KILLER QUEEN: A Tribute To Queen
After winning a set of tickets from a Quad Cities-area radio station,
last night I attended a Killer Queen concert at the Rhythm Section Amphitheater in Mount Carroll, IL.
I know the discussion of tribute bands vs. the real thing has come up
before in Forgotten Hits. I'd never been to a concert by a tribute band
before, so I was curious as to how it would turn out.
I conducted zero research about the venue before I arrived. Needless to
say, I was taken by surprise when I learned that (a) there was a $10 fee
to park and (b) the venue only accepted cash ... so my Capitol One
credit card was no good there. Fortunately, I
still had a bag of quarters leftover from the laundromat, so I forked
over forty of them. Note to self - I need to hit the ATM next time.
Also, my lack of research meant that I did not bring a chair for myself.
I assumed - incorrectly - that there would be bleachers or some type of
seating provided. Wrong! So I ended up sitting on a ledge of some sort
made out of rocks. Afterwards, my friend
was nice enough to point out that I was at a "rock" concert, after all.
Get it?
So after a, uh, rocky start (sorry) to my night, the band came on stage
and they - one more ... I know I shouldn't ... totally rocked.
The sound
system was amazing and even though I was far away from the stage, being
outdoors didn't detract from the experience
at all. The band played through Queen's big hits and some album tracks,
and I was impressed with how well they interacted with the audience,
encouraging us to stand up, sing along, move our hands, clap along with
the beat, etc.
The lead singer nailed Freddie Mercury's speech and flair, and the
entire group captured the musicality and look of Queen perfectly. The
members showed off their talents during spectacular drum and guitar
solos. However, they had one special treat after their
"final" song, Radio Ga Ga.
Coming back for their encore, which consisted of Bohemian Rhapsody, We
Will Rock You and We Are The Champions, the lead singer invited us to
come down to the "mosh pit" right in front of the stage. So I did, and
standing just a few feet in front of the band
with other like-minded fans, really enhanced the experience. By the end,
it felt like I was attending an actual Queen concert.
According to the group's website, they will be coming to the Chicagoland
area later this month. If there's anyone on the fence about seeing a
tribute band, I'd definitely recommend checking these guys out.
I was pleasantly surprised to see so many young people in attendance,
some of whom appeared to be there without their parents making them
come, and they seemed to be enjoying themselves as much as I was.
Below are videos of the bands performance that I recorded. Check them out!
Colin Donahue
60 YEARS AGO TODAY:
7/18/64 - Wendy Williams is born
