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    Drowning Pool for the Snafu Le Tour 2024 with Saliva and Alien Ant Farm at Basement East, Nashville, TN (US) May 14th, 2024.

    Photography and Review by Kim Cilluffo

     

    What a packed house tonight at the Basement East. Usually, it’s not crowded till the Main act, but tonight, the fans were out in force at the start of the night from when the doors opened. Once you claimed your tiny place, you were there for the duration. Typically, there is enough room for the photographers to slide around the back of the crowds to get to the other side, but there was no way at this show. Fans also got a very close and personal show because there was no barricade in front of them, keeping them from the stage.

    Alien Ant Farm has been around since 1996, with six studio albums and “Anthology” reaching Platinum by the RIAA. Their newest album, “Mantras,” was released in 2024; you can find it here.

    The way Alien Ant Farm came up with its name was about aliens and the Earth: “It was just my daydream about our planet being seeded by entities from other dimensions.” This is definitely an interesting way to get an original band name.

    One of their best-known singles was a remake of Michael Jackson’s “Smooth Criminal” as an homage to him but on their level. It was really fun to see it in person. Alien Ant Farms’ creative energy brought the place alive as they played one hit after another, including some sing-alongs to “Bulls on Parade” by Rage Against the Machine and “Moms Spaghetti” by Eminem.

    Members

    Dryden Vera Mitchell – lead vocals, rhythm guitar

    Michael “Mike” Cosgrove – drums

    Terence “Terry” Corso – lead guitar, backing vocals

    Tim “Timmy” Peugh – bass, backing vocals

    SETLIST

    Courage

    Wish

    Flesh & Bone

    So Cold

    Whisper

    Movies

    These Days

    Attitude

    Fade

    Sticks & Stones

    Smooth Criminal

    ALIEN ANT FARM

    Official website

    The fans were waiting for each member of Saliva to come out, with the band’s entrance being introduced by the US Anthem, “The Star Spangle Banner.” Since 1996, Saliva has entertained the masses with their extensive 12 albums released with hits like their most successful song, “Always,” which hit number 1, and Ladies and Gentlemen“, which peaked at No. 2 on the Mainstream Rock Chart. Another one of their most memorable songs ‘Click Click Boom, is highly used at sporting events, WWE, and Military functions. Their latest album, “Revelation,” was recorded during the pandemic. It is their 11th studio album and the last to feature Wayne Swinny on the guitar. It was released in September of 2023, and you can check it out here.

    Saliva interacted with the fans throughout the entire set and kept the energy going. One of the cool things that Bobby Amaru said was that even though we may disagree on things, music unites us all, brings everyone together, and makes us one, no matter our differences.  In these times when everything is so divided, it’s nice that we can all come together and still get along and have a great time. At the end of their set, they dedicated “Click, Click Boom” to all the men and women of the military past and present and their families and friends who support them.

    Current members

    Bobby Amaru – lead vocals

    Brad Stewart – bass, backing vocals

    Sammi Jo Bishop – drums

    Current touring members

    Josh Kulack – lead guitar, backing vocals

    Sebastian LaBar – rhythm guitar, backing vocals

    SETLIST

    Ladies and Gentlemen

    Come Back Stronger

    I Walk Alone

    High on Me

    Doperide

    Crows

    They Don’t Care About Us / Lose Yourself / Bulls on Parade

    Always

    Your Disease

    Click Click Boom

    SALIVA

    Socials

    salivaofficial.com

    https://www.facebook.com/Saliva/

    https://mobile.twitter.com/OfficialSaliva

    https://www.instagram.com/officialsaliva/

    Wasting no time, Drowning Pool got straight into the hits. Starting with one of the hit songs, “Sinner,” from their 2001 certified platinum debut album, the fans showed their excitement by letting their bodies go with the flow of the music. Ryan McCombs raised his cane-style mic stand to the air, and the crowd was eager to sing along with him. Continuous mosh pits, which stayed tight in this already sardine-like environment (which we all love for these shows), erupted almost every song. From the first note to the last, these fans brought the intensity to match that of Drowning Pools’ performance the entire show. Throughout the set, some very inspirational things were said. The one that stuck with me was something Ryan said midway through: “Music starts with you and ends with you. As the fans, you are the reason we can do what we do.” It is always comforting to see bands that I enjoy supporting our troops. But Drowning Pool does more than admit their support. They show it from countless USO and MWR tours to donating proceeds to military organizations. Every show is intense and off the wall. It is the perfect opportunity for the service members to have some fun, relax, and let out some deep-down stored energy that needs to be released.

    As the final song,” Bodies,” started nice and calm with a rhythmic beat, the fans began to ramp up their tempo as the music increased. The final growling “FLOOOOOOORRRR ignited the crowd, and Ryan climbed into the middle of the crowd and let loose with the fans, belting every note with the help of those around him. Drummer Mike Luce also had to get into the excitement as he stage-dove into the crowd. As the last note was struck, Ryan was helped out of the crowd, stood facing the crowd, and placed his hand in front of his mouth. It showed on his face how much the night meant to him. One final bit of fun info is the meaning behind “Bodies.” Per Drowning Pool, ‘Bodies’ was written about the brotherhood of the moshpit and was never about violence.”

    CURRENT MEMBERS

    C.J Pierce – guitars (1996-present), backing vocals

    Mike Luce – drums (1996-present), backing vocals

    Stevie Benton – bass (1996-present), backing vocals

    Ryan McCombs – lead vocals

    SETLIST

    Sinner

    Step Up

    Let the Sin Begin

    Enemy

    37

    Rebel Yell

    Feel Like I Do

    Pity

    Tear Away

    Bodies

    DROWNING POOL

    Socials

    https://drowningpool.live/

    https://www.facebook.com/drowningpool

    https://twitter.com/DrowningPool

    https://www.instagram.com/drowningpoolofficial

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