Within 30 seconds of taking the stage, the first crowdsurfer spills over the front rails. Lajon Witherspoon, lead singer of the Atlanta band Sevendust, is howling the lyrics to their opening song, "Black."
"They say the devil lives in my soul. I promise not to let him take control!"
Witherspoon strikes a threatening presence on stage. He looks like he's going to take someone out, and sings like it, too. In contrast to the heavy guitar sounds and drum licks that are pounding from the speakers, the Sideshow stage looks comparatively small for Sevendust.
But at the end of the song, as the guitar feedback slowly reverberates in the concert hall, Witherspoon asks in a surprisingly meek Southern accent, "How y'all doing tonight?"
That was the defining feature of Sevendust's killer set at the Monday night show in Lackawanna - a strange but effective mix of aggression and Southern hospitality.
Sevendust, of course, is best known as a nu-metal outfit that uses Witherspoon's melodious R&B-trained vocal chords against a backdrop of crunching guitars and drums.
The audience at the mostly-packed Sideshow was more than willing to respond to the contrast. Sevendust stepped it up on the next song, "Denial," the popular hit off their last album, Home. Witherspoon's vocals, which moved from his characteristic scream to an almost soulful tone, blended well against the power of John Connolly's and Clint Lowery's guitars. Collectively, Sevendust gets credit for extending the mosh pit back halfway into the concert hall.
But as easily as Sevendust used their aggression to get audience members to shove one another, they also used sensitivity to make them hold up their lighters and sway. Midway through the show, Sevendust turned down the volume with the performance of "Angel's Son," a song off their current album, Animosity. The song is dedicated to their friend Lynn Strait, the former singer of Snot who died in a car accident.
Speaking of the song's personal nature, Witherspoon said to the cheering crowd: "I thought this song had closure. I didn't want to f-ing cry anymore. This bullsh- on Sept. 11 gives it new meaning. So I want to say thank you God for f-ing being here."
Easily the highlight of the evening, Witherspoon got the audience to sing not just the well-known chorus vocals of "Angel's Son," but also the more obscure lines in the opening verse. Clint Lowery's great accompanying guitar during the quiet first half of the song added to the quality of the performance.
Sevendust delivered more intensity later in their set with "Tits on a Boar" and "Crucified." Although the latter song is a venomous attack on their former manager J.J. French ("Don't you feel like a bitch!"), the enthusiastic way the band jumped around the stage belied any sign of bitterness.
At the end of "Crucified," Witherspoon said, "Goodnight," and walked off the stage, but fooled no one with the false conclusion, even after pushing through a solid repertoire of nine songs. Playing with the hardcore enthusiasm of the audience, the band waited until a steady chorus of "Sevendust! Sevendust!" filled the concert hall before returning.
Sevendust pounded back by playing three more of their hits in their "encore." Entreating the crowd, Witherspoon commanded, "Buffalo, y'all do what you f-ing feel," before ripping through their current single, "Praise."
Although Witherspoon sang his heart out on stage, unfortunately the noise coming from the speakers didn't do him justice. Whether it was an improper sound set-up or that the other instruments drowned him out, it was occasionally difficult to clearly hear Witherspoon's voice throughout Sevendust's performance.
Not that it stopped him from belting out the chorus of their other hit from Home, "Waffle." The final song, "Bitch," had Witherspoon crooning over his lyrics:
"I can't imagine to be like you! The pain and the suffering you put me through!"
Opening for the show was a quality performance by Flaw. For a relatively unknown band, Chris Volz's powerful melodies and raps enabled Flaw to start up the mosh pit. Industrial band Gravity Kills gave a somewhat stirring performance, and half of the fun was watching Doug Firley whip his keyboard around like a kite on stage.
