The Record Newspapers - Hometown News For Orange County, Texas

The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion in The Woodlands, Texas, was the place to be on Sunday night (Oct. 8, 2023) as The Revolutions Live tour continued its trek across Texas featuring popular rock acts Shinedown and Papa Roach, along with opening act Spiritbox.

Shinedown was the featured artist on Sunday night and delivered a sensational 110-minute, 17-song set of high energy rock and powerful tunes that had fists pumping, hands clapping, heads banging and voices at full volume as the band continues to tour in support of its July 2022 release, "Planet Zero."

The Shinedown-faithful in attendance were not going to be disappointed this evening as the group quickly set the tone for the night with opening track "Diamond Eyes." As vocalist Brent Smith stated, this show would feature "something old and something new" to keep everyone satisfied.

New songs "Dead Don't Die" and "Planet Zero" were definitely crowd pleasers, but the way the band shifted gears with the pacing of the songs was top notch. The third song of the night, "I'll Follow You," was a surprise for so early in the set, but to have it followed by tunes "State of My Head" and "Devil" was brilliant.

The group, which also features guitarist, Zach Myers; bassist, Eric Bass; and drummer, Barry Kerch; has always been one to speak about positivity and mental health awareness and "just being respectful" to one another, as Smith added during his brief monologue before segueing into "A Symptom of Being Human." Another touching moment was seeing Smith become emotional as he asked fans to remember his friend and longtime Houston radio DJ, Don Jantzen, who passed away earlier this year. Smith credited Jantzen for helping break the band in Houston.

At this point Smith and Myers dedicated the Lynyrd Skynyrd classic, "Simple Man," which is a staple of every Shinedown performance, to Jantzen's memory and asked the audience to sing as loud as possible, and the fans responded with true Texas style. It was easily the best moment of the concert.

The group closed with "Monsters" and "Cut the Cord" before wishing everyone a good night. Hopefully the band returns sooner rather than later because very few concerts equal the experience of a Shinedown performance.

Papa Roach is no stranger to the Houston-area, and the fans attending this show let the love flow from the first notes of opening song "Between Angels and Insects" to the final moments of set closer "Last Resort."

Any other tour Papa Roach would be headlining, but this four-piece outfit and the men of Shinedown have toured together many times and it continues to be a highly popular tour package for fans. The group played a 13-song set that incorporated tunes from the band's nearly quarter-century career, as well as some cover tunes that kept the audience on their collective feet.

Tracks such as "Getting Away with Murder' and "To Be Loved" kept the energy flowing, while The Prodigy song "Firestarter" turned this cool autumn night red hot. Highlights included the addition of the song "Forever" to the set as well as vocalist Jacoby Shaddix's message about suicide prevention and the song "Leave a Light On" which had every cell phone in the venue at full brightness.

Tommy Mann Jr

Shinedown drummer Barry Kerch, at left, and singer Brent Smith, perform during the song "Dead Don't' Die" during the band's 17-song set Sunday night (Oct. 8, 2023) in The Woodlands, Texas.

The band, which also features guitarist, Jerry Horton; bassist, Tobin Esperance; and drummer, Tony Palermo, performed the songs "Scars," "No Apologies," "Born for Greatness" and "Help" before closing with "Last Resort," which featured arguably the loudest crowd-sing-along of the whole night.

Spiritbox served as the opening act for the night and delivered a powerful, seven-song set that entertained many of the early arrivals for the evening.

The Canadian quartet, featuring vocalist Courtney LaPlante; guitarist, Mike Stringer; bassist, Josh Gilbert; and drummer, Zev Rose, perform a powerful form of metal that incorporates LaPlante's lush and, at times, very guttural vocals with driving beats and a touch of electronic elements.

The group's brief set included songs "Jaded," "Hurt You," "Rotoscope," "The Void," "Circle with Me," and "Holy Roller" and more.. This four-piece act will definitely be getting some more attention based on what was showcased this night.