Oklahoma City hard rock fans packed the Diamond Ballroom nearly to capacity for this highly anticipated line-up, featuring Seether, 10 Years, and Crobot.
As fans gather towards the stage, their curiosity is piqued by a large wooden cut-out of a psychedelic dragon. The lights dim and a large Jurassic egg can be seen being wheeled onto center stage. The crowd can already tell that they are in for a unique concert experience. A narrator’s voice plays over the speakers, introducing the story of Crobot. The egg begins to crack and a light shines through. The intro to “Electrified” begins, and Brandon Yeagley, vocalist, dramatically busts out of the egg. Crobot is known for their theatrics and comedy throughout their live sets. The crowd is quickly won over by Yeagley’s animated stage presence, eccentric outfit, and powerful vocals as he gracefully dances across the stage. Yeagley makes a spectacle of his microphone by slinging it around and bringing it back to himself with ease by using the base of his stand and the microphone cord. His microphone tricks add to the live Crobot experience and surely sets Yeagley apart as an exceptional frontman.
Throughout their set, Crobot plays their two latest singles, “Better Times” and “Set You Free.” Yeagley addresses the audience and says, “It smells a little funky out there, if you know what I mean. I would love to join you if I could, but we’re up here for the duration.” Yeagley pulls out a comically large joint stage prop. The fans go wild and Yeagley asks if he should get the dragon high, referring to the large dragon cut-out. The audience responds with an astounding “yes,” and Yeagley places the joint in the dragon’s mouth. The eyes light up and smoke comes out of the dragon’s mouth as the intro to “Low Life” begins. In the middle of “Low Life,” Yeagley announces that he can get high too and proceeds to jump onto guitarist Chris Bishop’s shoulders. They continue the song as Yeagley is positioned upon Bishop’s shoulders, creating a memorable moment. Crobot ends their set with a song that is not yet released: “Holy Ghost.”
10 Years starts their set off with “Novacaine,” and vocalist Jesse Hasek makes his way to the stage sporting a white jacket with blood splatter and a white Scaramouche mask. The striking wardrobe really sets the mood for the rest of their set. Midway through “Novacaine,” Hasek removes his mask, jumps off the stage, and climbs onto the guardrail, leaning over fans as he sings the remainder of the song. Early into their set, 10 Years played two crowd favorites, “Fix Me” and “Beautiful.” The crowd sings along intently and is entranced by Hasek’s alluring clean vocals and impactful lyricism.
Towards the end of their set, Hasek introduces a song by stating that it started their entire journey nearly twenty years ago. He states that they play it every night, but for them, it feels brand new every single time because of the exchange of energy between the audience and the band. They begin playing “Wasteland” and the audience’s enthusiasm is overwhelming. During “Wasteland,” Hasek jumps onto the railing again and reaches out his hand, and takes hold of a fan’s hand, which he holds for a majority of the song. The impact of this moment could be felt throughout the entire venue and shows how deeply 10 Years cares for their fanbase. 10 Years ends their set with one of their heavier hits, “Shoot It Out.”
For the night’s main act, Seether, Oklahoma City fans have certainly turned out as this is one of the most well-attended concerts for the Diamond Ballroom this year. Right off the rip, Seether gives the crowd just what they want by playing three of their hits, “Gasoline,” “Fine Again,” and “Driven Under.” Seether’s light show creates a stunning visual impact with members of the band being silhouetted by lights of various colors. Two large screens line the sides of the stage. On the screens are clips from Seether’s music videos, as well as entrancing visual projections. The audience sang their hearts out to every song, connecting to Seether’s emotionally driven lyrics and poetic choruses. Vocalist, Shaun Morgan, let the music do the talking as he said little throughout the set. Between each song, the band looped guitar riffs so that each song would transition seamlessly to the next.
Throughout their set, Seether showcased their ability to play a vast variety of styles. Their set contrasted between acoustic guitar and clean vocals, to screams and distorted guitar riffs. The diversity of their music could be seen in the diversity of their crowd, whose ages ranged from young to old, and from rock fans to country fans. Seether’s ability to connect to such a large audience speaks to their musicianship and relatable song-writing. One of the only times that Shaun addressed the crowd was at the end of the night when he encouraged the crowd to give a round of applause for their drummer, John Humphrey, as this was a hometown show for him. Fans were excited to find out that the drummer is an Oklahoman. Seether saved two of their best songs for the finale, and ended their set with “Fake It” and “Remedy.”
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