This summer is already starting to heat up in Florida with one of the first triple-threat concert tours hitting the West Palm Beach area last night. The Live and Unzoomed Tour landed at the iThink Financial Amphitheater with a line-up consisting of Loverboy, REO Speedwagon, and STYX.
80's rock staples Loverboy were the first to take the stage. Singer Mike Reno was looking very stout and sporting his trademark bandana. Loverboy still consists of mostly original band members with the exception of dearly departed bass player Scott Smith. Ken Sinnaeve was brought into the band fold as a replacement in 2001.
Loverboy has always been a great live act to see. Their hard-driving rock anthems pump up the crowd and rock the hell out of the venues they play. The band satisfied the audience with a short eight-song set and concluded with the hits "Turn Me Loose" and "Working For The Weekend".
After a brief set change, it was REO Speedwagon's turn to take the stage. Singer Kevin Cronin and his musical comrades wowed the crowd with rocking hits like "Keep Pushin' " and "Ridin' The Storm Out", but shined when performing the arena power ballads that really thrust REO Speedwagon into the spotlight. "Can't Fight This Feeling" and "Keep On Loving You" were the crowd pleasers judging by the audience's reaction to the songs. The pandemic rest the band received seems to have done wonders to Cronin's vocals. The rest has him sounding really great these days as his pre-pandemic vocals were beginning to wain.
STYX... What can I say? There is a valid reason as to why STYX are the headliners. They are the best.
With thousands of concertgoers in attendance, Tommy Shaw and his band mates exploded onto the stage to a standing ovation and ripped into the song "The Fight Of Our Lives", which seemed fitting for the last two years of the pandemic we have gone through. The band's elaborate stage set matched their auditory treat and both worked well together.
Tommy Shaw still sounds the same as it did twenty years ago. STYX brought out all the hits for this jacked-up crowd. "Too Much Time On My Hands", "Lady", "The Grand Illusion", "Blue Collar Man", and "Come Sail Away" were some of the classic gems heard at last night's concert. The band ended with encores featuring "Mr. Roboto" and "Renegade".
In all, this is a great tour package for those looking to time travel back to the '70s and '80s. All of the bands were musically and vocally satisfying. The elaborate stage set-up was the icing on the cake.