Reviews: KISS, Alabama, Steven Tyler, Deftones, Black Sabbath, Buddy Guy

Critics give their takes on KISS performing in Allentown, Pa.; Alabama’s concert in Saint Paul, Minn.; Steven Tyler rockin’ Atlanta, Ga.; Deftones devastating Las Vegas, Nev.; Black Sabbath roaring through Clarkston, Mich.; and Buddy Guy playing the blues in Columbus, Ohio.

Photo: Christopher Millette, Erie Times-News via AP
Erie Insurance Arena in Erie, Pa.

KISS @ Allentown Fair in Allentown, Pa., Sept. 1 – “‘There are no singers singing off stage. There’s no band playing off stage. There’s no pre-recorded music and no lip-synching,’ [Paul] Stanley told the crowd a couple of songs later. ‘And there’s no dancers humping each other on stage. We are a rock ’n’ roll band, and that’s what you deserve.’” – John J. Moser / The Morning Call

Alabama @ Minnesota State Fair in Saint Paul, Minn., Sept. 1 – “Right out of the gate, the trio and its six-piece backing band treated the 7,255 fans to three of the biggest Alabama hits: ‘If You’re Gonna Play in Texas (You Gotta Have a Fiddle in the Band),’ ‘Tennessee River’ and ‘Dixieland Delight.’ They then saved the biggest, ‘Mountain Music,’ for the end.” – Chris Riemenschneider /  Star Tribune

Steven Tyler @ Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre in Atlanta, Ga., Sept. 1 – “Yeah, there were some ‘country’ instruments on stage – obviously, since Tyler yearned to cut a Nashville-ized solo record and succeeded – but it was made very clear very fast that this wasn’t going to be a round robin at The Bluebird Café kind of night.” Melissa Ruggieri / Atlanta Journal Constitution

Photo: Charles Sykes / Invision / AP
NBC's "Today" show, Rockefeller Center, New York City

Deftones @ The Joint at hard Rock Hotel / Casino in Las Vegas, Nev., Aug. 30 – “From the moment Deftones stomped out with ‘Rocket Skates,’ [Sergio] Vega whipped his body around with a violence befitting his background in the 1980s New York hardcore scene. Vocalist Chino Moreno seemed to feed off Vega’s vibe, venturing down to the crowd along the barricade on virtually every song where he wasn’t playing guitar.” – Case Keefer / Las Vegas Weekly

Black Sabbath @ DTE Energy Music Theatre in Clarkston, Mich., Aug. 31 – “The instruments of riff-god guitarist Tony Iommi and aggressive bassist Geezer Butler rumbled and roared like dinosaurs making one last stomping ruckus before the asteroid slams into the earth and blankets it with dust.” – John Serba / MLive.com

Photo: Chris McKay / WireImage.com
"Experience Hendrix," Fox Theatre, Atlanta, Ga.

Buddy Guy @ Express Live! in Columbus, Ohio, Aug. 30 – “All the classic blues songs and a few now-classic originals scored, with Guy’s still-ear-opening guitar work front and center. From the start with ‘Damn Right, I Got The Blues,’ the guitarist mixed machine gun runs with broad legato notes and fuzzed-out chords in a trademark style that never failed to thrill.” – Curtis Schieber / The Columbus Dispatch

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