FOZZY AT THE STONE PONY IN ASBURY PARK
Being a musician myself, and an obvious huge fan of music, I have attended hundreds of concerts since attending my first one back in 1994. Since I started reviewing and shooting concerts, you can add even more attended shows to my list. When people ask about some of my favorite shows, it is never easy to narrow it down with the abundance on my list. This past Thursday, Fozzy took the stage at the legendary Stone Pony in Asbury Park, NJ. This, my friends, was one of those shows that literally had me so blown away I had to keep reminding myself that I was there to shoot the show as well - it was that good! From the opener GFM, to the headliner Fozzy, this show will go down as one of the best shows I have ever seen.
If you have ever attended a show inside at the Pony, the lighting setup is pretty basic. Depending on what the bands bring for their stage setup, there isn’t much excitement to it. Sound is always top notch, which is huge for anyone performing there as an act, and of course is highly important for those in attendance watching. Both the opening act, Gold Frankincense & Myrrh (GFM), and Fozzy had very simple stage setups. The performances, energy, engagement with the crowd, and the songs they rocked from their set lists was all they needed to rock the Pony and make this one of the best shows I have seen in quite some time!
This was my first time seeing GFM live. I heard of them in the past, but never listened to their music or saw any of their performances either live or online. One word to sum up their live performance: AMAZING. I was literally blown away from start to finish. Seeing these 3 sisters share an equal love and passion for music is just something else. They can perform, they can sing, and they are all shredding and beating the heads of the drums like they have been playing for decades. This is one of those openers you see and instantly fall in love with. “Bones” (one of my favorite), “Never Again”, “Smile”, “Give Me A Sign”, and “Taking Over” (another favorite of mine) are some of their songs they performed on the Pony stage. If certain words could make a reader truly understand and/or feel what I felt while watching these girls perform, I would list them all here. I think to fully get that feeling, you need to see GFM live in action for yourself.
Many know Chris Jericho from being in the WWE and now AEW. He has been one of the most respected wrestlers for decades. Chris Jericho and Rich Ward started Fozzy back in 1999. From a cover band to becoming a very successful heavy metal & hard rock original act, Fozzy is still rocking out harder than ever and they prove it when performing live! They have seven studio albums currently released that have brought them some top hits such as “Judas”, “Painless”, “When the Lights Go Out”, and “Enemy”. They played these live Thursday night along with some more of their best! Fozzy currently consists of Chris Jericho (vocals), Rick Ward (vox & guitar), Billy Grey (vox & guitar), P.J. Farley (vox & bass), and Grant Brooks on the drums. From the second the band took the stage, the crowd was at a 10. Every single member of Fozzy was rocking at a 10. Besides how much I loved the performance in regards to the music, the way Fozzy engaged themselves with the crowd (the entire show), truly made the show just that much better. Both Ward and Jericho showed me loved several times while shooting. Grey and Ward would get together to do some duet shredding while leaning on the barrier with all the fans. Jericho was back and forth on the stage, jumping off the Fozzy block and showing his fans all his appreciation while doing so. Jericho didn’t just thank the crowd, there was constant interaction with some fist pumps and high fives. To add some more excitement to this night, longtime friend and fellow wrestler, Bubba Ray Dudley, made his way to the barrier to surprise Jericho, Ward, and the rest of the boys during “Enemy”. I watched as Ward saw him first, and was so shocked and happy he immediately smiled and starting laughing as Dudley was rocking out right upfront! Jericho finally connected with Dudley and made his way over to give him a huge fist pump and a solid high five!
I drove to this show knowing it would be a good show. What I learned, was that both GFM and Fozzy are two of the best live performers and both put on absolutely amazing performances, leaving you with one great show for the night! The “Save The World" Tour 2022” still has plenty of shows left. If you are looking for a night out with some amazing music and some kick ass bands, this is a tour not to miss!