Pearly Gates
Penny Road Pub -Barrington, Illinois
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Single Set:
- Smells Like Teen Spirit – Nirvana
- Beast and the Harlot – Avenged Sevenfold
- California Songs – Local H
- Nightmare – Avenged Sevenfold
- Killing in the Name Of – Rage Against the Machine
- Afterlife – Avenged Sevenfold
- My Hero – Foo Fighters
- Under the Bridge – Red Hot Chili Peppers
- Funk 49 – James Gang/Joe Walsh
- Can’t Stop – Red Hot Chili Peppers
- Breed – Nirvana
- Unholy Confessions – Avenged Sevenfold
- Nothing Else Matters – Metallica
- Buried Alive – Avenged Sevenfold
- Crazy Train – Ozzy Osbourne
- Free Bird – Lynyrd Skynyrd
From time to time, concerns over the future of rock and roll music are openly contemplated, typically during periods of transition – such as now. The most oft questions are usually, “What will the next generation of rockers bring to the stage? Will they even KNOW how to rock and roll?”
Place all of your concerns aside as long as there are blossoming young rock bands such as Pearly Gates moving step by step up the ladder of contemporary music.
Hailing from Chicago, Illinois, Pearly Gates opened their set with the aptly chosen Nirvana cover, “Smells Like Teen Spirit.” Teen spirit indeed – this show rocked from beginning to end. Under the steady pulse of Tony Marzano’s drumming, Pearly Gates weaved their web of rock and metal through such standard covers by Metallica, Ozzy, Skynyrd, RHCP, and A7X. Surprises abounded, as Pat McCommons shed his exceptional bassist skins momentarily for a stirring lead vocal on their cover of Rage Against the Machine’s, “Killing in the Name Of.”
As the concert progressed, guitar stars Zack Rapp and Nat Algozino alternated rhythms and licks in a manner similar to guitar teams that have been in the business for ages, executing each new song above the last. Complimented by the haunting, soul-shaking vocalizations of rising new ingénue, Kate Tomsky, Pearly Gates received a standing ovation at the end of their set from both the audience and the veteran rockers appearing on the same bill later that evening.
What impressed me most was the maturity level and manner of the Pearly Gates performance. Even as they entered the stage, you could tell that they had the confidence of an expert road band. They each staked claims to their area of the stage and proceeded to shake the house to it’s foundations. Quality showmanship, mastery of volume control, consummate professionalism, all sprinkled with the right amount of banter with the audience best describes this wonderful performance displayed by Pearly Gates.
I can assure you that the future of rock and roll is as golden as the stairway to heaven, as long as the music scene continues to produce such bands as Pearly Gates.
You can find Pearly Gates at: PearlyGatesBand
Tim McCarthy – Northwest Indiana Talent
Bands in Review 