REVIEW: Sevenfold shows up Disturbed at Uproar

by Nikki M. Mascali
Weekender Editor

SCRANTON — Disturbed made a grave mistake Friday night at the Toyota Pavilion at Montage Mountain: It followed co-headliner Avenged Sevenfold to close out the Scranton stop of the Rockstar Energy Drink Uproar Festival.

It’s not to say Disturbed didn’t put on a good show or that the estimated crowd of 13,500 didn’t eat up every “ah” lead singer Dave Draiman added to the end of nearly every lyric — Avenged Sevenfold was just a tough act to follow.

Before Avenged Sevenfold took the stage, a man appeared up in the rafters and, as the crowd watched, he jumped and “hanged” himself. As he dangled back and forth, the band kicked into an explosive version of “Nightmare,” the title track from its latest CD. For the next hour, the band was absolutely riveting with its incredible set that consisted of a cemetery-like fence before a backdrop that changed three times, tons of fire bursts and in-your-face music.

The hanged man was taken away on a gurney as the violent “Critical Acclaim” kicked in. The backdrop changed to a sinister skeleton for “Welcome To The Family,” which featured amazing drum work by Mike Portnoy of Dream Theater, who stepped in after original drummer James Sullivan died of an overdose last year.

The melodic side of singer M. Shadows’ voice shined on “Buried Alive,” which preceded “So Far Away,” a song Shadows dedicated to Sullivan. Another set highlight was the anthemic “Afterlife” and the fast-paced “God Hates Us,” another “Nightmare” track. The band closed out its set with an electrifying rendition of “Almost Easy.”

From the stage theatrics to the metal licks and pounding drums, one can’t help but compare Avenged Sevenfold to metal masters Iron Maiden. The band pulverized the audience — and whipped them into a frenzy for Disturbed to close out the night.

Following a creepy video from a mental hospital, Disturbed began its set with the searing “Remnants” and “Asylum,” the two lead tracks from its latest CD “Asylum,” which was released this Tuesday. The latter song featured cool video of opening and closing doors.

A set low point came during Disturbed’s hit cover of Genesis’ “Land Of Confusion.” The band picked the pace of the show back up with a great version of “Inside The Fire,” during which fire on the lower screens of the set were enhanced by real bursts of fire above it. “Ten Thousand Fists” was also a set highlight, especially as nearly every fist in the crowd was raised in unison.

Draiman was almost militant in the way he stalked the stage in his black jumpsuit during “Indestructible,” which was fitting because he dedicated the songs to U.S. troops overseas. Amid a chant of “U.S.A.,” the set proper ended. Disturbed returned to deliver its smash “Down with the Sickness.” The crowd’s energy was frenzied, and the song was definitely the band’s best of the night and a great way to end a day of music that began long before the two headliners hit the stage.

Pennsylvania natives Halestorm kicked off Uproar’s main-stage festivities with a bang with great songs like “What Were You Expecting,” “Dirty Work” and a cool drum solo by Arejay Hale that featured the other members of the band banging on metal garbage cans. Led by the Pat Benatar-esque Lzzy Hale, Arejay’s sister, Halestorm ended its too-short set with the fantastic “I Get Off.”

Stone Sour followed with a decent 40-minute set that featured “Say You’ll Haunt Me,” “Come What(ever) May,” and a powerful version of “30/30-150.” While good, compared to the other main-stage performers, Stone Sour was almost pedestrian.

Candlelight Red, New Medicine, Hail The Villain, Airbourne and Hellyeah got Uproar started on the Jagermeister Stage, which Hellyeah headlined. The heavy metal supergroup made up of Mudvayne, Nothingface, Damageplan and Pantera members gave fans an aggressive set of standouts like the angry “Cowboy Way,” the hard and chug-y “Stampede” and a badass version of “Alcohaulin’ Ass.”

“Today is always going to be about music,” lead singer Chad Gray said during the latter, which was the band’s final song.

Judging by the fans’ connection with every band on the Uproar bill and they way they sang along with their fists high in the air, no truer statement could be said.

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