WJRR’s Mistletoe Jam featuring Sevendust at Hard Rock Live Orlando, Florida December 29, 2021

 

 

WJRR’s Mistletoe Jam featured Sevendust at Hard Rock Live Orlando, Florida December 29, 2021. It was a mild night and the usual City Walk crowds at Universal Studios was lighter than a typical Wednesday night. That all changed inside the Hard Rock Live as the crowd packed in anticipating a great rock show. Sevendust was in the house after the cancellation of their December 17th show with Daughtry and Mark Tremonti due to Chris Daughtry’s daughters passing. That show has now been rescheduled for February 25, 2022 at Hard Rock Live. On this night supporting Sevendust was The Lonely Ones and the up coming female powerhouse band Plush.

The Lonely Ones were formed in 2019 after their previous band Bobaflex disbanded in 2019. They quickly recorded two Queen covers, FlashandThe Hero,” which brought praise from Queens guitarist Brian May. The band has recently released their new album, Gettin’ High this year. The Lonely Ones took the stage just a few minutes after 8:00pm and performed a short four song set. They were really very good and the short set was well received by the audience making them want more.

 

 

Band:

Marty McCoy – Guitar / Vocals

Tommy Johnson – Drums

Jymmy Tolland – Bass / Vocals

Jake Earley – guitar / Vocals

 

 

Setlist:

1.) Change the Station
2.) Flash 
3.) The Lonely Ones 
4.) Gettin’ High
 
 
 

The crowd was in attendance to see Sevendust, but the anticipation of the next act Plush, had the fans in a frenzy when the four young ladies entered stage. Fresh off touring in support of Seether and Nonpoint, Mammoth WVH, and then Halestorm and Evanescence, Plush has made a real impact with their well deserved popularity blowing up. Plush is currently out touring and promoting their self-titled debut album which was released a couple of month back, which is now available now on all streaming platforms. Moriah Formica, guitar and the lead vocalist is the oldest of the quartet, just turning 21. Their six song set kicked ass from beginning to end, from the incredible cover of Heart’s “Barracuda,” showcasing Formica’s powerful vocals to the bands hit-single “Hate,” which reached number 24 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Chart.

This band is incredibly talented and explode with great chemistry between members on stage. They were having as much fun on stage as the audience was! They just rocked out hard core! I personally will be looking out for them when they come back to Central Florida. They are the next generation of rock and roll bands that seems to be resurrecting rock and roll with the likes of Dirty Honey, Mammoth WVH, and now Plush! Rock and roll is not dead from what I witnessed and I have the images to prove it!

 

 

 

Band:

Moriah Formica – Vocals/Guitar

Brooke Colucci – Drums

Bella Perron – Guitar

Ashley Suppa – Bass

 

 

Setlist:

1.) Athena 
2.) Champion 
3.) Sober 
4.) Barracuda   (Heart cover)
5.) I Don’t Care 
6.) Hate

 

At about 9:45pm, Suppa Dave, a DJ from WJRR came on stage to whip up the packed house and introduce Sevendust. Not that Sevendust needs an introduction after playing Central Florida over 35 times in the past 27 years. Non the less, the theater gave them a raucous welcoming to their second home just four hundred miles south of their real home town Atlanta, Georgia. The band opened with “Dying to Live” from their 2020 album release Blood & Stone and the house just exploded.

After the second song “Denial,” Lead singer and front man Lajon Witherspoon welcomed the audience and related how grateful he was that everyone came out and was supporting Sevendust and live music. In a moment of personal reflection, Witherspoon pressed his palms together and looked up as his eyes welled with tears. Nothing more needed to be said, as the past two years have been hard on humanity as a whole. But, even harder on those who perform in front of crowds for a living. Appropriately the next song on the setlist was “Praise.”

This was actually my first Sevendust show and I was blown away by the professionalism and entertainment level of their performance. The band is a well oiled machine and it’s obvious they have performed hundreds, if not thousands of shows together. Lajon Witherspoon is the typical frontman with a great voice, showmanship, and banter to bring the audience into the performance. His head of dreadlocks is just a visual bonus when he lets them fly. I am surprised that in their 27 years of existence, this was the first show I have attended. But, one thing is for certain, it won’t be my last!

 

 

Band:

Vince Hornsby – bass (1994–present), backing vocals 

Morgan Rose – drums, backing vocals 

John Connolly – rhythm guitar 

Lajon Witherspoon – lead vocals 

Clint Lowery – lead guitar, backing vocals

 

 

 

Setlist:

1.) Dying to Live 
2.) Denial 
3.) Praise 
4.) Dead Set 
5.) Trust 
6.) Black 
7.) Driven 
8.) Angel’s Son 
9.) Waffle 
10.) Enemy 
11.) Pieces
12.) Blood From a Stone 
13.) Shine

Encore:

14.) Face to Face

 

 

 

 

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