Review By:
Brittany Skidmore
After an astounding tour with Breaking Benjamin and Alice in Chains, BUSH announced another tour to start off the year 2023. Over the course of the 20 show excursion, they will be headlining with guest artists Starcrawler, Jerry Cantrell, Candlebox, and Silversun Pickups. Each artist will be performing individually with BUSH on different dates of the tour. This was such an exciting announcement for BUSH fans across the USA.
On Friday February 3, Starcrawler joined BUSH at The Complex in Salt Lake City, Utah. Without hesitation, Starcrawler blasted the fans with their uninhibited energy from the very beginning. Bathed in red lights, Leading Lady, Arrow de Wilde, sang and danced in a way that demanded the full attention of the audience. Scantily, yet tastefully dressed in a sleeveless tuxedo style mini romper and garter belt, it was impossible to look away. The other band members had coordinating outfits that complimented Arrow’s fantastic outfit.
Starcrawler’s 13 song set list started with “Goodtime Girl”, followed by “Roadkill”. A few songs later the crowd was dancing and singing along with “Pet Sematary”, a Ramones cover. Mid show, de Wilde took a short break and interacted with the audience in a fun and edgy tone. She asked if there were any “Bad Mormons” in the crowd. She told them to take off their temple garments for the upcoming song. This drew huge cheers, and lots of laughter from the audience.
Starcrawler fans sang along loud and hard as they finished their set with “Bet My Brains.” Starcrawler showed their appreciation for the crowd with bows and energetic waves as they exited the stage, leading into the headliner, BUSH.
With the stage still heavily drenched in red lights and smoke, BUSH opened up with “Identity.” The crowd had doubled in size, and burst with excitement as BUSH started off their set. The energy was tangible, and it was obvious that the band loved it. “Machinehead”, “Blood River”, and “The Chemicals Between Us” were perfectly delivered and received.
At one point, frontman Gavin Rossdale took a break and commented on the temperature. He gave the crowd a good laugh when he demanded that the doors leading out to the patio needed to be closed. He repeated himself until the doors were shut. He then made a comment about the heat adding to the experience, which was responded to with cheers and claps from his adoring fans. Gavin Rossdale could do no wrong in their eyes that night.
BUSH then continued with their set with a change in the light show display. Rossdale, front and center stage, was the epicenter of blue, white, and purple laser light beams that amazed the crowd. The floor was a sea of cell phones trying to catch a photo of the beauty in it.
After finishing with a great performance of “Little Things”, BUSH returned onstage for a three-song encore. “The Kingdom” was followed by an absolutely amazing performance of “Glycerine” by Rossdale. He sat center stage, guitar in hands, immersed in beautiful blue light. He serenaded the crowd as they swayed back and forth while singing along with him. The rest of the band members took their places, and they ended with a powerfully perfect performance of “Comedown.” Thank you, BUSH and Starcrawler for an unforgettable evening.
BUSH will be on tour through the end of February.
