New Year’s Eve 2016 at the Rockbar Theater Reno was definitely the place to be to ring in the new year. Rockbar owners Susan Cramer and Robert Farrell had the place jumpin’ with a great lineup that included Reno locals The Voodoo Cats and Seasons Of Insanity along with touring acts The Big Nobs, Gilby Clarke and the headliner Lynch Mob featuring a reunited George Lynch and Oni Logan.
The icy cold temperatures, a Reno staple for New Year’s Eve, didn’t seem to matter to anyone as the venue was fairly packed the whole night.
In good ol’ rock & roll fashion, the show started about fifteen minutes late. No one even noticed or cared for that matter. It’s a rock & roll show on New Year’s Eve at one of Reno’s best venues, the Rockbar. What more could you want?
Scroll down below the photo gallery to read more about the show and the bands.
All five bands killed it.
The Voodoo Cats, winners of the Rockbar’s local band contest, started off the gig. They got around 30 minutes to rock the stage and that’s what they did—very nicely I might add.
This was my first time seeing the Voodoo Cats play and frankly I was quite impressed. The band members are all very talented and all know what they’re doing. The lineup includes Del Monroe (lead vocals), Paul Schum (guitar), Steve Funk (bass) and Lou Werlinger (drums). These guys are all lifelong friends that started playing music together in 1986 and have opened for Stevie Ray Vaughan and the Black Crowes just, to name a few. Be sure to catch them the next time they play.
Local rockers Seasons Of Insanity hit the stage next and they hit it hard with everything they had.
(And I really should not write this out of respect for the touring bands, but what the heck, when credit is due it should be paid, right? And it wasn’t just me that thought this, but I heard it a lot on all the social media sites too.)
Seasons Of Insanity (SOI) blew all the other bands away and likely stole the show. SOI played perhaps the best set that I’ve heard them play, and I have seen them more times than I can remember.
Don’t get me wrong. Lynch Mob and the others absolutely tore it up, but sometimes the local opener has one of those nights were the guys all just click and play the perfect set. That’s what SOI did on this night. It could be in part because they have a new record coming out later this year. Whatever the cause, they deserved it.
SOI band members include, Shane Whitecloud (lead vocals), Rick Brenner (drums), Steve “Gus” Caba (bass, backing vocals), Patrick “Tricky” Tarpey (rhythm guitar) and Jeff “Mango” Montgomery (lead guitar, backing vocals).
The band got around 45 minutes of stage time and the set included: “Snake Oil”, “Renewed Esteem”, “Gallon Of Homemade Wine”, “One Night Stand”, “Unsung Hero”, “Wayside”, “Hell Yeah”, “Wasted”, “Wanted Man” and “As My Own”.
Be sure to catch these guys at their next show, you’ll definitely get rocked.
Touring Bands Take the Stage
Up third was the star-studded super group the Big Nobs. The band features Chas West (lead vocals; Jason Bonham, Lynch Mob, Foreigner), Jimmy Burkhard (guitar, Billy Idol), Sean McNabb (bass, Lynch Mob), Stephen LeBlanc (keyboard, Jason Bonham) and Dave “Chili” Moreno (drums, Puddle Of Mudd).
The Big Nobs changes players with almost every show and plays mostly Led Zeppelin covers. The all-star lineup played a 45-minute set that had the place rockin’.
Main support for Lynch Mob went to Gilby Clarke, former rhythm guitarist of Guns-N-Roses (1991-1994). Clarke (vocals, guitar) and bandmates, EJ Curse (bass) and Troy Patrick Farrell (drums) rocked the stage for a solid 45 minutes.
The band’s set list included: “Wasn’t Yesterday Great”, “Under The Gun”, “Motorcycle Cowboys”, “It’s Only Rock And Roll”, “Pawnshop Guitars”, “Monkey Chow”, “Cure Me”, “Heaven’s Door”, “Dead Flowers”, “Won’t Get Fooled Again” and “Tijuana Jail”.
This was Clarke’s second time playing at the Rockbar Theater in Reno. He was the first one to play that stage on the venue’s official grand opening June 18, 2016.
Lynch Mob, who headlined the show with a 45-minute set, is an American hard rock band featuring former Dokken guitarist George Lynch. He’s been the band’s only permanent member. Other members include Oni Logan (vocals), Jimmy De’Anda (drums) and Sean McNabb (bass).
Lynch Mob’s set included: “21st Century Man”, “She’s Evil, But She’s Mine”, “River Of Love”, “All I Want”, “When Heaven Comes Down” (Dokken cover), “Sweet Sister Mercy”, “Believers Of The Day”, “Into The Fire” (Dokken cover), “Mr. Scary” (Dokken cover), “For The Love Of Money” (O’Jays cover), “Mississippi Queen” (Mountain cover), “Wicked Sensation” and one encore song, “Tooth And Nail” (Dokken cover).
George Lynch has not lost a step from his days with Dokken, from 1979 through 1989, and when he formed Lynch Mob through to when he and his band blew the roof off the Rockbar Theater Reno.
When you get the chance to see any or all of the bands on this bill, don’t hesitate to buy your tickets early so you won’t miss out on a great night of rock and roll music at it’s best.
Always support your local bands and venues … Go To A Show!
