John 5 has built a name for himself in the hard rock circles, and particularly in the last few years, his profile has gained a lot of traction after he replaced Mick Mars in Mötley Crüe. In parallel, his solo career is still going strong, and he’s currently on a 22-date tour of North America.
John has been quite generous with Toronto, having played here at least three times in the last five years, not counting the appearances with Mötley Crüe. His love for “the 6ix” has been professed on stage every time he’s here, and on September 6th, that was no different.
Before we get into the main attraction, the show was opened by Turning Jane, who’s coming along with John 5 on most dates of this tour. The band, previously known as Black Rock Candy, played a short set, of which the highlights were the single “All Because of You” and the Led Zeppelin medley at the end.
Coming up next were the local boys of Sticks N’ Stones. You might have read about them in our review of Nita Strauss’ appearance in the city last year. The road is long for the Brampton band, but they showed clear signs of evolution, compared to the performance with Nita. They sounded heavier and sharper tonight and with an overall better production. “Going Down” got a good crowd response, as well as the cover of Thin Lizzy’s “Cold Sweat”.
John 5 hit the stage at 9:40 PM, with the traditional TV sets spread across the stage showing scenes from old horror movies. The Shining, Frankenstein, Dracula, and The Creature from the Black Lagoon were all represented, with a few blaxploitation movies on display as well. Unlike his previous shows, he wore a stripped-down outfit, with only jeans. The production was also scaled down, with no bass player in sight – the band consisted of John and drummer Alex Mercado. They kicked it off with the Rob Zombie-influenced “Season of the Witch” and quickly went into “Que Pasa”, with Dave Mustaine’s vocals piped in. The man can do sweeps and hammer-ons for days without even flinching and also kept himself busy playing some of the bass notes on the low E string.
Challenging the notion that shreds guitar and country music don’t go together, the band went through “Howdy” and “How High the Moon” at the speed of light, and brought back the weirdness on “Crank It”. At one point John picked up an actual bass guitar to play a few bars. There was also time for some emotional numbers such as “Cactus Flower” and “Hollywod Story”, where the melodic side of John’s playing was in the forefront.
The crowd size was less than ideal – The Cult was also in town on the same night, playing at the History, which hurt the attendance a little – but the two musicians would not be deterred, and gave it all on stage. Summoning the crowd to join them in singing, they played excerpts of Queen’s “Crazy Little Thing Called Love”, Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit”, and of course, a Mötley Crüe medley. Other high points of the set were two staples of John 5’s repertoire, “The Ghost” and “Land of Misfit Toys”. They were joined by one of the techs, Richard Ramirez, on bass, for a fast rendition of Van Halen’s “Hot for Teacher”.
While there’s a lot of discussion about the caliber of John 5’s playing being too much for what Mötley Crüe offers musically, one could say him joining that band was a blessing for his career. He still has time to write and record his own material, and to tour frequently at reasonable prices, like he’s doing now. Mötley pays the bills, while he guarantees artistic freedom with his solo work. For the nostalgic out there, who miss the days when you were only “allowed” to be in one band at a time, this is sacrilege, but in the current scenario for rock music, this is almost necessary. If you’re a fan of the instrument, watching this man live is pure joy, and you won’t be disappointed by the technical prowess and sheer passion he brings to the stage.
The “Strung Out” tour continues all the way to December, and fans still have a few chances to witness John 5’s jaw-dropping skills firsthand. Whether you’re there for the shred, the showmanship, or just to appreciate a true master at work, this is a tour that shouldn’t be missed.
