Ugly kid Joe’s Rad Wings of Destiny Tour with Fozzy and Pistols at Dawn recently hit Oklahoma City for an awesome Saturday night show at the historic Diamond Ballroom. Ugly Kid Joe is honestly one of those bands I never thought I was going to be able to see live. So when I found out that after 27 years they would be touring again, I knew that I was going to be at that show. They are touring in support of their newest album Rad Wings of Destiny.
Pistols at Dawn is a relatively new band compared to Ugly Kid Joe and Fozzy. I was able to catch them a couple months ago when they were touring with Alter Bridge. To say this band is a breath of fresh air is an understatement. From the minute the band starts to take the stage with a squealing guitar intro, they will have you hooked. The band recently released their full-length album “Ascension”, and I highly recommend you get it!! The Pistols at Dawn band members are all smiles when they are on the stage and performing for the fans. You can just tell by their performance that they love what they are doing. This is a band that will remain on my radar, and I will be anxiously awaiting their next show near me. Head to www.pistolsatdawnband.com to see what these guys are all about.
Fozzy was next to take to the stage. I don’t know how Chris Jericho manages to give an energy packed performance on stage each night, as well as still handling his “other” job” duties as an A.E.W. wrestler, but he damn sure pulls it all off. Fozzy gave their fans a high-energy, in your face set that will not be forgotten. Guitarist, Billy Grey, is a ball of energy that takes over every inch of that stage to make sure the crowd is thoroughly entertained. And of course, what else can be said about Rich “The Duke” Ward. This man is a legend himself who completely mesmerizes fans with his riffs. It was great to see Trixter bass player, PJ Farley on stage with Fozzy. Talk about whisking me straight back to my highschool days.
Fozzy played a cover of Frankie Goes to Hollywood’s “Relax”, and it was amazing. I was happy they had my personal favorite Fozzy song, “Spider In My Mouth”, in their set list. During the song “Enemy”, guitarists Billy Grey and Rich Ward gave us a mind blowing dueling guitar solo that blew the roof off the place. The band rounded out their set with their hit “Judas”. Fun fact about the song Judas…this song was co-written by one of my favorite vocalists, Justin Cordle, formerly of the band We As Human. Check out Fozzy’s website at www.fozzyrock.com to see what the band is up to.
The time of the evening has come for Ugly Kid Joe to take the stage. I almost had to pinch myself to make sure this was real. UKJ managed to treat their fans to at least one song from each of their studio albums. They started out their set with “That Ain’t Livin'” from their newest album Rad Wings of Destiny. A couple of my favorites, which are from America’s Least Wanted, “Neighbor” and “Goddamn Devil” were of course mixed into the set list. When the band played their cover of “Cat’s In The Cradle”, vocalist, Whitfield Crane sat on a monitor at the edge of the stage and spoke to some of the children who were on the front row. He asked their parents to put them on their shoulders so they could be celebrated, and told us “this is good parenting”. One little girl told Crane that she was 6 years old and this was her first concert.
When Ugly Kid Joe played their songs “Busy Bee” and “Milkman’s Son”, damn near every phone in the place went in the air to record those songs. UKJ even threw in a cover of Motorhead’s “Ace of Spades”, which was immediately followed by their biggest hit, “Everything About You”. This was one of those shows that was so much more than I had even expected it to be. Head to the bands website at www.uglykidjoe.net to keep up with their tour dates, and go ahead and buy some merch while you’re there.
