On this date in history, 6/8/1999, hair metal had long since been put out to pasture by the grunge movement, but some of the bands were still out there making the rounds.
This was such an occasion. Poison, Ratt, Great White, and L.A. Guns converged at Deer Creek to recreate and re-live some of the glorious days of their hair sprayed, spandex glory.
It actually was pretty successful. After all, the music of that time was all about fun and it translated well into the outdoor summertime vibe in Noblesville.
L.A. Guns kicked off the show with a killer set and set the tone for all that followed. They were my primary reason for going, because they were the only band I hadn’t seen before.
I would have preferred a longer set, but with 4 bands, everyone had to sacrifice a little. This undoubtedly trimmed some of the fat, so to speak, and left us with mostly the best these bands had to offer.
Great White were next, and remained consistent with what I had seen from them in the past.
Ratt had a different singer, John Corabi, but otherwise were the same dependably raucous bunch as ever. Corabi actually sounds enough like Stephen Pearcy and resembles his look from a distance that most of the crowd didn’t even notice the change.
Poison headlined and did what they do, party rock with a lot of flash and plenty of smiles for the ladies. No big messages here, just solid fun and loud singalong anthems. Everyone indeed had “Nothin’ But a Good Time!”
Written By Braddon S. Williams aka The Concert Critic
The hair metal phenomenon was in full swing and this was a good lineup of bands that more or less complimented each other’s styles.
Russell’s vocals were also in the high register and lead guitar was the guiding force of the music.
Warren DeMartini’s blazing guitar talent planted Ratt firmly in the upper echelon of hair nation.
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