Stone Sour bring House of Gold and Bones to Fort Wayne

Stone Sour may be one of the most highly-demanded bands of the last two years. With two brand new albums between October 2012 and April 2013, The House of Gold & Bones Part 1 &2, Corey Taylor, Josh Rand, Roy Mayorga, Jonny Chow and Jim Root are determined to take the band to the top of the metal world. In May 2013, Corey Taylor and Josh Rand said in numerous interviews that 2014 would see a major break for Stone Sour while Taylor, Root and the other seven members of Slipknot work on their highly-anticipated fifth album, but when the fans ask for a tour, the fans get a tour. Hence why the band is out on a spring 2014 tour with Pop Evil and Stolen Babies, and the band is getting exactly what they expected with the high demand- numerous sold out shows. On this tour the band chose mainly dates in cities that stood out on their 2013 tour and, one of those stops, Piere’s in Fort Wayne, Ind., was easily one of the standout cities. In January 2013, the Indiana fans at Piere’s lived up to their reputation by body surfing trash cans to the stage, body surfing so much that security couldn’t keep up, throwing water bottles and other objects around the pit and singing so loud on most of the songs that Corey Taylor himself was forced to stop, applaud and thank the fans at many spots of the songs. On that tour they brought newcomers Otherwise with them and Papa Roach on select dates. This time around they brought an even heavier-hitter in Pop Evil and openers Stolen Babies.  With Pop Evil on the bill the fans were guaranteed to get more than their money’s worth and one of the most high-tempo shows ever. Opening the show on this tour was Stolen Babies who, even by their own admission, didn’t fit the lineup well, but when Corey Taylor calls and personally requests you to be on his tour, you don’t turn it down and they brought their best material with them. With a set and sound reminiscent of a Tim Burton film, Stolen Babies kicked off the night with an avant-garde/punk/rock/metal set that had half the crowd screaming with excitement and approval and the other half scratching their heads trying to wrap their minds around what they were seeing on stage. [lg_slideshow folder=\”2014/House of Gold and Bones Spring Tour/Stolen Babies/\”] A three-piece band out of California, Stolen Babies are one of the most artistic, creative and odd bands you’ll ever see or hear and their latest record, Naught, showcases that in a very dark and personal way. Some say they didn\’t fit the lineup well, but when you sit down and think about it, Stone Sour’s HOGAB records are two of their most creative and artistic yet and Pop Evil have a sort of beauty and powerful art to their latest offering, Onyx, so, in a different way, Stolen Babies fit right in. By the end of their set they had grown and developed a massive amount of new fans and the line at their merch booth was growing- I’d say they did their job as an opener. Pop Evil took the stage next and even as their intro music and early seconds of “Deal with the Devil” started, the energy was intensified significantly. The band started to take the stage and the energy in the crowd was indescribable. They blasted right into “Deal with the Devil” and it was clear they were there to stake their claim as the top rising band in the business right now as they exploded into one of the most high-octane sets ever. Their stage presence is like insanity on steroids and they know exactly how to get the crowd to a point where they’re almost rabid. Frontman Leigh Kakaty is the type that will do whatever he has to do to get the crowd screaming, yelling and getting out of their comfort zones for the time the band is on stage. [lg_slideshow folder=\”2014/House of Gold and Bones Spring Tour/Pop Evil/\”] Drummer Chachi Riot is a beast on the kit as well, rarely sitting down and it’s a surprise his drums haven’t been busted with how hard he rails on them song after song.  They’re a fun band to watch and one of the most talented young bands around and, for having just released their third album, Onyx, last May they have reached a level of popularity few bands reach this early in their careers. Finally it was time for Stone Sour to take the stage and what little energy the Fort Wayne crowd had left was soon annihilated when the Des Moines, Iowa-native band took over the night. With a man like Corey Taylor at the helm, there’s no telling what’s coming and what you’re in for going into the show and that was surely the case at this show. They kicked it off with the title track to their House of Gold and Bones albums and then led into “RU486” and “Say You’ll Haunt Me” and the crowd was already on the verge of a riot of excitement. Every major song the band has had was in the setlist including some new tracks they hadn’t been able to play live from Part 2 yet, making for an impressive and stacked setlist, which the fans fed off of even more. Stone Sour couldn’t have sounded better, either, which isn’t a surprise. They’re one of those bands who won’t accept anything less than complete perfection and demand the best of themselves for the better of their fans. They blasted the crowd away with impeccable stage presence and engagement. They’re one band who knows exactly what the crowd wants and craves and they always give them that and take it to another level. [lg_slideshow folder=\”2014/House of Gold and Bones Spring Tour/Stone Sour/\”] They ended the show with what may be the best KISS cover of “Love Gun” ever performed. Corey Taylor started introducing the song by saying it was time for the cover song of the night and that they’d been performing this one all over the country now that the band is FINALLY going into the Hall of Fame. He didn’t even need to say the name of the band because the crowd immediately erupted. Taylor did his Paul Stanley impression, which was freakishly accurate, to introduce the song and blasted into the cover that tore the roof off the building. They closed out the rest of the night with a two song encore of “Gone Sovereign” and “Absolute Zero” that made the crowd seem like a pack of rabid wolves in a cage with how insane they went for the encore. As a whole, the show was everything you could expect from Stone Sour and the rest of the lineup. If you were at the Fort Wayne show last year, you got exactly what you got then and, if you weren’t, you got the experience of a lifetime. Post-show interview with Stolen Babies: Pre-show interview with Pop Evil drummer Chachi Riot: