With a line of fans stretching halfway around the waterfront at Downtown Disney, you could tell this was going to be a special night. Fans came from far and wide to witness Alter Bridge’s only United States stop on their current tour. As they all filed in the front doors of the House of Blues in Orlando, Fla., you could feel the excitement in the air, almost electric. From the first chord, it was a feeding frenzy for this Orlando crowd. A great reception from the capacity crowd on the new material from their fourth album, Fortress; a total sing-along as it was pretty evident that each person knew every word to every song!
Lead singer, Myles Kennedy was at the top of his game, a big improvement from what I witnessed in Boston with Slash this past July. His voice was in tune and well controlled. He doesn’t stretch the limits of his voice, he doesn’t need to.
Both Kennedy and lead guitarist, Mark Tremonti had commanding stage presence on opposite sides of the stage, each sporting guitars. Tremonti is truly the star of this group, he’s not shy about showing off his mad guitar skills, taking center stage with a huge smile on his face. He really seemed to enjoy playing in front of the sold-out crowd, feeding off their energy. Tremonti is a master of his craft. His guitar solos are technically amazing much to the pleasure of the crowd who gave him ovation after ovation in appreciation. His guitar solo during “Before Tomorrow Comes” was memorable and raised quite an ovation from the fans.
Speaking of memorable moments, the surprise of the evening came when a couple got engaged right on stage halfway through the show. This will be a moment they will forever cherish.
A solemn, almost religious part of the show show came through the power ballad, “Blackbird”. Hands were waiving, swaying in unison. I’m not sure who sang louder, Alter Bridge of the capacity crowd. They played all their hits, leaving nothing uncovered for their roughly 90-minute set. Ending with “Open Their Eyes”, their first single off their debut album, One Day Remains, they left the stage leaving their fans totally satisfied that they got their money’s worth.
Alter Bridge now takes their tour overseas to Europe, but U.S. fans can get their fix by pre-ordering Fortress at outlets everywhere. Check out their website for your favorite outlet.
