An Unlikely Evening of Spirited Performances and Stirring Surprises Amidst Franklin’s Natural Splendor
Tuesday evening isn’t the night you would typically find yourself at a packed and energetic rock show. However, Shinedown, Papa Roach, and Spiritbox brought a fully packed punch to the beautiful First Bank Amphitheater in Franklin, TN. As Shinedown frontman Brent Smith quipped they were at the redneck Red Rocks, referring to the amphitheater as it’s surrounded by rocks built inside a quarry.
Smith, along with Papa Roach frontman Jacoby Shaddix brought the focus vocally as well as commanding the audiences attention. Combining a mix of new releases, fan favorites, covers, and a surprise guest. Joining midway through Papa Roach’s set, Daughtry made an appearance and joined Shaddix on a unique version of their hit, “Scars”. Ego Trip, the bands most recent release was heavily featured, likely giving many fans a first listen to the songs in a live setting. Closing out the set, as you would expect was the biggest singalong of the night, “Last Resort”.
Shinedown’s set brought literal heat with constant bursts of pyro, hitting at key moments in several songs. Fan favorites “45”, and “Second Chance” brought the crowd in for singalongs. Smith, along with guitarist Zach Myers are from the Tennessee area. Friends and family joined in attendance making for a special evening for the band. To add to the special occasion, Carrie Underwood let her fandom show as she watched from the crowd and hung out with the bands post-show.
Touring in support of the newly released Planet Zero, Shinedown’s set featured 3 songs from the release. Setlist placement was key, “A Symptom of Being Human” was strategically sandwiched between two big rockers in “The Sound of Madness” and “Planet Zero”, creating a nice breather for the audience to take in the newest single. The set gave the fans a taste of the variety and depth of their music instead of just non stop rockers all evening. The more mellow songs on the evening featured bassist Eric Bass taking the throne to the light up piano that was rigged above the stage and lowered up and down. It also provided a nice raised platform for Myers to solo over “I’ll Follow You” early in the set.
The tour is worth checking out in your area with high energy performances, top notch production and sound and a chance to hear a wide variety of songs from each band.
