Reviews: Cher, Game Of Thrones, Ed Sheeran, Social Distortion, Anthrax/Killswitch Engage

Thinking to catch a show coming to your town? Check out these write-ups of performances from Cher in Oxon Hill, Md.; “Game Of Thrones Live” in Phoenix; Ed Sheeran in London; Social Distortion in Spokane, Wash.; and an Anthrax/Killswitch Engage co-bill in Montclair, N.J.

Hard Rock International – Frank Bello of Anthrax
Hard Rock Live, Orlando, Fla.

Cher @ The Theater at MGM National Harbor in Oxon Hill, Md., March 24 – “Many of the songs throughout the show were lip-synced by the charismatic performer, and she didn’t hide it well. At times she held her microphone very low to reveal her lips showing that the song was apparently not being performed live. For me, I think at 70 she has earned her stripes and proved her longevity as a performer. The audience didn’t seem to care as they all took to their feet during every song she sang.” – Raychel Harvey-Jones / MD Theatre Guide

Game Of Thrones Live Concert Experience at Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix, Ariz., March 28 – “Perhaps the concert’s greatest accomplishment was giving fans of the show a chance to collectively react to the violent saga in the same spirit as a sporting event. This made the arena setting much more suitable than a symphony hall. …. [George R.R.] Martin’s fantastical creation warranted this beautiful spectacle.” – Jason Keil / Phoenix New Times

Ed Sheeran at the Royal Albert Hall in London, England, March 28 – “While Sheeran’s hugely accomplished at this one-man show malarkey, it’s hard to shift the feeling that many of these songs might sound better still if they were performed, as they are on record, by a full band. So overworked was he on Galway Girl that he looked less like a singer and more like a panicked contestant on ‘MasterChef trying to plate up in time.” – Rick Pearson / Evening Standard

Social Distortion at the Knitting Factory Concert House in Spokane, Wash., March 25 – “‘Mob’ is a bit of an understatement for the crowd at the jam-packed Knitting Factory show on Saturday night. It was tough to find any room to move around, whether on the main floor, in the bar area or upstairs; it was wall-to-wall and instantly sweaty when Social Distortion took the stage and lit into the barreling ‘So Far Away’ and ‘Bad Luck,’ a worthy one-two punch of a show opener that got the mob to at least move forward and break into a pit in front of the stage.” – Dan Nailen / Inlander

Anthrax/Killswitch Engage at