Our Lady Peace brings their Thirtieth Anniversary Tour to Las Vegas with support from The Verve Pipe for a night of nostalgic rock.
Our Lady Peace and The Verve Pipe had some of the biggest songs in the alternative rock era of the early to mid nineties. So when this anniversary tour was announced, it was something that casual fans of that genre and era, as well as their diehard fans for the length of their career knew they were going to. This is bound to be a good night of music, no crazy openers that feel like they were just put there to fill time, just two bands that this crowd fell in love with.
At 8:30 PM, The Verve Pipe takes the stage. With a five- album discography, everyone is waiting to see what they are going to fill the night with. They open strong with “Photograph,” “Cup of Tea,” and “Villains.” Brian Vander Ark’s vocals are exactly how the crowd remembers them. The music matches this with Brad Vander Ark and Lou Musa on guitar and bass. The set is short, only eight songs until it culminates with their biggest hit, “The Freshman,” and an amazing cover of Soundgarden’s “Black Hole Sun.” The set has it all, a mix of nostalgia and new, and it feels fresh and exciting.
Now we are onto the headliner of the night, Our Lady Peace. Before the band takes the stage, there is a video that plays with clips from interviews at the beginning of their career. Not only does it pump the crowd up, but it reminds them what they love about this band. They are more than the handful of radio hits; they have a complex discography that spans styles, including a concept album. The set starts strong with “Sound the Alarm,” “One Man Army,” and “Superman’s Dead.” The band is on fire, which is amazing because in a few minutes, frontman Raine Maida will reveal to the crowd that he is suffering from food poisoning, but the show will continue. To be honest, no one could tell anything was up with the band. Maida commands the stage while Steve Mazur, Duncan Coutts, and Jason Pierce play every note as it should be played. These songs sound as good live as they do on the albums.A bit further in, Maida takes the opportunity to speak to the crowd, story time as he calls it. He begins with telling the story of their concept album, and how many of the predictions in that album have come true, specifically AI and machines convincing people they are intelligent. It is deep, but he turns it around to say that AI will never replace live music and the feeling we all have when we are a part of it. At this point, they play “R.K. 2029.” From here, story time only gets deeper with a touching story about Duncan Coutts’ cancer diagnosis years ago, and the song “Life” being dedicated to him always. It is a truly meaningful moment, and you can see how much these two mean to each other.
The set continues with a new song, “Once,” and “Drop Me In The Water” and “Clumsy,” before ending the encore with “Starseed.” This song brings down the house, many exclaiming that this is their best song. This standing room only crowd has been singing along to every song, and the new song they get to hear has them excited for new music from this band. It is not often that bands survive for the length of time these two have. Their fans and their dedication to good music show exactly why. The songs aren’t dated; they sound as new today as when they came out. This is an anniversary tour that is definitely worth seeing when it comes through your town. It is a must-see for fans of alternative rock.
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