LIVE: SHINEDOWN – Mt. Pleasant, MI, USA – June 7, 2024

Venue: Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort

City: Mount Pleasant, MI

Dates: June 7, 2024

Review and Photographs by: Todd “Toddstar” Jolicoeur (www.toddstarphotography.com)

Venturing a couple hours across Michigan, I found myself at Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort in Mount Pleasant on a Friday night for what was to be another amazing show, but we will get to that.  Openers Stopgap Solution brought sevens tracks, including a snippet of a Nirvana track tossed in for good measure.  They more than aptly warmed up the sold out crowd that started packing the venue the minute the doors opened.  The five guys on stage enjoyed their allotted time as did the audience.  It was fun to watch a band working to win over a crowd that was there to see Shinedown, as to do so successfully.  Their songs were perfect to help set the proverbial stage for the headliners and the audience ate them up.  After their time, the stage was converted and readied for the evening the capacity crowd had waited about four months for.  With no intro or fanfare, Shinedown took their respective places and hit us with hit after hit for nearly two hours.  Show opener “Devil” was a cool track to lead with and help set the pace for the night, with follow-up “Diamond Eyes (Boom-Lay Boom-Lay Boom)” setting the bar sonically.  Full disclosure: this is one of my favorite Shinedown tracks and to hear it early in the set got me rocking and rolling immediately.  Frontman Brent Smith led the charge and perfectly controlled the flow of the show from centerstage as well as delivering a flawless performance.  Other songs filled the set list, including “State of My Head,” “I’ll Follow You,” and “Unity,” amping the crowd up song after song as everyone either enjoyed their favorite or waited for it.  Reaching back into the catalog, the guys rolled through “45” before tossing “Enemies” into the mix.  Throughout the set, guitarist Zach Myers played his ass off and gave us all of the solos and riffs we expected, wanted, and needed to hear.  The Shinedown classic “Sound of Madness” landed in the set just short of halfway through the set and secured the fact that everyone was on their feet and singing.  A new favorite of mine, “A Symptom of Being Human” followed and was a shining moment (literally as the venue was illuminated by cellphones and lighters at Brent’s request) for bassist Eric Bass to climb behind a piano and deliver a beautiful accompaniment that drove the track from start to finish.  “How Did You Love” was placed perfectly in the setlist and performed with precision setting up the remainder of the set.  The duo of “Planet Zero” and “Dead Don’t Die” was a perfect pairing to watch and listen to drummer Barry Kerch play his heart out and leave everything on the stage.  As we headed into the final stretch, the band ripped through “Second Chance” again getting anyone that took a break and sat down up out of their seats and singing at the top of their lungs.  A mashup of “Daylight” and “Get Up” was a cool blend that married the two songs seamlessly before the Lynyrd Skynyrd cover “Simple Man” from Myers and Smith from the center of the stage.  Closing out the show with “Monsters” and the bombastic “Cut the Cord” the guys wrapped up their only scheduled Michigan visit this summer.  As I walked out all you saw were smiles, people singing, and groups of people already reminiscing about the fun and magic they just witnessed.  Shinedown does this as good as anyone out there today and I cannot wait to see what they have up their sleeves for us in 2025 and beyond.

Shinedown Setlist: Devil – Diamond Eyes (Boom-Lay Boom-Lay Boom) – State of My Head – I’ll Follow You – Unity – 45 – Enemies – Sound of Madness – A Symptom of Being Human – How Did You Love – Planet Zero – Dead Don’t Die – Second Chance – Daylight / Get Up – Simple Man – Monsters – Cut the Cord

Stopgap Solution Setlist: Mountains – Like No Other – My Friends – Lose Control – Skeptic – One More Time – Won’t Find Me

[Show as slideshow]

COMPLETE SET OF SHINEDOWN PHOTOS

SHINEDOWN LINKS:

OFFICIAL SITE

FACEBOOK

X – TWITTER

INSTAGRAM

TOUR DATES

[Show as slideshow]

COMPLETE SET OF STOPGAP SOLUTION PHOTOS

STOPGAP SOLUTION LINKS:

FACEBOOK

INSTAGRAM

Tags: featured

Category: Live Reviews, Photo Galleries