It’s been a long, brutal winter, but spring is finally hitting New York City. The days of summer rock concerts and all-day festivals are near... but not quite here. May is looking disappointingly slow when it comes to the volume of shows, especially in the last two weeks of the month, but there are certainly a handful of gems amid the empty weeks to get us through until summer kicks in full gear. Here are the concerts on the New York Hard Rock Examiner’s radar for May 2011:
Thursday, May 5th: Rammstein at Izod Center. Cinco de Mayo is going to be a hell of a day for rock n’ roll this year. The mighty Rammstein return after December’s sold out monster of a show at MSG, and will be blowing the everlasting sh*t out of Izod Center this time around. Tickets are sold out, but selling briskly on Stubhub and Craigslist. This is a not-to-miss show if you can find tickets, but otherwise, consider...
Thursday, May 5th: Amon Amarth at Best Buy Theater. The Swedish Viking metallers are sure to tear apart the underground Best Buy, which has become THE premiere venue for NYC metal. General admission floor and seats means you can mosh til you bleed, or watch comfortably from cup-holder equipped theater seats.
Thursday, May 5th: Jason Bonham at State Theater. Led Zeppelin fans get a chance to relive the glorious, bombastic music of one of the world’s greatest hard rock bands as Bonzo’s son brings his tribute show back for a second run. This NJ date is the first of two shows, so New Yorkers should consider which venue and date is best for them. Check out my review of Bonham’s spectacular Best Buy performance last year by clicking here.
Thursday, May 5th: UFO at Crazy Donkey. With four shows on the same day spread across the region, it’s a tough call which to attend, but there’s no question that UFO’s show will rock as hard as any other. Few groups have been around as long and made as much of an impact as these early metalheads, and the Donkey is a great place to get an intimate show from the legends.
Friday, May 6th: Bon Jovi at Nassau Coliseum. Jon Bon Jovi & friends have been on a seemingly unending tour for years now, and after a three night stand at Madison Square Garden back in February, they’re returning to rock Long Island. Tickets are still available, and note the unique setup of the band’s stage and seating on the Ticketmaster page. You can read my review of their MSG show here.
Tuesday, May 10th: Jason Bonham at NYCB Theater at Westbury. The Led Zeppelin Experience comes to Long Island, where only 2/3rds of the roundhouse theater will be open so fans can enjoy the impressive video display that comes along with the show. If you didn’t catch this show at Best Buy or the New Jersey State Theater, consider this your last opportunity to rock out with true Zeppelin blood.
Wednesday, May 11th: The Deftones at Starland Ballroom. The alt-metal favorites took a few years off when bassist Chi was rendered comatose in a car accident, but after a successful tour with Alice in Chains last year (my review here), they are ready to return and kick ass as headliners once more. This show, as well as both companion shows at Best Buy, are sold out, but tickets can be found at a marked up price on Stubhub and Craigslist.
Wednesday, May 11th: Whitesnake at NYCB Theater. Long Islanders will be flocking back to Westbury as David Coverdale and Whitesnake go again (on their own). With a second show at Manhattan’s Irving Plaza, consider whether you want to sit or stand when judging which one to attend.
Wednesday, May 11th: Cavalera Conspiracy at Irving Plaza. Sepultura absolutely destroyed the Gramercy Theatre this past Monday (my review here), and now the brothers who founded that band will be expected to do the same. They’ve just released their second album, Blunt Force Trauma, and are including a heavy dose of Sepultura songs in their setlists. A must for any old school metalheads.
Friday - Saturday May 13th-14th: The Deftones at Best Buy. While Best Buy is a killer venue for metal, perhaps someone underestimated just how popular The Deftones still are, as both shows at the 2,100 capacity venue sold out just like the New Jersey date. Tickets can be had from brokers, but there are only a few dozen available so snatch them up now if you plan on going.
Friday, May 13th: UFO at B.B. King’s. Second chance to catch one of the best original hard rock bands around, this time at the underground B.B. King’s. Doors are listed at 7pm so be sure get there earlier than normal, especially if you want to catch Brazilian metallers Mindflow.
Sunday, May 15th: Suffocation at Santo’s Party House. Support your local New York death metal favorites at the small but wild Santo’s. Metal shows there are always extra brutal as the moshing consumes much of the small floor, and with a band like Suffocation you can bet on a crushing performance.
Monday, May 16th: Mushroomhead with (hed) p.e. at Gramercy Theatre. The so-called Hed-to-Head tour was a fantastic success when they played the Gramercy back in 2009, and this time around should be even better. Expect a great stage show from the art-metal masters in Mushroomhead (my review of their Connecticut show last September here), and loyal Juggalos out in full force for the rap-metallers in (hed) p.e.
Wednesday, May 18th: Whitesnake at Irving Plaza. While Westbury is a great venue to sit comfortably and enjoy a performance, if you want to really rock out, you’ll hit up the floor of Irving Plaza to get face to face with the 80’s greats. Singer Coverdale has managed to stay as strong and powerful as ever even as the band enters its third decade, so fans shouldn’t think twice about catching Whitesnake’s hits in the relatively intimate Irving Plaza.
Thursday, May 19th: Sully Erna at Grand Ballroom. Godsmack is playing the upcoming Mayhem Festival and rocked Hammerstein Ballroom last fall (my review here), but in between frontman Erna is touring behind his surprisingly mellow solo album Avalon. Tickets are still available, but be aware that the show is assigned seating. It’s probably a safe bet to assume that Sully will bust out at least one or two Godsmack songs, but don’t expect a normal metal show from the jungle drum-loving musician.
Thursday, May 19th: Alter Bridge at Best Buy Theater. Frontman Myles Kennedy has been getting lots of attention as Slash’s singer (my review of Slash’s solo tour here) but his main band Alter Bridge rocks pretty hard in their own right. Southern rockers Black Stone Cherry will be opening what is sure to be a night of impressive hard rock.
Saturday, May 21st: Apocalyptica at Irving Plaza. Who said heavy metal could only be played with guitars? This Finnish band first rose to fame with intense cello covers of Metallica songs, but have since developed a quality discography of their own. The group was right on point when they played Best Buy last year (review here) and fans can expect the same, if not better, at the much smaller Irving Plaza.
Saturday, May 21st: Front Line Assembly at Highline Ballrom. In the mood for some industrial? Check out the Canadian electro-industrial FLA, and reunited opening act Die Krupps as a bonus.
Notable Mention:
Saturday, May 21st: Air Sex World Championships at Bowery Ballroom. Ever hear of the Air Guitar Championships? (my coverage of last year’s national finals here) This is basically the same idea, but with sex. The fun-loving folks at Rocks Off are legally required to forbid actual nudity, but anything else goes. Guns n’ Roses tribute Appetite For Destruction will be playing as well, so this is bound to be one of the wilder shows in NYC that night.
Thursday, May 26th: A Pale Horse Named Death Pre-release Listening Party at Idle Hands Bar. The best stoner/doom band you haven’t heard of yet is about to drop their debut album, and you can join Sal Abruscato from Type O Negative as he and his bandmates show off their hard work at this Alphabet City bar.
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