Wednesday evening Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD played host to an onslaught of hard rock from some of the best bands in the business—of rock. Carnival of Madness, the annual hard rock tour that launched in 2010, brought their 2016 lineup to shake things up in Merriweather’s Symphony Woods.
Jacksonville, Florida based hard-rock ensemble Shinedown was the festival’s main attraction. Touring to promote their 2015 release Threat to Survival, the band served up a super energetic and dramatic performance whose setlist included “Fly From The Inside,” “Unity,” “Asking For It,” “I’ll Follow You,” “45,” “Sound of Madness,” “Creep” (Radiohead cover) and their famous rendition of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Simple Man.”
Prior to Shinedown was Halestorm, the Pennsylvania based outfit featuring brother and sister Lzzy and Arejay Hale. Lzzy—known for her amazing guitar leads and her huge vocal range—together with the band delivered a non stop barrage. Halestorm’s latest release, 2015’s Into the Wild Life is the band’s third studio album and was been acclaimed by rock critics upon its release. Since hearing “I Am The Fire,” “I Like It Heavy,” “Mayhem,” and “Amen” performed live, I can see why this album has been called earthshaking. Halestorm blew me away.
Edmonton, Kentucky’s Black Stone Cherry whose fifth studio effort entitled simply Kentucky had massive amounts of energy and was a perfect addition to this tour. They finished their set with a strong version of Motorhead’s “Ace of Spades.”
SHINEDOWN
HALESTORM
BLACK STONE CHERRY
