White Lion has always been an enigma of a band. They seemingly came out of nowhere with their huge second record Pride, and after a short period of success, disappeared almost as quickly. The legend of guitarist Vito Bratta has only grown as he remained out of the spotlight for over 30 years. Frontman Mike Tramp has released solo work consistently over that time, but the style bore little resemblance to White Lion. In 2023, Tramp began a trilogy entitled Songs of White Lion that presented modern-sounding, grown-up versions of the band’s material. Touring as Mike Tramp’s White Lion, he is presenting these new versions to audiences across America.
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When you attend a Mike Tramp’s White Lion show, Mike is the only original member of the band on stage. Bassist James Lomenzo and drummer Greg D’Angelo have both gone on to have huge careers playing with some of metal’s biggest names, while guitarist Vito Bratta has stayed out of the spotlight. Guitarist Marcus Nand, who has played with Tramp on and off since 1994, brings a fresh perspective to Bratta’s iconic parts. That fresh perspective is what drives this show. This isn’t 1987, and the arrangements of the songs in the setlist are closer to the Songs of White Lion versions than the originals. Some are a little slower, sung a little lower than what you may remember.
While White Lion did have a handful of big hits, the band only released 4 records, with the middle two, Pride and Big Game, generating most of the success. This means that a 90-minute set will have to rely on a lot of deep cuts, and those cuts were the big successes of the night. Reworked versions of huge hits seldom work, and while the crowd was definitely into them, hits like “Tell Me” and “When The Children Cry” felt like they were missing something, while deep cuts like “All The Fallen Men” and “Living On The Edge” sounded fresh and modern.
Mike Tramp is a natural frontman. Throughout the night he told stories about his musical origins and showed some self-deprecating humor when it came to his image back in the 80s. Tramp even spoke of how he was sure he’d have a big solo career when White Lion ended, but it wasn’t to be. It was refreshingly honest to hear him talk about the need to play White Lion material if he wanted to continue to tour.
Fight To Survive, the debut White Lion record, was released 40 years ago. While some of the song keys have dropped a bit, Tramp’s voice still sounds great. He jokes about staying healthy and referred a few times to how in-shape he is, but at the end of the day he looks and sounds better than nearly all of his contemporaries and that helps make an enjoyable show.
Vito Bratta was a big a part of White Lion as Mike Tramp, so filling the guitar spot on a tour like this is immensely important. Marcus Nand does a fantastic job. He doesn’t just rip-off Bratta’s parts note-for-note, he uses them as a templet to expand around the edges and modernize parts while keeping true to the spirit of the song. Nand certainly deserves some credit for the success of the night.
Nostalgia and music are both powerful forces. Together, they tell the story of our lives. Unfortunately, there are many bands who use those things to take advantage of their audience by using backing tracks when a singer can’t perform well anymore, or putting on sub-par shows because they know people will attend to remember a time in their lives when these songs meant something. Mike Tramp’s White Lion does neither of those. It’s a live rock show performed by someone who genuinely seems to care about putting on the best show possible.
