Alter Bridge is pretty much one of the tightest acts to catch live today. They can be just as easily be considered as one of the few great bands that came out of the early 2000s Hard/Alternative rock scene. Their fan following has pretty much increased since I last saw them in Rock Am Ring back in 2011. Their new tour, ’The Last Hero Tour’, is going on right now, and they’ve already played big festivals like the aforementioned Rock Am Ring, and Hellfest.
They played at the Haus Auensee in Leipzig, which is a very nice venue – pretty secluded and in one corner of the city. The stage, sound, and acoustics were very impressive. The opening band was Red Sun Rising, who I had never heard of, but they sounded tight. I think they were the perfect choice as the opening band for Alter Bridge at this show.
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As Alter Bridge came on stage after, the excitement level was quite high. The band started their set with the classic “Come to Life” which I very much consider the perfect opening track. As this was a tour in support of their album ’The Last Hero’, one could expect much more songs from the new album. There were songs like “The Writing on the Wall” from the new album, as well as tracks such as “Farther Than the Sun” and “Addicted to Pain” from more recent albums such as ‘Fortress’.
The chanting of the crowd grew much louder and stronger as they beckoned them to play the old stuff, and Myles and the crew made sure they didn’t let them down. They shifted to their old songs, especially from the first three albums. “Open Your Eyes”, “Metalingus”, “Ties That Bind”, “Rise Today”, and “Watch Over You” were played, and the crowd loved it. I observed one thing for sure – that the band played with so much flow and ease. Myles Kennedy can really handle the crowd, talking to them in such a subtle but funny way and keeping them entertained. The highlight of the show for me was when they played “Blackbird”. Before playing that song, they played a small intro of “Blackbird” by The Beatles! The solo played by Mark Tremonti on the song was just perfect.
Drummer Scott Phillips was spot on. The intro of “Metalingus”, through which he began, was flawless. The sudden ways of picking up a song is what I really liked about Alter Bridge. Bassist Brain Marshall was really enjoying the complete set and after each song, the intensity of the crowd grew much higher. I hadn’t listened to their new album, but after listening to the songs live, I instantly became a fan. But yes, the slight change in their sound was also quite prominent.
Songs like “Waters Rising”, “Island of Fools”, “My Champion” were melodic and well-structured. Also, the song “Lover” was played as part of the encore. “Cry of the Achilles” and “Ghost of Days Gone By” sounded just the way they were in the record. In total, Alter Bridge played 18 songs, and the crowd couldn’t stop screaming for more.
All in all, it was a wonderful evening with Alter Bridge in Leipzig, with the band sounding much grander than the last time I saw them.