Firehouse In Cedar Rapids, IA

Last night was the first time I've seen Firehouse as a headliner. I know they have been in the area before with their own club show, but this is the first I've seen of it. I've always seen Firehouse as an opening band, whether it be on the Rock Never Stops tour with Quiet Riot, Slaughter, and Warrant or twice last year with Quiet Riot, Ratt, and Cinderella or at Waterstock 2004. The closest I'd seen them do a full set was Waterstock.

I went with a friend named Bonnie. She is the one that took those great Rock Never Stops pics in Cedar Rapids last year. When we arrived before 7:30, I expected us to pay $20 to get in per ticket. There was a married couple behind us with a tall friend. The tall friend had won two free tickets in a radio giveaway and didn't have anyone using them. She heard that Bonnie and I didn't have tickets and was nice enough to give them to us. I offered cash for them, but she just said to buy them each a beer. That was VERY cool, and they are getting these pictures today via e-mail.

Last night did not disappoint at all and they even through in a drum solo. Firehouse has always been the most professional band I've ever seen. They have the tightest sound and make sure they have a blend as close to the CD as possible. They kicked the show off with Helpless from their first CD and rocked right into Love Is A Dangerous Thing. They seemed a little surprised at how packed this tiny club was, but very appreciative to everyone. They did the harmony for All She Wrote and the crowd really got into singing along on this one. I was anxious to hear some of the new tunes and they kicked right into my favorite, Crash, followed by Holdin' On, which has such an eerie, yet catchy chorus. CJ Snare didn't miss a note and sang his backside off. Bill was just Mr. Cool on the guitar, shredding when he needed to and holding the rhythm and melody when the song called for it.

CJ moved behind the keyboard for When I Look Into Your Eyes. Yes, this song is on Monster Ballads, which he pointed out to us. Trying To Make A Living was a welcome addition to this night since I haven't heard them do this one before. I always like to hear something that I didn't expect. Door To Door from the new CD was another new song and I hadn't heard them do this live, either. Great song!

It was about this time in the set that we had a little trouble nearby up by the stage. There were a couple of great looking girls that were elbowing their way to the left and trying to move the ladies next to them. It turns out that one of them was nursing a broken collarbone, so this was not acceptible behavior at all. Security thankfully moved them out. Yes, they were eye candy, but must have thought they were high and mighty because of it.

The band kicked back into rockin' mode wtih Shake And Tumble and followed that up with Allen on bass and lead vocal for Highway To Hell. I hope they do another live CD sometime with this on it. The crowd went nuts and sang every word along with him. They rocked into Overnight Sensation with CJ coming out from behind the keys to get the crowd into this one. It's not like he had to try as everyone was packed tight and jamming right along.

They mellowed out to Love Of A Lifetime briefly before rocking out with Reach For The Sky and Don't Treat Me Bad. There was no way in this club to do the typical encore thing, so they just played right through. Great set, sound, and they pleased everyone who turned out. I think there was a bigger turnout for this than Stephen Pearcy's Metal In America two months ago.

I do have to take a moment to mention Michael's drum solo. He did what the great drummers do during a solo. He got the crowd into the rhythms. He didn't just show off some technical expertise and keep changing beats on us. He made sure we were clapping along at several parts during the solo. He didn't make it so long we got bored, but kept it just the right length to entertain us all. At the end of it, he was standing up and beating on those drums. Great job by a truly great drummer.

We were able to meet the band after the show at their meet and greet table. During the show, I lifted up my signed Prime Time CD cover and CJ grabbed it to show everyone the new CD was available and he commented that since mine was signed, it looked like I'd been to a show before. He said he'd mention more later in the set as to how to get everyone else's signed, too. We joked around at the table with Allen about the socks on the last Cedar Rapids stop, Mike about being a moose fighter (see Steph's blog for that picture), CJ about drinking more than what he had in his Aquafina bottle, and I mentioned that Bill seemed to be the only sober one at the last stop of Rock Never Stops. Bill quickly put that to rest as he admitted he just hid it better. It was great laughing with the guys while they were signing the set lists I got and a few of my CD covers since I took them all.

I know Firehouse gets a rap as an 80's hair band, but their debut came out in 1990. They have been able to make a living as musicians because they are professional, they make sure to meet anyone that wants to meet them, and they keep putting out great quality songs. I've got every CD and will buy every other one they put out, too. Get out and support these guys and keep buying new music from your favorite artists. Don't get stuck on just their old material. Bands like Firehouse really do this because they have an inborn need to do so and they will keep it up as long as we make it viable. I can't stress enough to get out and support these bands.