Freaks On Parade Tour
Blossom Music Center
Cuyahoga Falls, OH.
Aug. 3, 2022
by Andrew Latshaw
Wednesday night, I was privileged to see the Freaks on Parade Tour 2022 at Blossom Music Center in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. Powerman 5000 kicked off the show and they did not pull any punches! Their set was their greatest hits, and I believe the third song was “When Worlds Collide,” easily their biggest hit and most well-known song in their library. I do not know how Spyder does not age! I have seen this man several times over their career, the man is ageless!
Next up was Static-X, and while I still feel that Wayne cannot be replaced, Edsel Dope A.K.A – Xer0 is doing a wonderful job as the new vocalist to keep their legacy rolling into the current times with this tour. The energy from the crowd when they starting playing was great to experience! They started off with Bled for Days, and while I was snapping as many shots of guys as I could, it was almost impossible not to feel like a kid again! Both times I have photographed Static-X, Wayne had already passed, and Edsel or Xer0 was filling in and I cannot praise him enough for the job he is doing!
By the time that Static-X had finished their set, Blossom had filled in completely! As I made my way back to the photo pit, the
curtain was hung to hide the stage for the crew to set up for Mudvayne! I was kept to one side of the stage until the curtain was pulled after being dropped. Seeing Chad come out, and he fist bumped the crew, and the band, and I could see it in his posture and step that everyone there had his back and his appreciation! I stood there for a moment and it was just awesome to see Chad wearing the overalls, with the iconic face paint from the DIG video! Next thing I knew, Chad had his mic in his hands and let out a guttural roar that shook the rafters of the amphitheater as he started their set with DIG! I forgot that Mudvayne added a 5th member last year, and so seeing Marcus Rafferty there positioned behind Gregg. I can say with absolution that his addition to the band was a great choice!
The night was winding down, and it was time for the headliner, the one and only legend himself: Rob Zombie! I have never seen in concert! This was something you could not have prepared me for! The sights he gave with the background, the monitors, the skull tower for his opening song: The Triumph of the Freak King, it was unlike anything I have ever seen at a show! Not only was I in absolute awe at seeing Rob Zombie, to my left was Piggy D, and to my right was John5, then pedestalled in the back on drums was Ginger Fish! It was a Fanboy’s dream come true!
As he went into Superbeast, I saw this giant Devil prop with long flowing robes, and pentagram belt buckle floating from one side of the stage to the other. I was so gob-smacked at how astonishing the devil prop was, and then seeing Rob moving as he did, gliding from platform to platform! Then he started grinding his mic stand like a veteran pole dancer! Seeing this man moving at his age so freely and with such vigor, was a sight to behold to say the least! Not only was his performance unhinged in the best and most complimentary of ways, to pull all this off wearing bell bottoms! Not many people can pull off that look, and he does it with breathtaking ease!
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