stage, people were literally looking around at each other with what can only be described as a look saying, “Well, what are we going to do, NOW?!”
If there is ever a rock & roll Call to Action for a band, it is the way the opener left the crowd. If the band left the audience rabid for more, the next band has to step up and follow that momentum. Volbeat was that such band. No fanfare, elaborate entrance, or crowd introductions were necessary, so Volbeat ripped right into “The Devil’s Bleeding Crown.” Poulsen proceeded to put on a clinic in hard rock. It was fist-pumping, horns-waiving, high-energy fun, but hard rock and roll. If their idols are an array of mid-century rockabilly artists and metal pioneers of the 80s & 90s, then they stuck the landing, especially for a band hailing from Copenhagen.
Ripping through a venerable greatest hits set with “Lola Montez,” “Die to Live,” and “Shotgun Blues,” the band offered up A Johnny Cash cover of “Ring of Fire” as the opener for “Sad Man’s Tongue” and even some of their newer singles like “Temple of Ekur” and, my favorite, “For Evigt” (Which is ‘Forever’ in Danish.).
The crowd understood the assignment during “A Warrior’s Call” and yelled along with the chorus until the song seamlessly transitioned into “I Only Want to Be With You.”
The night wrapped up with everyone counting all the assholes in the room, along with Volbeat’s “Still Counting.”
My initial thoughts upon leaving the show were that of satisfaction. Volbeat performed exactly how I thought they would and how I hoped they would after years of being a fan. You can’t say that about every show, but the expectation of talent after almost 13 years of imagining their shows was ultimately met. Any fan of Hard Rock owes it to themselves to give this band a listen and check out their live show.
I remember seeing Halestorm at the Electric Factory in Philadelphia in 2008. They had opened for Shinedown, and afterward, I met Lzzy at the vendor booth. I told her they blew me away, and I bought their CD, which may have been burned copy. Regarding the band’s performance, Lzzy and the band met, surpassed, and destroyed any expectations I could have ever had. Epic. Long live the Queen.
(Halestorm has been on the pages of Origivation and the front cover in their earlier years playing in Philly.)
Volbeat
Website 丨Facebook丨Instagram丨Twitter丨YouTube丨Spotify丨 Apple Music
Halestorm
Website 丨Facebook丨Instagram丨Twitter丨YouTube丨Spotify丨 Apple Music
