Stars And Stripes in Da Clem (Day 2)
Day 2
After all the late night partying at all the after parties Friday night, it’s no wonder Dr2 arrived at the 2nd day of the Stars & Stripes fest a bit later than we’re accustomed to, but still in time for the National Stage opening band Radiocraft. Quite honestly, there was no way that we here at Dr2 were going to miss the opportunity to catch one of Detroit’s hottest bands playing on the “Big Stage”. Again, that looming question about the big stage eating up our favorite local bands was forthright & center today as we moved through the sparse crowd to get our “front row” seats. Would Radiocraft, who’s a definite, must see on the club scene around town, step up their game and deliver an arena size show, or would they wallow amongst the towers that lined either side of the stage, losing their sound in the mix? Well folks, in case you missed it (and by our accounts most of you did), we’re here to tell you that Radiocraft not only stepped up to the plate, they delivered a smashing home run over top of John Barleycorn’s! Suzie Ferro (vox) & company tore through their set with such ferro-city that only solidifies our belief that their music needs to be heard on a much larger scale than it is today. You could drop their offerings inside any rock stations play list without missing a beat and I bet they’d field calls all day long asking “who was that!” Apparently some others have begun to take notice of Radiocraft outside of Detroit, where they’re scheduled to take the Toledo Speedway Jam by storm this Saturday, playing the “Big Stage” again and finding themselves opening up for Seether, Finger Eleven, & Sick Puppies!
Impossible Tuesday certainly is no stranger to the big stage themselves, having opened up for Eddie Money earlier this year at Pine Knob (aka DTE), but today they found themselves over at the Jaeger Rock Stage in the 4pm slot. Actually with the black Jaeger back drop and the guys wearing predominately black garb, Impossible Tuesday struck a chord as they made the stage appear to be made for them! Their fans must have felt that way too as Main St filled in quickly right up to the stage. Greg Reo (vox) has taken the lead in his group by supplying the vocals while switching off with his acoustic, generating a never ending surge of energy! Keep an eye out for these guys, and by all means get to one of their shows, you’ll be as impressed as Dr2 was!
Being in Downtown Mt Clemens on a hot sweaty Saturday afternoon is mountainous change for Dr2, so instead of fighting it we enjoyed it like it was any other day, deciding to drop in to Madison’s since they had their own little stage going with a local cover band. Great times are always had in Da Clem, whether it’s here or at Johnny G’s, you just know your going to get a cold beer and some great food! Funny thing is though that Mt Clemens seems to be as hopping on a Tuesday Night as it is on a Friday or Saturday Night, take the chance and drop into any number of their fine establishments, you won’t be disappointed!
With a night full of “reminiscing” in store Saturday night over at the National Stage, Dr2 headed on over to stake out our claim before the real estate vanished. Being old school, we were pleased when we found out that a band from our yesterdays (namely that time right out of High School that seems to pass by quicker than a July thunderstorm!), Rhythm Corps was set to play at 5:45 on the National Stage. Talk about bringing back memories, you know the ones, like when The Ritz was really The Main Act before The Ritz that we know today used to be Septembers……whoa ok brain melt down. Anyways yea, used to watch these guys way back then, 25 yrs or so ago when they had their “Semi-National” hit Commom Ground which was their final song tonight, and judging by the crowds reaction they all remembered too!
So now we get to go back even farther as The Romantics hit the stage at around 7:15. You see the year was circa 1978, and while sitting in my friend’s girlfriend’s basement, I was introduced to her sister’s boyfriend during a basement practice session, one Jimmy Marinos, who happened to be in this band that was playing around town. After a bevy of us youngsters ‘sneaking” into club shows, they finally landed that all important “opening” slot for The J.Geils band up at Pine Knob that set in place what is now Detroit Musical History. Although we’re all quite a bit older, The Romantics succeeded in bringing back memories that have faded into obscurity, playing a full set of their hits from decades past, including the mega hit What I Like About You that I still remember from those hot summer nights in that Harper Woods basement.
There was just too much going on in Da’ Clem for one night and one group to take in so part of the DR@ crew wandered away from the Everclear show, drawn by a crowd gathering in front of the Country Music Stage. The walk was well worth it as Trent Tomlinson took the stage and, despite some technical problems (the P.A. went out), began to rock the crowd. TT was a true pro taking the sound setback in stride and playing with just his backline amp for the first couple of songs. The P.A. issues were fixed and Trent showed us why his music is rocketing up the country charts. He cranked out most of the songs on his latest CD “Country Is My Rock” and even squeezed in a Johnny Cash cover and, featuring Colt Prather on lead guitar, jammed out to Hendrix’ “Voodoo Child”. We were pleasantly surprised by the energy and charisma of this rising star who’s new CD is coming out in the next month. When you consider the lineup at the country music stage for the weekend with local acts, Justine Blazer, Redhill, David Shelby, The Orbitsuns, and Jill Jack, just too name a few, it makes us here at DR2 wonder if it wouldn’t be a good idea to have a Country Music Day on the National Stage next year. Just a thought.
It was also obvious that I wasn’t the only one feeling that way as Everclear’s Art Alexakis was spotted standing stage side taking in the Romantics entire set, waiting till they finished their set, to offer a handshake and a conversation with Wally Palmer before he took the stage. Also standing in wait for the evenings headliners of Everclear & Uncle Kracker where those American Idols Justin Guarini, Gina Glocksen, & Anthony Federov who seemed totally thrilled that Dr2 recognized them leaning against the VIP fence totally unnoticed by the few thousand people standing near us! Ah, don’t you just love the obscurity of the American Idol wannabes! After a solid set from Everclear, one of Mt Clemens own hometown boys, Uncle Kracker, took the stage in the headlining slot to an estimated crowd of 15,000 rabid fans. What a great sight to see in Da Clem, a packed downtown, capacity crowd for a concert, and having one of your own conducting the show! Kracker did not disappoint, sailing through over an hour long set that encompassed all his hits, a couple new ones from his forth coming album, even inviting local country rocker JoCaine up to duet on his mega hit When The Sun Goes Down, running it right up to a 11:59:59 ending! Awesome! Dr2 hopes that the organizers continue to bring back more of this area’s music stars, both local & national, as this festival continues onward in Detroit’s sea of festivals. Now to make it to Sunday….. To be continued…….
Photos Courtesy of 2SnapsUp Photography
