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Sunday
Jul292018

Idaho Rock Fest Announced

Sorry, no #ShotsFiredSunday this week. Instead I bring you the lineup for the Idaho Rock Fest set for August 24 and 25 in Idaho Falls. Two day tickets cost $99 and one day passes are available too. Looks like everything is GA and the event is rain or shine.


I've never been to Idaho. I'm told it's very pretty. If you're in this part of the country, you might want to check this out because it looks fun. And cheap too considering the lineup features Vince Neil, "RATT," Warrant, Dokken and more.


Reader Comments (16)

The logos look great. Just imagine if these bands were all had their original line-ups?

Sorry, but this should be called “Idaho Scabfest”!
July 29, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterMetalboy!
Interesting that you would single out "RATT" to use sarcastic quotation marks when this bill also includes "Warrant" "Dokken" "Great White" "Lynch Mob" and "Roxy Blue"; not to mention the last 2 years of "Guns N Roses" posts... you kind of have to put all of these bands in the same heap at this point (well maybe not fake GNR but only because they make a shit ton of cash. Does not legitimize their lineup but they are certainly making it work more than "RATT").
July 30, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterMike
Mike, interesting that you would make your point by also contradicting it. So is Allyson sarcastic? And are you? Are you mad because you think she was and then decide that it is okay to do the same? What if those were errant quotation marks? I don't think that they were, Mike. But just suppose. Even then, the band most recently being discussed--and most frequently, aside from perhaps GW--has been Ratt.

Metalboy! adds the unnecessary 'scab' comment as well. Well, to each his/her own. And you know I respect you, Metalboy! We discussed this on a previous 'scab' section.

Just to be generous, let's go through the list:

1. Warrant: singer died; they replaced him (before he died). They still release music.

2. Dokken: singer owns the trademark and is the namesake of the band. Did a 'cash grab' with the original members (all admit this). Still plugs along with his new band (and 'classic era' member Mick Brown).

3. Great White: two versions out there by virtue of their agreement. One band is fronted by the 'classic era' singer and rounded out by others; the other--legit?!?!?--band features the 'classic era' and founder Kendall on guitars and a host of members who came along later.

4. Lynch Mod:his solo band and the one that he is primarily responsible for now and then. Oni-less by more the richer without him (my opinion). Competent musicians rounding out the current line-up.

5. Ratt: two members playing the hits with others . . . after one member played the hits with others, after all remaining members patched things up, after they didn't, then they did, then they didn't.

6. Roxy Blue: not in the same league as any of the aforementioned bands. But featuring original members.

I guess this is my long way of saying: what is interesting about what Allyson wrote? She said it looked like a "fun" time. And why leave out Motley Slaughter in your list of bands that were mentioned? After all, they headline the second day. And we know what sorta' power Neil is pushing out these days.

And then you mention GnR, Mike. Why? What is your point then? That making money makes more sense? Or that not making money makes you less important in the realm of bands who don't currently feature all the original members? I dunno. I guess I am over-thinking this. But I really want to understand what your _actual_ point was relating to when you sorta' sly-side called out Allyson for using quotation marks.

Mike, I spent this amount of time responding because I actually do want to know what you point is.

Allyson, Idaho is pretty . . . in spots. It is also hot during the summer. Not Midwest hot. But hot. A person would likely have a great time at this concert, esp. if it was close at hand.
July 30, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterHim
Anyone listen to Dash Radio? 👍🏻 Pretty good stations
The Strip
Paradise City
Monsters of Rock

Oh @Mike 👍🏻
July 30, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterBadland
I’m guessing the quotes around RATT is due to the fact that a very public legal fight took place where three guys appeared to be firefly loyal to one another, only to abandon ship and mess it all up after a handful of successful tour dates. Then, to add insult to injury, they replaced well known, established players with skilled, but almost completely unknown (and likely inexpensive) players. It was and continues to be a circus sideshow that surpasses any of the other bands idiocy
July 30, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterBrian C.
$50/day...not bad. If this were close to home and I wasn't in Disney with my family during the dates, I'd go. This past weekend, I dropped my boys and their 2 friends off at the Promenade Shops to see the new "Mission Impossible" movie. The spent $30/each on ticket, popcorn and soda for 2 hours of "entertainment", and they said the movie wasn't that good. I don't begrudge these bands for performing, regardless of their current line-ups. I'd rather see then in their heyday, but those are "Days gone by".

Believe it or not, the next festival for me is "faux-chella" at the Jersey beach in September. It's a bunch for Tribute bands, featuring The Eagles, AC/DC, Fleetwood Mac, Neil Young, Tom Petty, G-'n-R, Aerosmith. I'm really looking forward to it and proceeds benefit Opioid Addiction for New Jersey residents. A good time with friends, food and music is just that...good times.

http://www.useventer.com/events/7367466/faux
July 30, 2018 | Unregistered Commenterfletch
@HIM... my point was only that it isn't fair to single out "RATT" for having a watered down line up. Everyone of these acts is missing at least one key member (yes even Roxy Blue is missing guitarist Sid "Boogie" Fletcher)...

I love Warrant and Dokken's catalogues but I would not cross the street to see either of these bands current incarnation.

Sure RATT has made a huge mess of their name and legacy in the press this year, but with 2/5 of the real band up there how is that more bogus than GNR with 3/7? Either way you are watcing a band with more fake members on stage than real.

Difference being that GNR are such a huge name with crossover audience, their fan base isn't exclusively super fans and music nerds like us who are aware that the band didn't truly reunite. As long as that classic logo is used on the ad mat and Slash is there you can count on a ton of money pouring in.

FWIW - my all time favorite band "KISS" is the worst offender of them all, turning into an officially liscenced tribute. But I guess "KISS" fits better on a marquee than "Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley present: a Tribute to KISS, starring Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley"
July 30, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterMike
Thanks for the reply, Mike. Appreciate it.

Your final comment had me laughing! And I can certainly see your point. I guess I get tired--just admitting my own bias in all this--of hearing replacement players/employees called 'fake' and 'scab' because they took a job many would envy.

I won't rehash my previous comments on this issue. But I will say that some bands have more or less integrity re: how they carry on when they lose an original member (no less when you factor in _why_ an original member is no longer in the mix).
July 30, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterHim
"Sure RATT has made a huge mess of their name and legacy in the press this year, but with 2/5 of the real band up there how is that more bogus than GNR with 3/7? Either way you are watcing a band with more fake members on stage than real."


YUP!
July 30, 2018 | Unregistered Commenterfletch
Glad to see everyone continuing on this topic. I was actually thinking about this morning when I saw Mike’s comment before anyone else responded, particularly contemplating the irony of G’nR’s numerous line-up changes starting with switching out Adler for Sorum, and then Stradlin for Clarke.

Nobody really blinked when it all went down, probably because they were such a juggernaut, still moving a ton of product (this was before the advent of Napster and ultimately iTunes, etc.) and selling out shows on a never ending multi-year world tour.

As I’ve mentioned before, I was fortunate to see them once with the original line-up in ‘87, in front of a capacity crowd (250) just a few short months after the release of “Appetite for Destruction” at The Bayou, the legendary now long gone storied D.C. nightclub. I remember it vividly, as I managed to worm my way up to the front to a POINT BLANK position, so close, I could see their dental work, or lack thereof.

Needless to say, it was an unbelievable experience with Slash stopping the show 3/4 of the way through to say, “Normally, I don’t talk but this will be the last club date we ever play.” Now, that wound up not being totally accurate as they did play CBGB’s to film the “Patience” video and, of course, The Troubadour gig to kick off the current “Not In This Lifetime” Tour.

I then saw the twice at The Ritz in NYC with Sorum in what were dubbed as warm-up shows for the “Use Your Illusion” Tour, another incredible experience despite Adler being gone, as Sorum had the chops and the cred (coming off “Sonic Temple” era Cult line-up). They were as “savage” as when I saw them in D.C., if not more so, as they’d added all those choice tracks (at the time) from “Use Your Illusion” Parts 1 & 2 to their now multi-hour set list.

All of which leads me to this ... Why does the current version of G’nR have more cred than “RATT”, Great White, Dokken, Warrant and Roxy Blue, well, aside from running circles around those bands from an artistic standpoint, let alone sheer album sales?

Truth be told, they are less “scabby” (Sorry, HIM...) than those other acts merely because the three key players, the ones from the classic line-up who were consistently on stage together through all those initial line-up changes, are the ones on stage today.

The problem with RATT is it now only consists of the singer and the bass player, thus, the quotes, Mike, as it was just last year, three key remaining members (sans knucklehead Blotzer) of the classic line-up were still together, writing and recording with Cavazo credibly filling in for King (RIP), who is now surely rolling in his grave in disgust at the travesty this band has become.

It might be viewed a little differently if DiMartini was still on board, as the formula of keeping at least the classic/original lead singer and guitarist together on stage seems to give a reformed band the best recipe for success if they can’t get more of the original/classic line-up together.

And therein lies the problem with this roster ... NONE of the headliners even have the original/classic lead singer coupled with the original/classic lead guitarist, which, unfortunately, seems to be how to rate the level of “scabiness” of a band, IMHO.

Schlokken without Lynch (two ships passing in the night at this Fest)? Naughter guest starring Wince Neil (without the original guitarist?), Fake White without Russell and Kendall together?

Sorry, boyz, it’s just ain’t the same, or at least closer to it, without, at the very least, the singer and guitarist up on stage together — It’s scab! Just ask Lewis and Guns or Plant and Page or the Davies brothers or The Toxic Twins, etc., etc., etc. ...
July 30, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterMetalboy!
Great dialogue everyone.

To be clear - I am not against any band having replacement members, many of these bands we love have been going 30+ years and life happens, people come and go.

I would also never fault anyone for taking a gig... even if it's the dreaded Tommy Thayer.
I hate the CONCEPT of what Thayer represents, but if I could get paid to play KISS songs every night with full production, would I turn I down?

I understand why Warrant continues as a touring act. They shouldn't lose their livelihood just because their singer is no longer with us. That being said, I can not support them releasing music under the WARRANT name, considering how Jani Lane wrote EVERY song on their classic albums. The records they have done without him STINK.

Tesla replaced Tommy Skeoh with Dave Rude - great move! Tommy was an integral part of that band "back in the day" but by 2005 he looked miserable on stage and was strung out, so here comes new blood and someone who is a perfect fit. Band has been doing arena tours for the last 5 years.

I fully support the current L.A. Guns lineup - I am a big fan of Tracii's playing and buy everything he does, so it's really just a bonus that Phil is the singer he is presently working with. I did not buy any LAG records with Stacii Blades playing guitar, because that would have just been silly.

With regards to GNR (and Van Halen for that matter), I wouldn't support their comeback because goddamn... announce a 'reunion" tour which the whole world is waiting for, and then play shows with NOBODY'S on the stage where there should be icons, charge a small fortune for tickets.
(I did love that last VH album though!)

...all coming back to RATT... I was as excited as everyone else to see them this summer, when I thought it would be with Warren / Carlos. And like everyone else, I am left shaking my head and wondering why this band cannot get their shit together.

Pearcy is aware of these criticisms and did made a great point on Eddie Trunk's show a couple weeks back -> if you are gonna call RATT out then you should also be calling out Judas Priest (currently touring with only singer and bass player).

I guess everyone having more of a hard time with RATT because they did this huge lineup change all at once and in such an awkward way, where the other bands may replace a couple of members over the span of several years.

... that, and the fact that INFESTATION was so good we were all waiting for a strong follow up album and tour.
July 31, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterMike
Awesome follow-up points and clarifications, Mike. I like the shading and nuance you brought to your original post.

So much of this is relative to a person's perspective on what counts as a good change or a bad one. And that perspective is shaded by a host of factors that aren't necessarily factual. No one (I assume) would ever say that Dio was a 'scab' when he joined Dio. But I suspect many might say that Goldy was a 'scab' when he joined Dio.

It is awesome that we can have conversations like this. Not that anything is necessarily resolved. But we do get a chance to share differing viewpoints. Cheers everyone!
July 31, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterHim
ugh..I need some disinfected spray. cheers! ...all summer long
July 31, 2018 | Unregistered Commenterfletch
Argh . . . I meant, when Dio joined Sabbath.
August 1, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterHim
Hahaha!!! Welcome to the “Blunderdome”, HIM! As you know, I do it all the time!

I don’t know if you all are quite getting it ... It’s about this Fest, boyz!

None of these acts have the original or classic line-ups, not even the original/classic singer and guitarist. What a travesty!

No two ways about it, plain and simple, it should be called IDAHO SCABFEST!
August 5, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterMetalboy!
I gladly join you in the Blunderdome, Metalboy! Does it feature "fun and games," Tina Turner, both?
August 7, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterHim

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