My 1,000th Concert Since 1986

On July 27, 2018 I saw Godsmack, Shinedown and Like A Storm at Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre in Tinley Park, IL. It was my 1,000^th concert since April 1986.

If you’re wondering how I could possibly know this, back in 1998, I created a list of concerts I had seen up to that point and just never stopped keeping track of shows.

When I originally bought a ticket back in March for this Godsmack/Shinedown co-headline date, I had no idea this concert would be #1000, but I am super glad it was. Not only did I get to celebrate this milestone show with my awesome concert partner-in-crime friend, Kim, I liked EVERY band on the bill. PLUS, I was in the G.A. pit, second row from the rail.

The night was AMAZING even though it felt like it went by WAAAY TOO FAST! Although, that just meant I was having a TON of fun.

To start, this show was my 20^th time seeing Like A Storm (since August 2009). Funny enough, the first time I saw/heard of them was opening for Creed at this same exact venue. At the time, I had no idea who LAS were, but I had to know more about them! I’ve been lucky that they have played in my area so often over the years. Their set for this particular show was a short 30 minutes but packed a real punch. They played a couple new songs from their recent album, Catacombs, along with my fave song of theirs, Wish You Hell. It was cool to see them continuing to incorporate the didgeridoo in a lot of their set. It makes such a cool noise and fits in perfectly with their sound. When I think back, Like A Storm have really come a long way and I wish them many more years of continued success.

Shinedown. Shinedown. Shinedown. While I knew the radio singles way back when, the 2004 show where I first I saw them (they were the opening band on the Van Hagar reunion tour at United Center in Chicago) REALLY got me interested. They quickly became one of my Top 5 bands and I never looked back. This 2018 show was my 26^th time seeing the band and they did not disappoint. Their set was ON FIRE! They opened with Sound of Madness (one of THE greatest songs to hear live) and it was game one! Man, I took in every second of their set. I soaked in every note and action on stage. I was so caught up in the moment, at times, I felt as if I was the only one in the crowd. Their light/laser/pyro show was one of the best I have seen. Seriously, the person that came up with that spectacle deserves a raise!

While Shinedown can’t play all of the fans faves, I was fully satisfied with the songs played that night. Just look at that set list (see photo below). Get Up was especially wonderful to hear. It is my fave of the new songs on Attention Attention and hearing it live for the first time was even better. If I remember correctly, Black Soul was chosen by fans who voted prior to the show date by making donations to charity via a website. It’s such a great song to hear live! During Simple Man, Brent and Zach went to the back of the seated area to a small stage to play for the folks at the back. It’s always cool when bands connect with the fans. They ended their approx. hour and 15 minute set with Devil, another from the new album. Such a great sing along song!

During the show, and during one of the slower songs, I held up my “1000^th show” sign hoping that Zach would see it. He did and gave me a thumbs up acknowledgment. Super cool. At the end of their set, I held it up again and he threw one of his yellow Attention Attention picks to me. I missed it (hey, catching picks isn’t always easy) but the girl next to me found it and handed it to me. Again, Super cool and super thanks to them both! 🙂 Oh and the other two picks in the picture? Zach and Eric had a limited amount (25 sets) of city specific picks that were sold each night. I lucked out and bought a set.

Godsmack. My 15th show since May 2004. Side note: They were the opening band for Metallica’s tour in 2004 and I saw them 6 times in 3 different states due to traveling to see Metallica. Needless to say, I didn’t want to see Godsmack live for a long time after that. HAHA

However, after seeing them in 2007 I realized I really did like the band, just not six times in one year. HAHA Anyway, their approx. hour and 15 minute set on this night was a lot of fun. They played four songs from their new album, When Legends Rise, which is great by the way. The majority of the rest of the set was full of all the songs most everyone loves. While all the guys in the band played really well, I couldn’t help but get sucked into the magnitude of Shannon Larkin’s playing. The man continues to be a BEAST. Of course, Sully and Shannon did not disappoint with their dueling drum segment. To this day, I still LOVE seeing them do this part. All smiles, ear to ear.