Candlebox

By far one of the best shows I've seen in a long time, in addition to the Candlebox gig 3 days earlier in Brisbane. Both amazing! I've waited a very long time to see Kevin perform those songs and he certainly didn't disappoint. Was a priviledge to be a part of the crowd at both gigs.

Candlebox on their 30th anniversary tour (actually they’ve been a group for 32 years), 1st and last time in Aussie on a short 4-day run…caught them for the 1st time in Omaha late last year, and again last night here in Sydney before heading up north to start my racing in the blazing heat and humidity…they were hands down excellent, not missed a beat in all this time, and incredible how Kevin can still hit all those notes with such energy…can’t blve I never made it a point to catch them live after all these years…they released their 1st album my freshman year in college…very special memories…lead singer’s wife is Australian, but the band could never find a promotor to bring them over here in all this time…guess they are finding out what they missed (like me) live on these tour dates!! https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=fyz-bOqmwIo&pp=ygUKQ2FuZGxlYm94IA%3D%3D

It is a shame that Candlebox is done touring. Kevin Martin is a phenomenal performer. He has an absolutely incredible voice and belts out his tracks perfectly each time. That guy can flat out sing! And Island Styles is an amazing guitarist, electric or acoustic! Fantastic musician. I was fortunate to catch Candlebox this past June in Pittsburgh and absolutely loved the show and this live stream was just as great.

3 Doors Down/Candlebox 8/30/23 “Continuing my 2023 90’s rock journey the time machine brought The DAve Show to Simpsonville’s Heritage Park for 3 Doors Down’s ‘Away From The Sun Anniversary Tour’. Hurricane Idalia had made her threats but come Wednesday evening she had steered off course just enough, leaving us nothing more than a little light rain and a blessed relief from the heat. A side note but worthy of mentioning considering the name of the tour, Idalia is a name of Italian origin meaning ‘Behold the Sun’. Well into the tour, it was the band’s 34th date of their 46 scheduled appearances and my first time seeing either band live. Formed in 1996 in Escatawpa, Mississippi in the band who has encountered numerous set backs since their inception presently features only one original member, Brad Arnold 44 on lead vocals. With 6 studio albums and 24 charted singles including 5 number ones, the question at hand was how many songs on the set would come from the sophomore album from which the tour was named. With the help of LIVE NATIONS $25 all in I secured my reserve seats towards the rear, behind and to the left of the mixing board. Upon arrival the stage was set for Seattle Washington’s hard rock/alt rock/post grunge opener Candlebox. An American flag stood motionless in the stillness of the evening air stage right. Amplifiers were the primary ingredient of the stage set itself including all Marshalls on the right, the only other item of note would be the drumhead with the kit positioned on a small riser center stage. The drumhead was all black with the design of a ouija board, the numbers on the bottom spelled out 1993*2023. The planchette with the word ‘GOODBYE’ on it was dead center pointing upward toward the band’s name at the top. ‘YES’ and ’NO’ were on either side. It’s meaning begged the question, will this be their final album and will this be their final tour? 3 Doors Down’s drum kit was already set up behind and covered with a series of sheets sewn together. There were no video screens in place for either band. Seattle has birthed some of the greatest American bands of the era: Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Alice In Chains, Foo Fighters and Soundgarden, as well as Queensryche & Heart, and Modest Mouse & Minus The Bear. Though Candlebox has only one original member since its first foundings back in 1990, I could only imagine the show would still feature that hard west coast drive that put them on the map. At precisely 7:30 p.m. the five members took the stage for a 1 hour / 11 song set beginning with ‘Don't You’ the first song off their debut 4X platinum eponymous album. Turned out this would be an set based entirely off that one album (though not in it’s original track order). Frontman and founding member Kevin Martin wasted no time interacting with the audience and would continue to do so introducing many of the songs. ’Sorry you’re so wet man. We made some calls, we tried to stop the rain, it wasn’t stopping. We’re Candlebox, we’re here to warm you up. We’re gonna play everything off that first record except one song as we’re celebrating thirty years of our debut album.’ The second song was ‘Change’, Martin letting us in on a secret, ‘This song was written under the influence of mushrooms.’ Given the lyrics, ‘I wanna fall asleep no longer no longer a part of your TV screen, a part of your TV dreams’, it’s actually no surprise! ‘Ladies where you at? Alright, this for all you foxy mama’s, I know you’re a little cold, a little wet, but you look good baby’ Kevin noted as he introduced ‘Blossom’ which he dubbed ‘a love song’. ‘We have a new record that came out last week, you guys mind if we play you a new song? Just one and we’ll go back to 1993, you might like this one’ lead into ‘What Do You Need’ the first single from 2023 ‘The Long Goodbye’. ’Arrow’ was next with band intros following. ‘Mother’s Dream’ was written about Kevin’s grandmother on his father’s side. Describing her as an angry evil Irish woman who came to America in 1898 and never liked his dad, he concluded the song with ‘See you in Hell Thelma’. The American flag began to furl mid-set as Martin told the story of a homeless Vietnam Vet just trying to get by who lived behind his apartment in Seattle, he was ‘a good man with a beautiful voice and a beautiful soul’. ‘I’d give him whatever I had in my pocket to help him out.’ One day Kevin came home and he was gone. ‘This is his song’—‘He Calls Home’. ‘Ladies and Gentlemen would you please put your hands together for the Veterans who are here tonight.’ ‘My father was born in 1922, he stormed Omaha Beach on June 6, 1944 so every Veteran tonight you have a special place in my heart.’ I couldn’t help but notice that the sound quality was exceptional for an outdoor uncovered venue, and it stayed that way all night through both band’s sets. Maybe it was attributable to the thick cloud cover acting as insolation keeping the acoustics under the canopy mother nature had provided. It made the evening that much more enjoyable despite the light precipitation that continued on throughout Candlebox’s entire set. The band saved their best three songs for last, their three biggest hits, ‘Cover Me’, ‘Far Behind’, and ‘You’. Bringing on ‘the blond fox’ from 3 Doors Down—Chet Roberts for additional guitar Kevin honored those from Seattle who had gone on before. ‘This next song (Far Behind) is dedicated to some friends of mine in Seattle I don’t get to see no mo, they ain’t with us’. As he mentioned each name, the audience responded with a salute of applause: Andrew Wood (Mother Love Bone); Kurt Cobain (Nirvana); Layne Staley (Alice In Chains); Mark Lanegan (Screaming Trees); Scott Weiland (Stone Temple Pilots); ‘and the greatest rock and roll voice to ever come out of Seattle, a beautiful human being Mister Chris Cornell’ (Soundgarden). ‘I miss those sons of bitches. Sing this song if you know it so they can hear it up there.’ At the end of the hour set there was only one song missing from the entire album that the band didn’t play, ironically was Track #8 ‘Rain’! It didn’t seem to take much to turn the stage for the headliner and the half hour intermission passed rather quickly. 3 Doors Down stage set up was centered around an extra large 5 step rectangular drum riser with 6 sets of suspended light rigs above, each rig had two spotlights and two pivoting lights interspersed. Light bars that seemed to me to resemble a car grill and headlights (the tour’s logo) were above the kit which oddly enough had a sound shield. The drum head featured an image of the sun as if taken from space with solar flares shooting out from it. Most obvious was the emptiness of the stage itself, the absence of clutter provided ample mobility for the five person band to move about and do their thing. At precisely 9 p.m. and without fanfare the band took the stage for a 1 hour and 36 minute / 18 song set beginning with ‘Pop Song’ a b-side and bonus track from ‘Away From The Sun’. Meantime my friend Joe and I saw an opening to make a move. As a staff member stepped aside to guide some seemingly lost folk to their seats, strolling confidently, we made our way down to the second row from the stage and never looked back! Next up, ‘When I’m Gone’ a #2 single followed with a driving guitar solo. Chet Roberts and Chris Henderson both lead the charge. Frontman Brad Arnold addressed the audience, ‘It looks like it’s not to get wetter, that’s a good thing.’ ‘We gonna play the whole record for you tonight just about and sprinkle some other songs throughout there, we gonna take a little ride—not gonna talk a whole lot, we just gonna listen to some music, that sound like a plan?’ Looking around I suddenly noticed that the rain had ceased and a breeze began to pick up, the temperature was a pleasant 72° and folks began to pull down their hoods and take their ponchos off. The set list mirrored that of Apple Music Essentials playlist though not in the same order. If you knew the essentials you could sing along to every word. Three songs in was the title cut of the album and I turned to my friend remarking how strong the vocals were. Come to find out Brad was actually battling a sinus infection and in spite of it he determined he was going to give us everything he had. A half dozen songs in and prior to 2003’s #5 ‘Here Without You’ he paused to share some words that had been on his heart. ‘My friends I told you I wasn’t gonna talk a whole lot tonight. I think this is the most important thing that I can ever say from the stage… something that was laid on my heart a few months ago.’ He shared how they started out as a bunch of teenagers riding high off their first tour. They made them some money and should’ve been on top of the world. ‘We all had smiles on our face but we all had holes in our hearts.’ Being thrust into the music industry they didn’t know who they could trust, but it wasn’t just the music industry it was the world itself, ‘the world is that way’. ‘What I want to tell you my friends is you’re not alone. When you feel like nobody loves you, somebody does love you, somebody’s always been with you and He’ll always be with you. My friends Jesus Christ loves you, He’s always been there for you, He’ll always be there for you!’ His word brought a rousing cheer from the surprisingly filled amphitheater on what had the potential of turning out to be a rather dismal evening. Considering the fiasco that had happened the evening prior at the same venue with the band Ghost calling the show after 11 p.m. due to their equipment being damaged in the rain, it was a big win for CCNB. ‘This might be the truest song we ever wrote’ Brad remarked as an introduction to ‘I Feel You’. Then rolling through the hits and some deeper cuts the band moved from song to song with no talk and all rock: ‘It's Not My Time’, ‘Be Like That’, ‘Duck And Run’, ‘Dangerous Game’, ‘Changes’, ‘Loser’, and ‘Sarah Yellin’ which brought the regular set to its conclusion. As the band reentered the stage for an encore, folks were shouting for them to play their trademark song ‘Kryptonite’ but Brad quieted them down with 2005’s ‘Landing In London’. He had come out wearing a long sleeve shirt he had put on back stage, ‘Thank you for being here in this weather. I’m glad the rain moved away for us tonight. Actually turned out to be a great evening for a concert, feels good out here.’ ‘There hasn’t been a day in three weeks when it wasn’t at least ninety-five degrees when we went on stage. This is amazing. I’ve never had to put on a long sleeve shirt to come back out here, EVER.’ The moment came for 2000’s #1, written by Brad Arnold during a high school math class at just 15 years of age, and without delay Arnold called out, ‘We gonna play you one more song and I guess if we’re gonna play one more we might as well play….’ The opening notes finished the sentence for him! The only track from the anniversary album not played during the evening’s performance was ‘Going Down In Flames’. 3 Doors Down has powered through incredible tragedy, drug overdose, legal woes, and controversial performances, and has come back thanks to their powerful anthems and life changing lyrics. Arnold confided in an interview, ‘I’ll always tend to measure our success by how many people come up to me at shows and tell me this song or that song has helped them through a time or changed them in some way or helped them in some way. I would just much rather hear that than have a six million album plaque on my wall!’” Review and photo by DAve (Concert #813, #814)

Awesome show! First, it poured in Roanoke, so the show was delayed, but once it started about an hour late the sun was out and it was a fantastic night. The opening act, Nashville's The Dead Deads, was incredible and had the audience worked up. Their brand of smart, no nonsense, rock and roll, as well as being incredibly easy on the eyes, was a huge hit. It was great of them to stay and meet and mingle with their fans. Candlbox, the headliner, delivered. Pure rock and roll for the ages, they reached deep into their set list for clearly emotional and meaningful songs. The crowd loved it and was on their feet most of the evening. I only wish this WASNT their 30th and final tour as they left Roanoke and all attendees wanting more.

Have a been a huge fan since debut album.. This was my first time seeing the band and Kevin and the band were amazing. Crowd and energy was a downer unless you were in the Pit.. Kevin sounded great and I hope to see another show.. Thanks Candlebox did not disappoint and so glad I went.

Kevin sounds as good as he did 30-years ago! The band totally rocked it and the crowd was totally into it!! My only complaints would be would be that as the opening act they did play long enough (an hour) and that they didn’t didn’t do anything off of their other albums besides their first album except 1 song from their new album which hasn’t even been released yet. I’m a HUGE CB so anything would have been nice, especially anything off of 10,000 Horses. Still, it was a GREAT show!!

With the help of purchasing a Fast Pass at the last minute, I was able to stand at the Rail for this CBOX concert #2! Acoustics were great. The crowd was enthusiastic. Loved Kevin’s and the band’s energy! This show was better than the Costa Mesa CBOX #1 show that I attended on 7/15!

Omg ! So happy we made the 6 hour drive !! You guys were the best . Thanks for an amazing concert . Celebrating 25 years candlebox was one of our favourite bands when we started dating ( along with all the other Seattle bands ) but we have never had the chance to come to a show until now !

This was my first time at Sweetwater Outdoors. It was a great smaller venue that I will come back to again at some point. Candlebox is absolutely amazing live and is very underrated and has been for their entire 30 years as a band. Kevin Martin knows how to put on a great show and can really get the crowd involved. It's too bad he's retiring, I will miss seeing them live.

The Roxian Theatre is an awesome intimate venue. There isn’t a bad seat in the place with the exception of the first row of the rear balcony. Leg room is sparse and the railings are just at the perfect height to be in your viewing angle. We actually moved back a few rows to get a better sight line. Fortunately there were several empty rows available behind us. As far as the music, Candlebox rocks! They deliver an amazing level of energy and really know how to bring it. Kevin is an incredible vocalist and performer and was more than generous with flinging guitar picks and throwing drum sticks to the crowd. I’m super glad I decided to attend the show and see an absolutely fantastic performance by an unbelievable band with an awesome catalog of great songs. Great night of live music.

Candlebox was excellent! Kevin sounded great and I love that they did a bunch of old music and some of their new music. Loved the venue, as it was only 800 people. Kevin was very engaging with the audience too! So sad to hear he’s retiring next year, but hope to see them again next year before he does.

What an EXCELLENT show! Candlebox has been rocking for 30 years and certainly did not disappoint the crowd Saturday night. We all sang with the band, Kevin Martin was even impressed. The venue is small so everyone is close to the stage and with a sold out show it still wasn’t overcrowded. I’m super happy that I got to see them live!! Great concert!!!!

It was awesome!! Kevin was amazing, as usual😁❤️! He hit every single note like he has since the beginning. It was awesome seeing the whole band together again! It was just sad when he did say that next year will be the end of Candlebox😢. We will definitely be there next year. We haven’t missed any of their shows for the last twenty years. We will miss his energy and enthusiasm . Thank you for all the memories🤘

As always Candlebox were amazing. Such talent and class act. Was very cool giving a shout out to his brother and dedicating song to him. The band sincerely appreciates their fans! Thanks for another amazing night. Makes me feel young again whenever I see & “hear” them. Keep it real!!

My goddess, 25yrs (now 26) and still going stronger than ever - vocals are incredible, band is more than tight. Talent never dies. These guys are always amazing every single time!! So appreciative of the fans. And a really nice touch at the end.

Candlebox always puts on a great show and this was one of the best shows I have seen!! Kevin sounded great, he’s such an incredible front man and the crowd was so psyched when he walked around and took ‘selfies’ with people while he was singing! The band sounded excellent and it’s obvious that they love what they do!! This is a great venue to see a show and there’s no bad seat in the place! Candlebox could have played for another hour or two and the fans would have been happy singing along with their iconic songs! Awesome show!!

My photos suck. So bad that I wont even post them. However the concert was great. The venue was great. The people were great. That's is the 3rd Candlebox show vie been to in the last 2 1/2 years ... This show was better than Slims in SF and The Rockbar in Reno put together. Kevin was one lastnight. The opening acts were great. Candlebox really put on a great show. Thanks Ace of Spades. Thanks Candlebox. Oh ya, even Memphis Hennesy showed up and played acoustic guitar on one song. Great night!

Absolutely Epic! So amazing! Their new album is the best! I was so excited to get to hear their new tunes plus the classics! Let's be honest they are the definition of true rockstars! I'm obsessed! I love them, and can't wait until I get to see them again. They are truly inspiring musicians, and I loved every minute of the show!❤️🎶

SO AWESOME! Loved them since college and I'm so grateful that they are still making music and touring!! I see them whenever they come around my area - having now seen an acoustic show - I think I love them more than I ever have! Keep on rocking, guys!!❤️👍👍❤️