Skid Row Live at Sugarz Bar in

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REVIEW BY: Dean Mullin

Well going into this show I wasn't too sure what to expect from the "new" Skid Row. Last time I saw them, they opened for KISS in around 2000 and I wasn't that impressed because the new singer was doing his best (or worst) Sebastian imitation. Being a fan of the old Skid Row, Johnny Sollinger's pipes just didn't cut it for me as well during that show. I figured seeing them in a small bar would be much more personal... So cut to 2004…

As they hit the stage with their standard "Slave to the Grind," the 300 or so fans went ballistic and pumped their fists in the air. Obviously most fans don't care at this point who the singer is as it has been 10 years since Sebastian was given his walking papers. They continued to play a lot of the standard old hits such as "18 and Life", "Monkey Business" and a punk version of "I Remember You." They also threw in a mix of new songs off their Thickskin" cd. "New Generation" and ''Thick is the Skin" were both well received. The only surprise maybe being "Makin’ a Mess" off their debut album.

The guitar duo of Scotti Hill and Dave "The Snake" Sabo still shred and are very tight live hitting all the solos bang on. Rachel Bolan did his tribute to the Ramones at one point and played "Psychotherapy" off the B-Sides Ourselves cd. Johnny Sollinger did a pretty good job hitting most of the notes, as they even did "Beat Yourself Blind" which is a pretty challenging song vocally. He also talked about their new video "Ghost," which supposedly will be on Much Music. They came back and did an encore and finished with the regular version of "I Remember You" followed by a new one, "Lamb," which was quite heavy, followed by their trademark "Youth Gone Wild."

All in all a very tight, energetic rock show. It’s great to see a band like this in a small setting. Obviously Skid Row knows they are not going to be playing in front of 80,000 people at Giants Stadium anymore as the music industry has changed quite a bit since their heyday. But the approximate 300 fans ate it up and loved hearing the old classics. If you’re a fan of the old ‘80s –‘90s metal, I would definitely recommend seeing them live.

Set List:

Slave to the Grind
Piece of Me
Makin’ a Mess
New Generation
I Remember You (Punk)
Monkey Business
18 and Life
Beat Yourself Blind
Ghost
Psychotherapy
Thick is the Skin
I Remember You (regular)
Lamb
Youth Gone Wild