DISTURBED /
10 YEARS
Ventura Theater; Ventura, CA; 08/03/05
Reviewed by R. Scott Bolton
The problem with catching a band on the first night of their tour is that, usually, you can catch a little of their rustiness. Either their performance isn't polished enough, or the sound equipment fails, or someone plays the wrong song at the wrong time, etc.
Then, there's Disturbed.
Disturbed hit the stage at the Ventura Theater as though they'd never left it. The band performed in front of a sold-out crowd of screaming, jumping fans who sang each and every song at the top of their lungs, sometimes even overcoming the monstrously amplified musicians on stage (the show was really, really loud).
At one point, lead vocalist David Draiman made the observation that -- while the floor crowd was energetic, involved and pumping their fists -- those on the balcony were sitting and watching. "This isn't your living room and this isn't a TV show," Draiman said, "This is a rock'n'roll show so get on your fucking feet!!" The audience gladly did as told ... and they didn't sit down for the rest of the show.
The band delivered crushingly heavy songs from their first album ("The Sickness" was the song the entire audience had obviously come to see), their second album ("Believe," the title track here, too, was extremely popular) and their forthcoming "Ten Thousand Fists." (Just to keep things consistent, the band also performed the title song to the new album which was greeted with surprising enthusiasm -- especially for a song the vast majority of those in the audience had never heard before).
Draiman, often called one of the great new voices in rock'n'roll, proved to be just that, displaying his incredible range and passion with every tune. What was fascinating was that, although Draiman was dead on in the vocals department, the audience was so loud that you could hear they were off-key. It didn't phase Draiman who relished the intense audience interaction.
The rest of the band was equally as impressive. It's important to remember that Draiman plays no instrument, leaving only a bassist, a guitarist and a drummer. The wall of sound the band produces is nothing short of awesome.
Disturbed have begun their "Ten Thousand Fists" tour explosively. There's a reason this band continues to garner huge concert and CD sales and the reaction of the sold-out crowd at the Ventura Theater this evening is further evidence of their popularity.
Opening the evening were 10 Years, in support of their CD, "The Autumn Years." It's no easy task opening for a band with a fanbase as strong as Disturbed's -- sometimes an audience is so impatient to see their favorite band that any opening act takes a beating. The modern rock sound of 10 Years, however, immediately struck a chord with the Ventura Theater audience. The band's charisma on stage was a plus as well, at times outshining the subsequent performance by the headliners. This tour should be good for the band, generating plenty of interest in their new CD and earning them important word of mouth for their live shows.
Copyright © 2005 by R. Scott Bolton. All rights
reserved.
Revised: 06 Oct 2019 11:48:57 -0400.
