A healthy turnout appeared at the Mississippi State Amphitheater to catch a late evening performance from Jacksonville, Fla., quartet Shinedown, one of today’s most popular mainstream rock bands.
Known for such radio staples as “45,” “I Dare You,” “Save Me” and its cover of “Simple Man” by Southern rock pioneers Lynyrd Skynyrd, Shinedown is fresh off the heels of touring with Godsmack and Rob Zombie to support its latest album, Us and Them, released a year ago this month.
Us and Them is the follow-up to the band’s platinum-selling debut Leave a Whisper, originally released in 2003 and then re-released the next year. The group toured nearly two years for their freshman effort and is still going strong on the road. Along with Godsmack and Rob Zombie, Shinedown has recently been gigging with the likes of Van Halen, Seether, 3 Doors Down, Hinder and Saliva.
The native Floridians took the stage at 9:30 p.m. and pummeled through new material as well as old. Lead vocalist Brent Smith and guitarist Jasin Todd serenaded the crowd with a brief acoustic set before being rejoined by the other half of the lineup and confidently strolling through the most recognized rockers of the group’s catalogue.
During the acoustic set, Smith dedicated the band’s cover of “Simple Man” to “Dimebag” Darrell Abbott, former lead guitarist of metal groups Pantera and Damageplan who was killed while playing a show in 2004.
Opening acts for the group included Lexington, Ky., rockers Black Stone Cherry. During one song in their set they were joined by Smith.
After he finished, he yelled to the crowd, “Rock music will never die as long as Black Stone Cherry exists.”
During its last song, the group’s lead guitarist broke into an impromptu solo before being joined by the lead vocalist/guitarist.
Pennsylvania rock group Halestorm also made an appearance, kicking things off shortly after the doors opened at 7 p.m.
According to founding member and drummer of Shinedown Barry Kerch, the group’s success has hardly come easily.
“We didn’t start breaking through until I was 25, and we had already been a band for a few years by then,” Kerch said. “It took us a long time to get where we are now.”
The group, which began playing together six years ago, still considers Jacksonville to be its base and home. They found out about each other through various recommendations and mutual friends.
“Brent was working at a music studio and Jasin happened to work there also,” Kerch said. “Brad [Stewart, bassist] was a mutual friend of theirs, and I was recommended to them by Steve Robertson, who is an A&R representative at Atlantic Records, which is our record company.”
Before forming Shinedown, all the members were in various local bands around the Jacksonville area.
“Brad was in a grunge band and at one time was playing with Fred Durst of Limp Bizkit,” Kerch said. “I did the whole marching band thing in school and played with various lineups before finding these guys.”
The group is currently doing a handful of festival dates to finish this month before flying to Iraq, where it plans to play for American troops all over the country for a week.
“After we play for the troops we are going to take a well-deserved break before hitting the road again in December with metal group SOIL in North America,” Kerch said.
As far as more future plans go for the group, it is currently a coin toss.
“We might go overseas at the beginning of next year or we might decide to begin writing and recording for a new album,” Kerch said. “We aren’t sure at this point, but I’m sure we’ll make the decision that is best for us when the time is right.”