Well, my first (and possibly last) Lou show was fantastic! He seemed to be having a great time, as well as Tony "Thunder" Smith and Steve "The Deacon" Hunter, both of whom had huge smiles throughout the night. A short set, roughly 1hr 15min, but they played songs we rarely are treated to. I could have lived without Perfect Day, but it made the night complete I suppose.
The club was packed to capacity (about 1200) with an audience of mixed generations. Lots of 50+ folk and lots of 20+. I saw a few parent/children combos as well.
Unfortunately, I had my camera "confiscated" at the entrance as I walked in, but no big deal.
Lou hit the stage in casual attire. Nike sneakers, jeans, and a black satin/shiny t-shirt. He was in very good voice as well...I don't even think his voice cracked once.
He was quite the taskmaster...reminding the keyboard dude to play a particular part...telling Rob Wasserman where to play on his upright electric bass, telling Thunder to play louder! He wasn't a dick...he seemed to relish his role! Steve had a fantastic solo during Video Violence, and Lou's solo during I'm Set Free was intensely...Lou! Great to see him jam like that.
Lou played a few guitars (all w/ fantastic tones). Wish I knew what his gear was!
It seems that Lou has a roadie who keeps an eye on his guitar cable. Whenever that thing unwound more than a foot, some dude was there to put it neatly back into a coiled pile!
I am not 100% sure about the setlist, but he covered a lot of ground (not in order):
Mad
Sweet Jane
Video Violence
Power of the Heart (new)
Halloween Parade
Guardian Angel
Magic & Loss
I Wanna Know (The Pit & the Pendulum)
Guardian Angel
Perfect Day
Ecstacy
Lou - rhythm guitar/v
Mike Rathke - rhythm guitar
Steve Hunter - lead guitar
Rob Wasserman - upright electric bass
Tony Smith - drums/v
Kevin Hearn- keyboards/synth/v
Sarth Calhoun - "live electronics" (if anyone can tell me what he actually does, I'd be grateful)
Lastly, my brother and I were standing next to this intensely annoying old lady, who kept shouting for "Hangin' Round!" Then she wanted me to take a picture with her camera-phone (the answer was no), and then she kept going on and on about her "6foot 1inch son" in the audience. Thankfully, I used my brother to block her annoyingness, but he wanted to punch her!