REVIEW: DROWNING POOL AT GRAMERCY THEATER IN NEW YORK CITY
On Monday, March 21, the “Brothers in Arms Tour” rolled into New York’s Gramercy Theater. The tour consisted of co-headliners Drowning Pool, and Ill Niño with support from (Hed) P.E., and Evolution Empire.
Evolution Empire started the show getting the crowd fired up with their brand of alternative rock. The crowd was moving and grooving and ready for a great show. The next band on the bill was the rap/rock veterans (Hed) P.E. They continued the energy and good feeling in the room. (Hed) P.E. talked frequently both in lyrics and in their quick talks between songs about where they’re from, Los Angeles. They rocketed through a 10 song set though and sounded great doing it. They played all of their hits such as “Raise Hell” from their 2005 album Only in Amerika. Vocalist of (Hed) P.E. made sure to thank the crowd for showing up to see them and the other bands on the tour. The band closed with “Renegade” which got the crowd to open the pit and dance some in preparation for Drowning Pool next.
The lights went black and it was time for Drowning Pool. They opened with a song I was very familiar with, “Sinner”. Drowning Pool was one of those bands on every major alternative rock station when I was in high school. Opening with a hit was immediately a crowd pleaser. The mosh pit opened right back up and people were ready to have a good time. Vocalist Jasen Moreno mentioned that the band has a new album coming out this year that they were very excited about. Interwoven through the hits and the nostalgia songs, were new songs to show that the band has not dialed anything back. This is their third album with Moreno. There was a great energy in the room and the band fed off it. They played “Strike a Nerve” the title track off the upcoming album, it sounded great and even not knowing the words, the crowd was dancing and pitting. As the set came to a halt, the band played their most well known song that had the crowd screaming the words right back, “Bodies”. Their set was a lot of fun and I recommend catching the tour if it hasn’t rolled through your town yet. Drowning Pool just also recently celebrated the 20th anniversary of their album Sinner which is where the biggest songs of the night like “Sinner” and “Bodies” come from.