Band Spotlight: Bad Wolves At Pier 17 NYC

Summertime is always the best for concerts. Why? Because it invites opportunities to catch memorable shows such as the one I attended Sunday night. On tour right now are three of the Alternative Rock’s most talented artists… Bad Wolves, Asking Alexandria and Papa Roach. Currently, the trio is on this summer’s “Who Do You Trust?” tour and I’d like to say if you have never any one or all of these bands then go and check out this show. I promise you’ll be impressed. I was asked to cover their NYC show at the iconic Pier 17 rooftop venue. Fortunately for me (and the rest of those who attended), it was a perfect night by the water. There was zero humidity and the temp lingered round 75 and the view was picturesque. Behind the stage was the view of the Brooklyn Bridge that drew a line of course to the cityscape of Brooklyn itself. And on the venue side the beautiful landscape of New York’s South Street Seaport. I could really go on and on about how perfect the aesthetics of this were, but it’s not the point of this article (hahaha) so….

Many of us who love music already know, or should know who Papa Roach and Asking Alexandria already are. Both of these bands are considered to be part of that elite bunch who have withstood the test of time and successfully made a career out of their passion. Between the two bands, they have a combined discography of fifteen studio albums (Papa Roach – 10, Asking Alexandria – 5). It’s safe to say they’re doing things right! And when it comes to live performances both bands put on an outstanding show. I absolutely love it when a band can pull off a studio sound live. Yes, I’m sure it’s extremely difficult to accomplish such a task and there are a lot of factors that come into play but when bands do it, it means a lot to me, even if I don’t particularly follow them. I guess it’s the level of commitment to give the best experience that I find so attractive. So yeah, combine the awesome performances at such a unique venue with the perfect view, that quickly becomes the formula for the perfect evening.

So setting these two legends aside I would really like to focus on the day’s opening act, Bad Wolves. The band consists of an all-star lineup that comes from a bunch of Iconic metal bands such as Snot, DevilDriver, God Forbid, In This Moment and Bury Your Dead. They released their first single “Toast to the Ghost” in 2017 and have been gaining recognition ever since. And their live show…. Forget it, absolutely flawless! The perfect band to kick off a show and get the crowd rowdy. Again, another group that sounds just like they do on the album. And energy? Yeah, they have lots of that. They never stop moving around. High jumps and fist-pumping also played a huge part in their stage presence. Honestly, I had never heard any of their material before Sunday but I must that I was in awe, I mean how could I not be? Considering the resumes that each member has. The coolest moment for me was that they ended their set with a Cranberries cover, the iconic track Zombie. They absolutely nailed it! If you haven’t heard of or seen these cats before I highly recommend that you do, I’m pretty sure that if you’re into a heavy style of music that you’ll be following them soon after you take a listen.