Ratt at Rocklahoma: Professional Quality

Well, kiddos, I had a complete article written and ready for today...but it is on a different computer that I can't access at this time.

I just saw a three hour set from the Black Crowes. I couldn't tell you half of what they performed because it was a random mix of songs but I do know the band *didn't* do their "hits." At any rate, it was a good show at the beautiful Fraze Pavilion in my town. Another live show under my belt and life is good.

Pro-shot video from Rocklahoma is finally starting to hit YouTube. Here's a great clip of RATT doing "You Think You're Tough" during their headline set. I'm pretty sure my husband is in this video - he was in the pit, taking photos. I suspect more clips of this performance will post soon enough. For now, watch it, love it.

As Promised - More Rocklahoma Photos

A View from the Rocklahoma Seats at Different Times

So people will stop saying I'm making up attendance figures.

During Warrant

At dusk, during Night Ranger

During Great White

The Problem with Rocklahoma...

More on Rocklahoma today. The festival this year was basically a let down – I was very vocal from the start about the weak lineup. I knew attendance would be light – still it was weird actually experiencing a half empty rock fest.

Did I have fun? Yes.

Did I enjoy seeing my friends? You betcha.

Do I feel like an abused consumer? Yes.

I spent $450 on my VIP ticket (including fees). This isn’t counting money on airfare, a car, a hotel and extras. Rocklahoma started giving away buy one, get one reserved seats a few weeks ago – then promoters allowed upgrades at the gate. These upgrades were cheaper than my ticket – and often the people got better seats!

Last night on Eddie Trunk Live, Eddie Trunk broke down all of Rocklahoma’s problems. He didn’t say anything I haven’t said over the past 10 months – but now maybe someone in control will listen.

The attendance issue, according to Eddie, is because of billing. No kidding. Eddie and I both agree Stryper does not a Saturday headliner make. In the same vein, Anthrax isn’t a headliner either.

Eddie kept using the number 5,000 to describe attendance. I would imagine he has access to the true attendance figures, so if 5,000 is the official tally, that’s really sad.

Like me – and ANYONE that attended Rocklahoma over the weekend – Eddie thinks the fest needs moved from July. It’s simply too damn hot. It’s miserable, the bands get sick and no one wants to sit on a hard bench when it is 115 degrees at 2 in the afternoon. I don’t know if moving the festival to May or September would work, but at this point, I’d say it’s worth a shot.

Midway through the weekend, Eddie announced a VIP renewal special for $250. This is obviously a major discount. There are conflicting reports that the event will be four days next year – some people say they heard three. The people working in the VIP tent said people could only get the $250 rate on-site, but the Rocklahoma Twitter is advertising the special now – so what is the motivation in giving the festival money so far in advance? There is none.

I’m pleased Eddie was so brutally honest on his show. He talked about agents taking advantage of the Rocklahoma promoters, overcharging and grandstanding about the quality of bands. Someone apparently gave the person with the pocket book some bad information. Eddie implied he offered advice on the lineup for this year, but no one seemed to pay attention.  Maybe someone with the checkbook will listen to Eddie for 2010. At least he understands the difference between a headline act and a main stage opener.

Finally – there was no official program book this year. Instead, volunteers were passing out a newspaper type program. The thing was filled with errors, including saying Jani Lane is the current lead singer of Warrant and this Rocklahoma performance would be their first time together in a long time. Problem is, Robert Mason is the lead singer of Warrant – and Warrant with Jani Lane played Rocklahoma last year! There were plenty of snide comments mocking the Glam bands, calling Helix old, using a picture of RATT with Robbin Crosby and mentioning the addition of John Corabi “...from Motley Crue.”

As a Glam supporter, I don't want Rocklahoma to die. I also don't want to be ripped off and watch a bunch of bar bands play for 200 people when they were promised 10,000. I can't imagine what it feels like to be on stage and look into an empty crowd. I assume it's one of the worst feelings in the world.

I promised more photos and they are coming - life is chaos - but thank you for reading as always. Hopefully I'll have the snaps up ASAP!

Rocklahoma 2009 Day 4

Rocklahoma 2009 is over. The final day brought performances by Vixen, Bonfire, Nelson, Great White, Skid Row and Twisted Sister.

I didn’t watch Vixen and only caught a small portion of Bonfire. The takeaway from that band was my astonishment at the lead singer: dude was wearing a denim jacket the entire set. It was over 100 degrees!

Nelson take a lot of crap, but I’ve never seen them perform live so I was interested. They did their hits (you know, “After the Rain” and “Can’t Live Without Your Love and Affection”) plus a couple of new tunes. The crowd was small, small, small on Sunday – but it was especially lean for Nelson. Shame because I thought they sounded better than half the other main stage acts at ROK 09.

Poor Jack Russell - the man limped out on stage, acting funny and sure enough he said he had a bunch of broken bones. He gets a pass because limping on stage in massive heat without the ability to move is very metal but there’s no point in denying that Great White sounded like crap. I mean, when you have broken ribs, you just can’t sing. It was also pretty clear Jack was on painkillers – I think the band should have cancelled. I’m sure that set was pure torture for him.

Skid Row was quite good but it felt like they played forever. They did all the songs you know and love – in basically the order you’d assume. I kept waiting for “Youth Gone Wild” because I was antsy for L.A. Guns to start in a side tent. A lot of people seemed to leave the end of Skid Row to get a good spot for L.A. Guns. That said, I’d say Skid Row had the biggest crowd of any band all weekend. I wasn’t worried about watching all their songs – I’m seeing them again on Shiprocked.

L.A. Guns played a side stage. A few weeks ago, Tracii Guns told me he didn’t want to play in the sun on the main stage. Sadly, playing at 9:30 pm in a tent doesn’t equal cool. Since the heat index was upwards of 115 degrees and L.A. Guns played in a tent packed with people, you can imagine how it felt. The band did the big hits and this show featured Jizzy Pearl on vocals. I had a hard time understanding Jizzy’s words – maybe it was the PA, maybe it was me, but I think I’ll stick with Marty Casey. Can’t knock Tracii though – man can shred and he sure looked happy.

Twisted Sister always deliver. Even if you’re not a giant Twisted fan, you can appreciate their live show because they give it their all. The band did all of Stay Hungry – in order – and it was great. The crowd seemed to love it and this seems like an appropriate album to play live, start to finish. That said, Twisted didn’t play very long. Their set seemed short – only a couple extra songs after Stay Hungry and the band called it a night. After that, my Rocklahoma experience was done.

Sunday attendance? I’d say 3500 - 4500.

The attendance was abysmal this year. The people behind Rocklahoma need to decide where they want the festival to go. It’s either becoming a 100% regional event, or it needs to be scaled back. Four days is probably too many if the format is to stay the same – there are only so many bands to go around. If ticket prices are reduced, that will help. Changing the event to two days with a killer lineup would be even better. I had fun this year – but the lineup really was weak, tickets expensive and the heat ridiculous. I can’t see many people renewing in advance when it’s pretty clear it’s o.k. to wait for the lineup and then decide to buy. The amount of empty seats really shocked me...and made me quite sad.

More photos later and tomorrow. I’m fried and just can’t edit them right now. Peace.

Rocklahoma 2009 Day 3

The Gypsy Pistoleros, Lizzy Borden, Keel, Kix, Jackyl and Stryper played the main stage on day three of Rocklahoma. I came in for Keel, so I didn’t see the GP or Lizzy Borden. Apparently, Lizzy Borden did a full show with make-up and blood, so I’m a little sad I missed that but the heat sucks and I had to make it to nightfall.

Keel sounded better than they did at M3, but the crowd sure was light. So light by this time of the day I’d say Saturday had the fewest people in the seats of every day thus far. Ronnie Keel talked about the band’s history and future in between songs. The band did “The Right to Rock” and a cover of “Because the Night” (from the album The Final Frontier).

...then it was time for Kix. We shall now transition to an open letter to the people of Oklahoma.

Dear Oklahomans:

Kix are, by far, the best band on the Rocklahoma 2009 bill. If you live in Oklahoma, there is no excuse for you to skip Kix. Everyone else in the world will get a pass because the economy sucks and it isn’t cheap to travel, but if you live within a three hour radius of Rocklahoma and you passed on Kix, you lose. Seriously.

Kix performed at a very hot part of the day, so it was brutal. The band played Midnite Dynamite, Same Jane, Sex, The Itch, Girl Money, Poison, Don’t Close Your Eyes, Hot Wire, Get It While Its Hot, Cold Shower, Cold Blood and Blow My Fuse. Did I mention it was hot? Good Glam, I felt like I was going to melt so I’d imagine it was 1,000 times worse for the guys in the band. The heat didn’t keep the band from doing their choreographed moves that I love so much. Steve Whiteman also commented “Last year we played in a monsoon, this year a heat wave. I’m not whining – except I am.” Fair enough. Beyond having the best songs of any other band at the festival, Kix also had the best sound. The mix was so bad for many of the other bands – Kix had the least amount of sound issues and they should be commended. The band didn’t do “Yeah, Yeah, Yeah” which truly stunned me. I guess it was due to time...

...and that’s where Jackyl comes in.

Jackyl replaced Thin Lizzy as a very late add and instead of actually performing, Jesse James Dupree talked and got drunk. A little bit of stage banter is fine – but taking a massive amount of time on bullshit pisses me off considering Kix didn’t get to do “Yeah, Yeah, Yeah.”

Seriously. I don’t need to see Jesse’s butt cheeks popping out of his sweaty onesie. Perhaps I’m the only one of that mindset, so be it. I paid to hear music, not crap. When Jackyl did perform, they sounded good on “I Stand Alone” and “She Loves My Cock.” By the time “The Lumberjack” rolled around, the band was nearly 20 minutes over, which pushed all the side stages back. Ridiculous. Kix should have been moved down a slot when Thin Lizzy pulled out.

I gave Stryper a chance. I’m not a fan of the yellow and black attack. To the band’s defense, the sound was awful and the seats empty. I’ve never seen less people watching a headline set at Rocklahoma than what I witnessed during Stryper. The band performed “The Rock That Doesn’t Roll,” “Calling On You” and a Boston cover. I left just before the end – I don’t know if the band threw Bibles. I assume they did.

Saturday attendance guess? 3500 at the peak. Yep.

Rocklahoma 2009 Day 2

Day two of Rocklahoma 2009 is in the history books, featuring Hericane Alice, Helix, Danger Danger, Warrant, Night Ranger and RATT. Naturally, the heat seems to be getting worse with each passing day – and oppressive is no longer an accurate adjective to describe the situation. Perhaps “awful” sums it up nicely. I skipped Hericane Alice because of the heat – my apologies to the band, but I hope to catch them on a side stage later this weekend.

Helix – described in the official newspaper “program” as the oldest band at Rocklahoma – came out strong. The Canadians immediately commented on the heat – and continued to mention the sun. Brian Vollmer kept taking breaks from the heat – and so did I. I watched half the set. Noticed people loving the band – to the point of near hysteria in some cases around me – and then I took a rest. I ended up with my head down on a table in air conditioning. My husband thought I was sunburned, but my skin was just tomato red from heat.

Danger Danger drew a lot of curious onlookers. After all, the band never seems to leave the east coast, so this was a big opportunity to see them live for the first time. Ted Poley sounded great, but he was really struggling with performing in the heat. Rob Marcello gave a great solo on his polka dot guitar. The band did “Boys Will Be Boys,” “Bang Bang,” and “Naughty Naughty” but not “Don’t Walk Away” – this crushed me a little.

Warrant – three times at Rocklahoma, three different singers! This time, Robert Mason won the coin toss. Good news is that he is awesome – the best Warrant has ever sounded really. The band spent some money on a little stage backdrop of the Sunset Strip – clubs like the Whisky were on the backdrop, plus the names of Warrant albums. The band also used a weird intro tape – not sure why – but it was the sound of clinging cash registers from “Money” Pink Floyd style. “Down Boys” still open the set, and all the usual suspects were played: “Uncle Tom’s Cabin,” “Cherry Pie,” “Heaven” and the like. During “Cabin” some nut job one row over climbed on the back of his seat and hurled himself forward when the guitar part kicked in. He lunged so high and fast, everyone in my row ducked for cover. Seriously.

Night Ranger were the best band of the day, playing a mix of old and new and even one Damn Yankees tune (“Coming of Age”). The band played a ton of classics, including “This Boy Needs to Rock,” “Rock in America,” “Eddie's Comin' Out Tonight,” “Sister Christian,” and “Don't Tell Me You Love Me.” Jack Blades has a great voice and he was in a good mood. Same for Kelly Keagy. The band did honestly seem happy to be back at Rocklahoma and the crowd was glad to have them. By the time Night Ranger started, the place was filling up a little – there were many more people on the lawn than the day before, but still tons of empty seats.

RATT announced plans awhile back to do all of Out of the Cellar live – so they did it at Rocklahoma, too. Oddly enough, the band did the album *after* the greatest hits set, which struck me as amazingly odd. By the time “Wanted Man” rolled around, Stephen Pearcy was already half worn out – but the band got through it ok. Naturally, “Round and Round” was moved out of order and saved for last, which is technically cheating, but whatever. Pearcy was wearing a shirt that said “I Love (heart shape) Nymphos” and I rolled my eyes – just couldn’t help it. Right before RATT took the stage, Shiprocked Tweeted that the band would be joining the cruise – so good news if you’re going (like me!)

So who should have been main stage? Big Cock of course. Robert Mason sings lead for the band and his pipes held up, even after the Warrant set. The band played a lot of songs off their most recent disc “Motherload,” which is obviously a lot of fun. A fairly decent crowd came over to check out the band – still could have been more. David Henzerling was playing his little heart out – how could you miss that? Nothing like listening to “Get a Load of Me” live at nearly 1 a.m. in Pryor, Oklahoma.

Day two attendance numbers? I guess around 5500.