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X-103 May Day
Where: Verizon Wireless Music Center.
Bottom line: Keep old friends of mainstream metal, discard the new.
It's easy to take Godsmack for granted.
The mainstream metal band comes to town often -- as it did Saturday for the annual "May Day" show sponsored by radio station WRZX-FM (103.3) -- and the Boston-based quartet rarely strays from its textbook sound.
When performing for a Verizon Wireless Music Center audience of 12,000, Godsmack shifted seamlessly from "Faceless" (title track of its 2003 album) to "Bad Religion" (from its 1999 debut).
The band essentially cuts all of its songs from the same cloth: slightly demonic lyrics and musical texture, always matched to a radio-friendly chorus.
Vocalist Sully Erna excels because when he howls about being wronged, listeners feel his pain. Add the pummeling tandem of guitarist Tony Rambola and bass player Robbie Merrill, and Godsmack has translated its consistent (if not stubborn) nature into a loyal following.
The band recently issued a mini-album of "unplugged" material, but those songs must have been saved for an afternoon tent party for VIP guests and contest winners.
Not to worry. If you missed Godsmack this time, Erna announced the band will be back in August to support Metallica at Conseco Fieldhouse.
WRZX rounded out the bill with four "baby bands" -- which means these acts have yet to make it big (and time is running out).
Story of the Year made the biggest impression, thanks to a faster, more desperate style than the rest.
Vocalist Dan Marsala called lawn dwellers down to the pavilion, which triggered a wave of frantic interaction between some ticketholders and security personnel.
While this is a tired tactic for causing a commotion, it also illustrated Story of the Year's desire for rock 'n' roll to go down swinging if it's going down.
The band members' New Wave hairstyles were ironic, as were their pop-metal guitar tricks. But their interpretation of hardcore punk -- although sweetened more than purists will ever endorse -- provided a thrilling shot of adrenaline.
The trio Smile Empty Soul spoke to the kids by framing adults as people who either live in fear or give up.
Vocalist-guitarist Sean Danielson resembles Kurt Cobain without all the laughs and optimism. Despite his hopeless demise, Cobain frequently presented gallows humor and an appreciation of beauty in his art.
Danielson has studied Nirvana's quiet-loud blueprint well, and he's adopted an even gloomier outlook.
The other two bands, Breaking Benjamin and Finger Eleven, mostly rammed their heads against the bland, suffocating format of modern rock. That meant crunchy metal guitars and pained but pointless storytelling.