Tremonti bring A Dying Machine tour to Rochaus in West Dundee, IL along with regular tour mates, Man The Mighty.
Man The Mighty are no strangers to the Tremonti fanbase, having regularly opened for both them and Alter Bridge over the years. This was a special, if not emotional, night for Man The Mighty as it marked the last show with drummer Matt Harmening. The fact that Rochaus has a special meaning for the band (given it was where they were signed as a band) only added to the poignancy. To help mark the occasion, Harmening was given the opportunity to choose the setlist for their last show together.
This was a fun performance to watch as, more than ever, you could see it was four close friends playing together as they smiled and joked with each other throughout the set. The camaraderie was clear for all to see and it made for a great send off for Harmening. Tim Tournier even managed to make rocking a Cher t-shirt look cool.
With Rochaus packed to capacity for this sold-out show, Tremonti took to the stage much to the delight of the ample crowd. This tour is in support of their latest concept album, A Dying Machine. Many of the fans had already hit the merch stand to grab their copies of the accompanying book which Mark Tremonti co-wrote which expands upon / completes the story of the album.
Taking his signature stance of one foot up on a monitor, the band’s namesake, Mark Tremonti takes front and center. Many will know Tremonti for his role in Alter Bridge. Whilst each Alter Bridge album has seen him making an increased vocal contribution, in Tremonti he gets to take on full vocal responsibilities.
When you are in a band with the likes of Myles Kennedy who is know for his incredible voice, it must be daunting to step up to sing. Much the same as Kennedy has stated in the past that he would take a backseat when playing the guitar when performing alongside guitarists such as Tremonti and Slash. It has to be said, however, that people have different styles of singing and playing and that’s what brings out the best in a band and out of each member. This is the fourth album that Tremonti have put out, and along the way you can hear a significant shift in Mark’s comfort level when it comes to singing. A Dying Machine demonstrates an increased vocal range, along with seemingly increased confidence in being the singer of the band. He’s mentioned when speaking about the new album that it made him step out of his comfort zone in terms of expanding his register, and it has to be said that stretching himself in this way has certainly paid off.
Drummer Garrett Whitlock is currently taking time out of this tour due to personal reasons so Eric Friedman’s longtime friend Ryan Bennett has stepped in. The way Bennett was playing, you would think he had been part of the band for a long time as he was the heartbeat of the night, along with Tanner Keegan on bass.
Eric Friedman looked like he was thoroughly enjoying himself throughout the set, often losing himself in his riffs. The two guitarists seem to have a blast playing together and compliment each other extremely well.
Tremonti are building a reputable back catalog which has expanded the material they can now draw from when playing live. Whilst the majority of the set was naturally from the new album, it was great to also hear the likes of “Wish You Well” and “You Waste Your Time” from All I Was and “Another Heart” from Cauterize.
There are only a handful of US shows left on this tour before they take it over to Europe to see out the rest of the year. Hopefully, it won’t be too long before they return.
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