Shinedown made their long awaited return to the Tri-State area last night at the always incredible (& completely SOLD-OUT) Best Buy Theater in Times Square, NYC. Filling out the headlining spot on the Avalanche Tour, the Jacksonville, FL based quartet was supported by Adelita's Way and New Medicine. 

Both opening acts were very well received by the high-energy crowd who were eager to participate in the show at any opportunity they could. A sold out show is one of the easiest times to gain an appreciation for all of the technological bells and whistles that the theater boasts, as many concert-goers found themselves in positions where they'd have seen nothing had it not been for the generously distributed high definition screens.  

Shinedown hit the stage just after 9pm and with very little fanfare, at that. After a momentary introduction, the band ripped right off the starting line with "The Sound Of Madness", the title track off their previous album and they kept the intensity through the roof for most of the first half of the set.

While I will say that this band is usually a little bit too loudly mixed, last night they sounded impeccable. They manage to deliver that enormous arena-type wall of sound in a much more intimate setting which damn near knocks you off your feet at times in the best way possible. As they tore through both fan favorites and some of the more aggressive tracks off their new record, “Amaryllis”, it became more and more clear that this band is simply at the top of their game as far as the live show goes. Their music seems to be constructed from the ground up with the stage show in mind and it is flawlessly good.

The only moments where the intensity in the room seemed to die down was during the handful of modern-day “monster ballads” that the band has used to appeal to an increasingly more mainstream audience, but the reprieve seemed to be welcomed by most. Those who had just moments ago been raging were now singing along emphatically and pouring out a different type of emotion. No matter where the band set the pace, the crowd happily followed.

Frontman Brent Smith has got to be one of the most charismatic vocalists in the game today. Couple that with his incredible vocal prowess and you’ve got the total package. He is a master of engaging the audience and crowd interaction and simply makes it look easy.

After cycling through a handful of tracks off of each of the band’s four studio albums, Smith belted out the group’s version of Lynrd Skynrd’s classic, “Simple Man” and ended with the inspirational first track off their first record, “Fly From The Inside”.

All in all, the band put on a 5-star show at an equally impressive club. Given the large number of concerts and variety of other bands that were playing NYC last night, selling out the venue was that much more of a feat. With the Avalanche Tour coming to a close soon and the release of their long-awaited album still very recent, it seems a summer tour, maybe a “Carnival Of Madness” announcement is imminent.

Check out our photo gallery from last night’s show here.

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