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80s hair metal has place in some out hearts. It was a different time, and some of the names have changed, well, to protect them not so innocent. Today, there are still some of the major players of the era out there, still touring and making music. In the 80s, there were bands that blew up in popularity and became huge draws, the Motley Crue, Poison, Guns N Roses, etc.. But there were other bands playing up and down Sunset Strip, too. They may not have achieved the same level of fame and fortune as others, but they were, and still are a big influence and part of that scene. Two of these bands, L A Guns and Faster Pussycat teamed up for a North American tour with a stop at Elevation 27 in Virginia Beach, VA, USA on June 13th 2022. 
Seeing as this is a co-headlining tour, they had to have an opener and the nod for that duty went to local favorites Absolute Zero. Opening their set with well chosen covers getting the crowd primed for the evening. Next up Faster Pussycat. For those not familiar with the band, they formed in the mid-80s and were a staple of the music scene in LA. Going through numerous lineup changes throughout the years with the only constant being lead vocalist Taime Downe. The band hit the stage with everyone but Taime, launching into an instrumental onslaught and then Taime joined his bandmates onstage. Performing fan favorites with Taime’s voice not having missed a beat in over 30 years of singing. Their setlist consisted of:
Jack The Bastard
Cathouse
Slip of the Tongue
Don’t Change That Song
Ain’t No Way Around It
NOLA
House of Pain
Bathroom Wall
Babylon
Faster Pussycat Current Lineup:
Taime Downe – Vocals
Danny Nordahl – Bass
Chad Stewart – Drums
Sam “Bam” Koltun – Guitar
Ronnie Simmons – Guitar
Up next L A Guns another staple of the LA music scene, to the point of the lead guitarist, Tracii Guns being half of the name of another LA band that somewhat made a name for themselves. Guns N Roses evolved for the joining of Tracii and Axl Rose and Izzy Stradlin who at that time were playing under the name Hollywood Rose. Tracii left and reformed L.A Guns to continue to produce music his way. Hitting the stage at Elevation 27 launching into Cannonball from their 2019 album Checkered Past. Tracii let it all out on stage and the decades of him doing this was very apparent. The setlist consisted of –
Cannonball
Electric Gypsy
Over the Edge
Sex Action
Gone Honey
Speed
Kiss My Love Goodbye
Never Enough
The Ballad of Jayne
Rip and Tear
L A Guns Are:
Tracii Guns – Guitar
Phil Lewis – Vocals
Ace Von Johnson – Rhythm Guitar
Johnny Martin – Bass
Shawn Duncan – Touring Drummer
This show was a well-executed trip down memory lane. That band you see in the bar/pub this weekend, may be the next big thing in the music world, they may only grow to be a long-lasting staple into the music world or they may just play the bars occasionally. But you will never know today what they will or could be unless you get out there and see them..!
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