Monsters of Rock Featuring: Humans Being Van Halen, Innersanctum's Led Zeppelin, & Piper
The Roadhouse in the Spokane Valley was the place to be last night February 12th 2016 where the 2nd annual Monsters of Rock Tribute show took place. The bands rocking The Roadhouse included, "Humans Being Van Halen Tribute", "Innersanctum's Led Zeppelin Tribute", and Piper's Rush Tribute". These 3 amazing tribute bands are some of the best tributes around, with seasoned musicians that have been performing for over 25 years so you know they are experts in their skill. The instrumental playing alone would blow you away. Fans started showing up for the show early and there was a packed house before 7pm and that was just he start. The anticipation of this show had been building for weeks, it was the show every one was talking about. The club was well equipped with a fantastic light and sound crew that made all the bands sound and look amazing, perfect for taking pictures and videos of the show. So let's get to introducing you to these incredible musicians.
Piper's Rush opened the show, members include: Jody Piper, "vocals/keyboards/bass", Dan "lead guitar/keyboards", Lyle pounding the skins. These guys have been playing music for as long as the Official Rush band. The members of Piper's Rush have been members of other local bands stemming back to the 1980's. The song list consisted of tunes like, "Tom Sawyer", "Limelight", "Freewill", & Rush's epic instumentals. I remember not even of age to be in a nightclub let alone getting the chance to see some amazing musicians, I slipped by security at a little ole place called, The Black Dog in Stateline, ID. I remember as I neared the dance floor, the music coming from the stage. I had to stop and do a triple take to verify that the band performing that night wasn't actually the original Rush. The band playing that night was called, "Glider" and they were playing a Rush song that sounded so close to the original it was uncanny. That was some 30 years ago and that same lead singer is now the lead singer of The Piper's Rush Tribute. They sounded better than ever, the years have been kind, it was a step back in time when things were simpler and rock n roll was at it's finest.
The second act to perform called themselves, "Humans Being Van Halen Tribute". The name comes from an original Van Halen song when Sammy Hagar was singing lead. There was some controversy if this show was going to happen at all? The original VH Tribute was changed just a week before the show was suppose to go off. There was a last minute cancellation from the lead of Top Jimmy's Ultimate Van Halen Tribute so we had to scramble for a replacement. All the other members were original but they needed a lead singer. Luckily Jesse Bishop stepped up to the plate and our new Van Halen Tribute was formed. Members include: Jesse Bishop, as David Lee Roth, "Lead Vocals", Matt Smith, as Shreddie Van Halen, shredding the lead guitar", David McClave, as Michael Anthony on the "Jack Daniels" bass guitar and keyboards, and Russ Rosenbalm, pounding the skins as Alex Van Halen. With only 3 days for the new lead singer to learn 23 songs and one practice together under their belts, they were able to pull off the show. There were a few problems as with any show, the new Roth forgot some of the words to a few of the songs but that is just a small detail and to be expected with just the short time he had to learn them all. Then there were a few technical difficulties where one of the microphones stopped working and the show was delayed for about 5 minutes as Jesse Bishop and lead singer cracked a few jokes to buy a little time until the issue could be taken care of. They played all the old school Van Halen Hits," Dance The Night Away"," Hot For Teacher", and closed their set with," Ice Cream Man", with crowd participation. The members of " Humans Being Van Halen", also played in bands that go back to the 1980's such as, "The Edge", and "Haven", to name a few.
Headlining the show was, "Innersanctum's Led Zeppelin", these guys have been playing together since the good ole days of the 80's. Members include: Willy Ford, as Robert Plant on lead vocals, Terry Mayden, shredding the lead guitar, Russ Wendt, Bass/keyboards, Leon Laffoon on drums. Members of this band have gone through some hard times in the last few years, with Willy Ford's health scare that took him away from the scene for several months to the loss of a spouse just a day before this last Christmas. But despite all the hardship this band has been through you could never had been the wiser with last night's performance. Belting out tunes such as, "Stairway to Heaven", "Whole Lotta Love", Been A Long Time", & "Living Loving Maid" mix amongst others. With a Led Zeppelin Tribute Band, Zoso playing the night before at The Knitting Factory it didn't seem to be any competition for Innersanctum's Led Zeppelin Tribute. Terry Mayden is one of the best lead guitarists of any Zeppelin Tributes I have ever seen. He did this incredible bow guitar solo last night it was crazy good, it blew my mind, everyone in the venue was totally blown away, if you missed never fear I have footage of the unforgettable performance. I was told Innersactum's Led Zeppelin had some awesome tricks up their sleeve for this show and that they sure did.
This show totally Rocked but it wasn't without it's problems, from member cancellations, to everyone thinking the show was cancelled completely, to the technical difficulties and the short notice replacement, not to mention the small incident that took place with me and another that was quickly resolved, the crew was just a little stressed but everything was under control and the crowd was none the wiser. The Roadhouse was the place to be last night, the club is nice and well equipped for live entertainment. The musicians were outstanding and performed to a packed house with 90 minute sets each. The crowd was dancing and just enjoying some old school ear piercing, and the best I might say, rock n roll, it was an all around good time. If you missed this show? you missed one of the best tributes you will see this year. And that's the way the speaker blows. Until next time, ROCK ON.
