8/6 Shooter Jennings Concert Review

Thursday night I saw Shooter Jennings and his band Hierophant(formerly the 357's) at Harrah's VooDoo Lounge in St. Louis. Ended up taking my mom again. My brother couldn't get off of work and my dad was doing stuff. This was my third time seeing the group. First time was in '05 as an opening act for Toby Keith and saw him at the Blue Note in the Fall of '06.
The venue was pretty much just a bar, but kinda unique. The stage was about 8 feet up in the air and the bar was right underneath it. So when people went to get drinks they were closer to the action. I had general admission seats, so my mom thought we were going to have to stand the whole time, but they had chairs set out...
The lights went dim with the Dark Crystal starting to play on the various video screens and the backdrop. The opener was a sci-fi-like environmental warning song. Here's the full set list

• Wake Up!
• California via Tennessee
• Gone to Carolina
• Steady at the Wheel
• The Breaking Point
• God Bless Alabama
• Manifesto No.1
• Bad Magick
• When the Radio Goes Dead
• Don't Feed the Animals
• The Wolf
• All of this Could've Been Yours
• Outlaw Shit
• 4th of July
• Electric Rodeo

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• Black Ribbons
• Daddy's Farm

Shooter in the last few years has been more of a country rocker or Southern rocker, but he's now going back to his roots with pure rock. The country elements are pretty sparse and the name change of the group is trying to go along with this. I figured I'd have been disappointed in this as I tend to like his country stuff over his harder rock, but the sound worked for me. He mixed in a bunch of new stuff with some of his older stuff and the beats and music were rocking.
Instrument wise, Shooter was either using a Flying V or an SG, only picking up the acoustic once at the end, as well as playing on his keyboard and synth.
I was right in front of Ted Russell Kamp, the bassist, who was smiling all the time and having a blast. Bryan Keeling the drummer, seemed more subdued than before. I didn't see him stand up once. The new guys, who I'm not sure of the name, on guitar and keyboard, were over on the other side, so I didn't pay as much attention to them...
The worst part was probably overall the drunks as always. No, I take that back, Ticketmaster was the worst. Add in all the convenience, facility, service, whatever fees, a $20 ticket cost almost $30 and for two it was the same as three tickets at face value.
I won't ever complain about an artist playing and trying new stuff on the road as it shows they aren't into the same old, same old and still trying out new things musically. But the hardest part was not knowing the words, add it in the with obnoxiousness of the fore mentioned drunks, and trying to follow along. I know the music is supposed to be rock and be loud, but for the newer songs it would have been better if they could have turned up Shooter's voice a little and drop the instruments in the mix some as well. My mom asked me, "Can you understand him better on records?" But when he came back for the encore with just him and an acoustic on Black Ribbons, I couldn't understand with all of the idiots making noise and screaming out "Whooo's!" and "SHOOTER!"
My favorite song of the night was probably The Wolf, I hadn't seen him do any songs off the album of the same name, as I didn't go see him last year at the Montgomery Co. Fair or the year before at the Blue Note. Of the new songs California via Tennessee was the one that sounded the best(that I could comprehend much on). Radio Goes Dead I liked the vibe on as well. The singalong on Manifesto #1 is always a hoot, especially when the audience blurts out "You can kiss my ass goodbye!" line at the very beginning during the pause. And I always like hearing 4th of July even in its full tilt rocking version.
The only one I didn't dig was Outlaw Shit a reworking of one of Waylon's songs done in a slower ballad here. To me the song is too much of an anthem and the pace is all wrong. I did love the coda at the end. If he'd play it full speed then change tempos then do the coda sort of like Layla I think it would work better...
Like I said, I still liked the show. The only other complaint of mine was that it was over too quick, it was only a little over an hour and a half in length. My mom seemed to enjoy it more too this time swaying around to the music, even with it being two or three times louder. Probably cause last time the concert didn't start til 11 PM or so.
To show what a small world it is, some of my 3rd or 4th long distance cousins, who live in the same zip code as us, were at the show too. Their girlfriend even got some of the picks and one of the set lists from the band.
I bought a shirt after it was over. It's of a sci-fi 1930's retro future look hero or something. I was going to wait and see if the guys were going to come down to the bar and mingle with the fans, but they were still packing up equipment and I could tell my mom was getting restless to leave, so we were on our way after that. Took a few pics, but they turned out pretty crappily. Cheaper phone and someone who doesn't have clue what he's doing mainly.HAHAHA!
I think the show at the Blue Note was slightly better, in the material played, but this was a better show for excitement and mood, with not knowing what was coming up.