Sevendust Acoustic = Best Friday the 13th Ever!

I've gotta admit, I've never been very superstitious. I have certain rituals, like wearing my lucky Minnesota Twins hat to concerts and ballgames, and staying with certain routines, but that's more out of habit than superstition. Friday the 13th has never been that big a deal to me. This time around, I was going to my 12th Sevendust show, so I knew the day was going to be great no matter what!

I took the morning off work to rest, clean out my car for the first time in too long, and get ready for the show. I left home on a gorgeous June afternoon and made it to the venue Pov's in Spring Lake Park, MN just before the evening rush hour. When I got there, I saw Sevendust's tour bus and got to say a quick hello to guitarist/singer John Connolly. I also met a couple of other Sevendust fans and even was approached by their videographer to be interviewed for a segment that might be on the band's upcoming live DVD!

I later got to have a lengthy conversation with touring keyboardist Kurt Wubbenhorst. I asked him how the coffee run was the other day with Clint and a friend of mine, and Kurt then brought out his phone to show me the coffee house searches he'd made recently. I also got to chat with him about Architekt Studios which he co-owns and learned a lot from him about the business side of the industry.

After that I was getting hungry, so I ran to the nearest Dairy Queen for a quick supper before returning to meet up with friends before the show. I ran into one friend who was at the Madison, WI show with me and got back in line with another friend who wanted to get as close to the stage as possible.

When we got in the venue, I met another friend I'd seen at a couple of Sevendust shows in Minnesota last year. I bought my customary concert T-shirt and rejoined my friends at the front row. Right about 9:30 p.m., Sevendust arrived on stage with a grooving version of "Trust." Having been to Pov's in May to see my friends in the band KingShifter, I knew that this was a small venue, so when I heard that 700-800 tickets had been sold for this show, I wondered how they could accomodate so many people in a small venue with a small stage.

For an acoustic show, the energy from the band and the audience was electric the entire evening. I've been to so many Sevendust shows that the band members recognize me, and I had to smile when I caught the eyes of guitarist/singer Clint Lowery and bassist Vince "The Boss" Hornsby and exchanged glances, nods and thumbs-up with them early in the set. I also got to shake hands with lead singer Lajon Witherspoon during the songs "Skeleton Song" and "Got A Feeling."

Even with the heavy songs, there were still some emotional moments. During the song "The Wait," written about John's father who passed away last year, Lajon had the tears flowing as the meaning behind the song caught up to him. I had a bit of a lump in my throat too, as it reminded me of  family and friends I've lost in recent years, especially a  great-uncle who had passed away in Europe the day before.

The band ran through ten songs in an hour, closing the first set with "Gone," one of my favorite re-recorded songs from thir new album Time Travelers & Bonfires. Half an hour later, they returned with the upbeat tempo song "Come Down." It was the first time I'd felt a mosh pit swarm behind me at an acoustic show.

Before the next song, their cover of Johnny Cash's take on the Nine Inch Nails' song "Hurt," LJ shared his memories of growing up in Nashville, Tennessee seeing Cash's home and lavish car and dreaming about those same ideals one day. This was followed by a rousing rendition of "Karma," another great newly re-recorded song.

During the second set, Lajon said that he considered the show a Sevendust family reunion, a sentiment I whole-heartedly agree with. The audience was rolling along with the songs "Got A Feeling" and "Angel's Son" before the band closed with a raucous version of the classic song "Black." I had a broad smile on my face as I was not only able to snag guitar picks from Lajon and Vinny, but also had drummer Morgan Rose personally hand me one of his drumsticks at the end of the show! Vinny had owed me a drumstick after bouncing one off my lip during last July's show at the Wicked Moose in Rochester, MN, so now I guess that debt is paid in full.

Sometime after midnight, my friends and I who had bought the VIP upgrade were herded in line to have items signed. I brought a CD booklet from the new album to have signed for my brother who couldn't make the show, and of course had Morgan sign my new drumstick. We were then turned around to get back in line to have a group photo. I had brought a poster from a Facebook fan group to present to the group, but my phone battery was dying. Fortunately, a friend of mine stepped to the rescue to take the photo that I wanted to share with the group members.

Hard to believe after six-plus weeks of waiting for the show that it's already over! Another great night of music and memories, one of the best Friday the 13th's I've ever had. Now I just have to figure out when my lucky Sevendust concert number 13 will be...

Until next time, have a great weekend, everyone!

Set list:
1. Trust
2. Prayer
3. Crucified
4. Xmas Day
5. Under It All
6. Skeleton Song
7. The Wait
8. Denial
9. Disgrace
10. Rumblefish
11. Gone
12. Come Down
13. Hurt
14. Karma
15. Got a Feeling
16. Angel's Son
17. Black