Shinedown Brought Fire, Literally, To United Supermarkets Arena

You may think you’re in for a bit of hyperbole, but if you were there, you know I’m not exaggerating.

This show was absolutely greater than the sum of its parts, but let’s take a look at those parts.

Spinning tunes before the show was DJ Rock Feed. This guy was absolutely awesome—and a bit bonkers—with a wild mix that somehow included both John Denver and Garth Brooks. If I had just one production note, it would be to move this guy somewhere more people can see and interact with him. He was far too entertaining to be tucked away.

Next, let’s talk about the unique staging. It was set up in a way that allowed more fans to get closer to the bands than almost any configuration I’ve seen before. Even better, Shinedown apparently didn’t place any restrictions on the other bands using the extended stages, which is something that happens quite often with headliners.

That decision made every performance feel bigger.

From Ashes To New Is Ready for the Next Level

From there, it was From Ashes To New.

The band is 100% ready to make a major leap in its career after scoring a number-one hit with “Drag Me.” That success didn’t stop the guys from playing like they still had something to prove. They attacked the stage, connected with the crowd and completely knocked it out of the park.

There’s a big difference between a band that knows it has arrived and a band that knows it has an opportunity. From Ashes To New played like a band determined to turn that opportunity into something much bigger.

Now, onto Coheed & Cambria.

Putting Coheed & Cambria on this bill was a bold move by Shinedown. They brought more lights—and more unique lighting—than any opening or middle band I’ve ever seen. In fact, we believe some of those lights may have been brighter than the sun.

Fans of the band had to be impressed, and I’m certain Coheed & Cambria made a ton of new fans with that performance. Once again, credit goes to Shinedown for taking a band into arenas and markets where it might not have otherwise had the opportunity to play.

That is how you build a great concert bill. You don’t just stack up bands that sound exactly alike. You give the audience something different, memorable and worthy of the size of the production.

Shinedown Brought the Fire—Literally

Now, onto the main course—but first, let’s take a step backstage.

I spent some time having a very surreal conversation with Brent Smith of Shinedown about his love of, and relationship with, Till Lindemann of Rammstein. I’ll keep that conversation close to my heart forever.

During our visit, Brent said Shinedown joked that they may have the second-largest amount of pyro on the road, behind only Rammstein. I honestly thought he might have been exaggerating a little.

It turns out he wasn’t.

During the very first song, flames weren’t just shooting from all over the stage. Fire was coming DOWN from the roof of United Supermarkets Arena.

It was thrilling, engaging and just a little bit scary.

My immediate reaction was, “Oh shit, it’s on!”

Then came another surprise: The band also used explosives throughout the show. Every time you thought you had seen the biggest moment of the production, Shinedown found another way to make the show feel even larger.

I’d like to say that all those bells and whistles mean nothing without great songs, but KISS kind of made a career out of proving otherwise.

With Shinedown, though, you got the thunder, the fire, the explosions, and song after song after song that the entire arena could sing—or shout—along with.

That’s what separated this from being just a massive production. The production supported the songs instead of covering for them. There were plenty of moments when you could simply stand there, take in the spectacle, and realize that something truly special was happening in Lubbock. It wasn't just the fire though; there were also quieter moments like Lubbock lighting up the stage with their phones and swaying to the music. This show had it all!

Let’s conclude with this:

Whether you’re a huge Shinedown fan or a vendor who walked into the building without really knowing what was going on, all arena rock shows in Lubbock will now be described in Shinedown terms.

“Was it bigger than Shinedown?”

“Was it better than Shinedown?”

“Did it have as much fire as Shinedown?”

It’s going to take a lot for anybody to top that show.

On behalf of FMX, I’d like to thank Rizzo and the entire Shinedown crew, Full Metal Jackie and the team working with From Ashes To New, Coheed & Cambria for helping set an incredibly high bar, and United Supermarkets Arena for hosting what may have been the biggest concert production ever brought to Lubbock.

Most of all, thank you for being there and supporting this show.

It means a lot when Lubbock shows up for rock music. This time, Lubbock didn’t just show up.

Lubbock showed out.