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Rockers bring noise, nostalgia, cheesiness

By RICK GERSHMAN
Published July 9, 2005

TAMPA - "I know you don't really know me," Ratt's lead vocalist sang to the crowd Friday night at the St. Pete Times Forum. "I know you don't really care to see me."

The second point's debatable, but the first hit the nail right on the headbanger. They were the opening lines to Ratt's hit Lay It Down, but they offered one opportunity to consider the differences between '80s metal bands performing in their heyday and now, in 2005.

Singing Ratt's hair-metal classics Round and Round, Back for More and You're in Love was not Stephen Pearcy but a shorthaired dude who goes by the simply indefensible moniker "Jizzy Pearl."

And Ratt, mind you, put on one of the best performances of the Rock Never Stops show, headlined by Cinderella. Eighties faves Firehouse and Quiet Riot also performed sets, and between them the show was all over the place.

Sometimes it was quite entertaining. Sometimes - and those times were usually, if not exclusively, related to Quiet Riot singer Kevin DuBrow - it was torturous on par with anything most humans have ever had to face, including Kevin Federline.

Some of the good parts: Cinderella still puts on an impressive show, and Tom Keifer's voice remains weirdly charming. Ratt guitarist Warren DeMartini absolutely slayed the crowd of 7,444, and his bandmate Bobby Blotzer was killer on drums. Firehouse turned out to be a lot harder live than expected, but then, how could those guys not be? As for the bad: DuBrow, with his Rod Stewart shag hairdo and his hideous leopard-print suit. Somehow it got worse when he took off the jacket to reveal his pot belly, none of which stopped him from acting in creepily amorous fashion throughout. I'm sure there are some Quiet Riot fans who found the whole cheesy nightmare entertaining, but, to be perfectly blunt, most of the crowd didn't. Sure, there was some singalong on Cum on Feel the Noize, but what else are they supposed to do?

Well, one thing: smoke, smoke and smoke some more. In all the shows I've covered at the Forum I've never seen such a mass exodus for the smoking area between sets, and remember, the Forum wasn't even 40 percent full. Maybe that explains why the singalongs weren't always up to par. "Come on, you know the words!" Pearl screamed at one point, pushing his microphone out to the crowd, but the response was tepid. They know the words, "Jizzy," they're just too smoked out to sing 'em.

[Last modified July 9, 2005, 01:01:15]