The Crue rocks Rockford

By DAVID MATZ

An amazing set of bands decided to put the “rock” back in Rockford Sunday night.

Mötley Crüe, on their new “Saints of Los Angeles,” tour stopped for a night of hard-hitting and electrifying rock and roll.

But the ’80s hair metal band was not alone: The Last Vegas, Theory of a Deadman and Hinder all opened for the legendary rock band.

Mötley Crüe made their explosive, sudden entry in extraordinary fashion to begin their set. A black screen hid the band but showed their silhouettes.

The first chords of “Kickstart My Heart” blared through the speakers. The crowd went crazy, the curtain rose, beams of flashing lights and fireballs sprang to life and the four legendary musicians amazed the audience with an unforgettable entrance.

This entrance was so profound and thunderous thanks to the large use of pyrotechnics and some of the brightest lights known to mankind.

The band seemed to tear through timeless classics such as “Dr. Feelgood,” “Wild Side,” and “Shout At The Devil” were all done so quickly and left little to be craved for later in the show.

Despite chugging through their classics, Crüe was able to keep the audience enthralled throughout the nearly two-hour set list, mostly due to some amazing solos performed by Mick Mars.

The band was able to perform like back in their leather-clad golden days of the ’80s; only the nostalgic big hairstyles were lacking.

Singer Vince Neil hit all of his notes and seemed to be able to hit some unheard-of higher notes.

After a thrilling set list, the band went offstage for a brief second. But what’s this?

The roadies bring out a piano and out walks Mars and drummer Tommy Lee.

Lee, sitting proudly at the piano with a beer in hand, and Mars lining up behind him, play a few chords and segments together to the audience’s delight.

Then, as the rest of the band came out, it was clear that “Home Sweet Home” was the band’s farewell song to Rockford.

Also on the show was Hinder, which played all of its major hits and some lesser-known ones.

Out of all the opening bands, Hinder was able to pump up the now-crowded arena.

Supporting the bands was The Last Vegas, which was easy to pass up and ignore as the audience wasn’t too thrilled with its songs.

Theory of a Deadman was greeted more warmly by the crowd, and the band played a pretty solid set list that got the audience ready for some heavy rock.