Seether – Live At The Pageant

The Pageant in St. Louis has built a reputation as one of the best concert venues in the country.  Built in 2000 this venue has a seating capacity of 1000 to 2300 people with amazing acoustics and the furthest seat is 70 feet from the stage.  There is not a bad seat in the house and plenty of cocktail waitresses guaranteeing a phenomenal time to be had by all.

As the lights dim the opening act Pop Evil takes the stage with an energy and vigor that any big name rock act can envy.  This Michigan based band is comprised of Leigh Kakaty (Vocals), Matt DiRito (Bass), Dylan Allison (Drums), Tony Greve(Guitar), and Dave Grahs (Guitar).  They are one of the few bands that can tell time because they hit the stage promptly at 8pm.  Leigh’s powerful vocals and guttural screams quickly get the fans to their feet and the devil horns in the air.  The raw talent and rhythmic strength of Pop Evil is contagious.

With the success of their 2008 release of Lipstick on the Mirror, there is no question that they will concrete themselves in the rock industry.  After “Breath,” one of the definite crowd favorites of the night, Leigh thanked the rocking crowd of St. Louis for coming out on a Tuesday night.  Sorry Leigh, it’s actually Wednesday – but when you live the rock and roll lifestyle it really doesn’t matter what the day is.  At least you got the city right.  They followed up “Breath” with a cut off of the unreleased album War of Angels called “The Boss’s Daughter”.  It’s a telling tune about defiling the daughter of your hated boss.

After Dave Grahs’ guitar solo which was reminiscent of Van Halen’s “Jamie’s Cryin’” mixed with “Eruption,” the band arrives back on stage.  Matt DiRito exhales a blast of smoke and Leigh offers up a correction of what night it actually was.  His excuse: “I’ve been partying all night and I still haven’t gone to sleep.  So it’s still Tuesday to me.”  Nice cover.  We bought it.

Pop Evil wails out a couple more tracks from Lipstick on the Mirror and then offers us another unreleased song called “Last Man Standing.”  Their sophomore album War of Angels (Universal Republic Records) will be produced by Midwest native Johnny K and will be released later this year.  Their songs will also be featured in ABC and ESPN’s Nascar programming from September to October.  They end the night with “100 in a 55” and “Hero” revving up the crowd and setting the stage for Seether.

As you take a minute to order a drink in between acts you can see the pit is filled to capacity and the crowd’s excitement is unbearable.  The anticipation of the South African born Los Angeles adopted band is looming until the roar of “No Jesus Christ” appeases the masses.  Instantly, rock fans start jumping and thrashing about in the pit.  Shaun Morgan’s vocals are strong and impressive from the start.

Originally born Shaun Morgan Welgemoed, this frontman/guitarist decided to drop his last name shortly after his 2002 move to the United States.  His reasoning? Americans had too much difficulty pronouncing Welgemoed (pronounced Velgamoot).  Prior to the band’s move they were called Saron Gas but eventually settled on the name Seether after the song by Veruca Salt.  They began promoting their first album Disclaimer which leads us to the next songs Shaun belts our way, “Needles” and “Fine Again.”  It was at this point in the show where the crowd really became one with the music.  The lead guitar work of Troy McLawhorn coupled with the commanding bass of Dale Stewart pulsates through the venue and inspires the fans to hunger for more hard rock.

It is difficult not to mention Amy Lee of Evanescence when talking about Shaun Morgan; after all, “Call Me When You’re Sober” was about their very public break up after a lengthy romantic relationship. “Broken” was rewritten in 2006 from an acoustic ballad to an electric hit featuring Amy Lee.  The song was originally written by Shaun and he explained in 2004: “I wrote it two-and-a-half years ago for my daughter; she was just born and I had to come to the States (from South Africa) and I wrote the lyrics for her. It’s about leaving somebody behind, you know that is really painful to do, and ultimately you’re looking to the future saying ‘we’ll see each other again and everything will be fine.”  When the first few chords of the song started the crowd immediately knew what was to come and Seether did not disappoint.  It sounded amazing.

With the amped up crowd hypnotized by the hard rock sounds of Seether, the band takes a brief intermission with the exception of drummer John Humphrey.  Humphrey tosses his drum sticks in to the crowd and begins a bongo style percussion solo on his drum sets.  Not only was it hilarious to see but it actually sounded good.  After a couple of minutes of his bongo improvisation he picks up some drum sticks and transitions his solo to “Gasoline” as the rest of the band joins him on stage.

Ironically, after Seether sang “The Gift,” the St Louis fans were gifted with a new unreleased song called “No Resolution,” which is guaranteed to be their next hit.  This was followed by the George Michael cover “Careless Whisper.”  Unless you hear Shaun in person there is no possible way to describe the power and range of his voice.

True Seether fans would agree that the most powerful point in the evening was the song “Rise Above This.” It deals with the aftermath of suicide and the emotions and questions of the families and friends that are left behind.  Shaun was aware of his brother’s suicidal tendencies and wrote the song with his brother Eugene in mind.  A few weeks before the release of Finding Beauty in Negative Spaces, Eugene committed suicide by jumping out of an eight story window at the Radisson Hotel in Rapid City, SD.  The song has since been dedicated to his memory and is a reminder to all that there are other options and resources for help.

For a band with many dark and angry lyrics, Seether certainly smile and enjoy themselves on stage, constantly joking with one another and relishing in the gift they share with us, the fans.  Shaun ends the night by tossing his guitar on one of the speakers and riding it like a surfboard.  Whether he misses the waves in Southern California or South Africa, we thank you for making a stop in the Midwest and rocking St. Louis.

by Tom Sorcabal

______________________________________________________________

Pop Evil Set List

• New Song – Title Unknown
  
• Breath
• The Boss’s Daughter
• Guitar Solo
• Another Romeo and Juliet
• Somebody Like You
• New Song – Title Unknown
• Last Man Standing
• 100 in a 55
• Hero

Seether Set List

• No Jesus Christ
• Needles
• Fine Again
• Driven Under
• Broken
• Gasoline
• The Gift
• No Resolution
• Careless Whisper
• Rise Above This
• Fake It
• Remedy