I will be the first to admit that I haven’t paid much attention to new rock bands in the past 15 years or so, Black Stone Cherry is the exception. The band’s unique blend of southern and modern rock with meaningful lyrics grabbed me. Touring behind their 2023 release Screamin’ At The Sky, the band rolled into Hartford, CT with Saint Asonia and Any Given Sin for an exceptional night of modern rock. Scroll below for Black Stone Cherry photos and a recap of the entire night.
The first band up was Any Given Sin. The band was on the road behind their full-length debut War Within. They took the stage down a man as bassist Rich Stevenson was unable to perform. The loss of a bass player on stage did affect the sound, and while the remaining members tried to overcome the missing member, the songs did feel like they were missing something. The band has good songs and were strong performers, I look forward to catching them at full strength.
Saint Asonia was next up and owned the stage. Led by former Three Days Grace vocalist Adam Gontier, the band gave a very strong performance that touched on each of their releases plus huge hits by Three Days Grace. The crowd joined Adam in the Three Days Grace classic “Never Too Late” and went absolutely wild during “Riot”. In addition to Saint Asonia favorites, there was also a unique, rocking cover of The Weeknd’s “Blinding Lights”. Saint Asonia is a band that needs to be experienced live as they bring an energy that ignites the crowd.
Finally, it was time for Black Stone Cherry. Although I’ve been a fan for quite some time, I’ve yet to experience the band live. I’ve had the pleasure of interviewing both Chris Roberton and Ben Wells as well as former bassist Jon Lawhon. I found both Chris and Ben to be thoughtful, soft-spoken, and slightly on the quiet side. Once the band hit the stage to 2014’s “Me and Mary Jane” that impression was blown apart. Black Stone Cherry plays with an energy and intensity seldom seen in any band.
The band, rounded out by drummer John Fred Young and bassist Steve Jewell, played a relatively short set, but a strong one without any filler. The hits, like “Again”, “White Trash Millionaire”, and “Blame It On The Boom Boom” were all there as the crowd sang along with every song. Perhaps the biggest sing-along of the night was their cover of Tracy Chapman’s “Give Me One Reason”, and it should be noted that the band covered the track back in 2021 before it was cool to cover Tracy Chapman songs.
Seeing Black Stone Cherry live totally impressed me as few bands have. Chris and Ben play perfectly off of each other, trading guitar licks and stage banter. This is a band that deserves a larger room but is perfectly content to blow away a packed club. It’s obvious they appreciate their audience and give 100% every minute of every song.
Overall this was a night of great music in a packed club. It was interesting to see a crowd filled with both younger and older fans, The fact that this bill could draw such a cross-section of people shows that the future of rock is in good hands with this generation of bands and they certainly deserve a listen.
