Hollywood Undead brings the dead to live in Fort Wayne

When Hollywood Undead hits the road, you know a party is coming to town. Their mix of rock and hip hop is a lethal dose of music and there’s no escaping it. When the group hit Fort Wayne’s Piere’s Entertainment Center recently, it was no exception. Fresh on the heels of their fourth record, Day Of The Dead, Hollywood Undead have an even bigger catalog of music at their disposal and they utilized every bit of it at Piere’s and, after sets from two local bands and a set from Cane Hill that fell just short of exciting, Hollywood Undead took the stage for what can only be described as a 17-song rock-party-rave that lived up to the reputation of both the band and the venue. For years they had opened with “Undead” but this time around it was “Unusual Suspects” from the new record that kicked things off before blasting straight into “Undead.” From the very beginning it was clear Hollywood Undead had come to party and they weren’t letting up until everyone in the crowd was raving right there with them. With four albums under their belts, there’s bound to be fan favorites that aren’t in the setlist this time around and those songs included “City,” “Young” and “We Are” but they made up for it with an amazing medley halfway through the set that included numerous classics- “No. 5,” “California,” “Bottle and a Gun” as well as “Apologize” from American Tragedy and a cover of “Gin and Juice.” That wasn’t the only cover, either- they played a killer version of Johnny Cash’s “Folsom Prison Blues” that was a perfect change of pace. They only criticism is that they have so many songs that fans want to hear and so little time that they could easily throw in some more originals- “Black Dahlia,” “Young,” “Paradise Lost” (that dual drum solo was priceless) or “We Are” would work very well- as would “How We Roll” from Day of the Dead. The band was at the top of their game in Fort Wayne and watching them perform live is an experience. With six members, it’s a very intense and artistic performance and a fun one to watch. Each member has their specific parts they sing/rap live and they’re always switching spots on stage so there’s never a dull moment. The party took a shot of adrenaline when the band pulled a random guy on stage for a “twerk-off” with Funny Man. It was even more entertaining since the fan was dressed like a woman- with a corset, fuzzy boots and a long blond wig….and he won the battle too. To reward him, the band let him stay on stage and bust a move during “Comin’ In Hot,” much to the crowd’s excitement. They ended their set with the title track from the new album before taking the stage again for a two-song encore of “Everywhere I Go” and “Hear Me Now,” that tore the roof off the place and was a perfect finish. In the end, Hollywood Undead proved they’re back with a vengeance. They’ve always been one of the most fun live bands to watch and they showed exactly why when they hit Piere’s. If you haven’t seen them on this tour, go now. If you just haven’t seen them, this is the tour to start with. If you’re like us and you’ve seen them at least once on each album cycle, this tour proves exactly why. -Reggie Edwards [lg_slideshow folder=\”2015/Hollywood Undead in Fort Wayne/\”]