Throughout their tour, The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus gave various bands a chance at opening the show along the tour’s 18 stops across the U.S. On Saturday night at the Dallas House of Blues, one opening band was an all-black-wearing, dark rock group from Nashville named The Becoming. While the second act, Tickle Me Pink, took us closer to the sound of RJA, as they stayed on the lighter edge of the rock world.*
The Becoming came out all tatted up with black hair and black clothes, oozing hard rock. They opened with “I Don’t Want to Hurt You,” which was in itself a good summary of their sound. The singer, Caleb Owens, brings a deep voice and light screaming while heavy guitar work fills up the background. The entire group knows how to work the stage, but the drummer held the spotlight for me. He was never a step behind and ripped sets effortlessly, giving their songs an extra kick. Their exit was memorable, which included the lead singer and bassist spitting out water onto the crowd. At that moment I was glad I wasn’t up front.
Tickle Me Pink stepped onto the stage next, claiming the attention of the room instantly. They are a (good-looking) group from Fort Collins, CO. Their music is lyrically similar to RJA, while keeping the heavy rock sound to a minimum. They showed a great sense of humor by making fun of themselves and telling us about their songs: “Go Die” is a song about love. “Madeline” was dedicated to their fallen bassist, who passed away in August 2008. Frontman Sean Kennedy told the crowd to send pictures of deceased family members or friends to their Myspace where they will create a memorial that will play as a slideshow in one of their big live performances. This band has heart and a great sound.
It’s notable to mention that they covered a Rage Against the Machine song, “Killing in the Name Of,” with Kennedy screaming his heart out. Covering a Rage song is a gutsy move because of the pressure to have as much passion as Zach de la Rocha while successfully playing the intricate chords.
Red Jumpsuit Apparatus appeared soon after, ready to deafen us. The intimacy of the Pontiac Garage (one of the HOB’s smaller rooms) proved well for them by making their already hard rock sound louder and allowing everyone to be close to the stage. Lead singer Ronnie Winter’s voice sounds even better live and he talks to the crowd like he knows each person.
“You Better Pray,” the current single off their new album Lonely Road, was played early in the night. After going through the harder edged songs, mainly off their first album, Ronnie brought the mood down when he resonated “Cat and Mouse.” This was a crowd favorite, making everyone sway to the reflective words. RJA is usually supporting a charity while on tour, and this time around the money was being raised through merchandise sales. “Guardian Angel” and “Face Down” appropriately followed, both songs tell stories of victims or people in need.
Red Jumpsuit confirmed why they are able to sell-out in Dallas by giving us their best in an hour set. Even though the lineup of bands was eclectic, to say the least, the experience was worth it.
*The official lineup included the group Disco Curtis. If they did play they played a very short set right at the beginning of the night, and due to unforeseen circumstances I was unable to make that set.
