Love Live Rocking Podcast

“𝙒𝙀𝙇𝘾𝙊𝙈𝙀 𝙏𝙊 𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝙎𝘾𝙀𝙉𝙀"

That’s what singer Justin Whitehead said after seeing the dozens of hands go up when he asked, “Who here is seeing us for the first time?”

And those four words pretty much summed up Saturday night at House of Blues. Three great tribute bands. A room full of people who came for the music. Musicians who evidently love this. And that feeling you get when you realize you’re part of something a little bigger than the show you came to see.

Because the thing about live music is that it’s best experienced as a 𝘴𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘦.

𝙎𝙊...𝙒𝙀𝙇𝘾𝙊𝙈𝙀... 𝙏𝙊 𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝙎𝘾𝙀𝙉𝙀

One of my favorite dictionary definitions describes a scene as “a place, with the people, objects, and events in it, regarded as having a particular character or making a particular impression.”

So, with that in mind, let’s dissect the evening.

📍 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗣𝗟𝗔𝗖𝗘: the DFW Metroplex.

The landscape for live music is constantly changing. Venues close. Some relocate. Some change their vision. Places that used to welcome tribute bands no longer do, while others have started embracing them. And some get nice upgrades— The Maverick in Carrollton has become increasingly relevant over the past couple of years.

But there are still a dozen or so places around the Metroplex every week where you can find great local and touring tribute acts. That’s pretty cool.

🎤 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗣𝗘𝗢𝗣𝗟𝗘: this is where the DFW scene really stands out.

The musicians are, frankly, pretty extraordinary.

Yes, they’re great players. But many have histories that go well beyond playing in tribute bands.

Chris Manning of The Zeppelin Project had his recent album (on vinyl even!) available at the show.

Def Leggend’s Mike Hamill performed with his first band, Zadox, in the early ’90s at Creation, once the world’s largest Christian music festival.

Rokken’s John Land was once handed Eddie Van Halen’s guitar by the band themselves at Cotton Bowl for Monsters of Rock, where Dokken was on the bill.

And The Zeppelin Project’s David Roberts has performed in Europe over the past year and will head to Guatemala and Costa Rica in December as singer for legendary ’80s band Whitecross.

Then there is the youngest of all musicians onstage, Taylor Dennis, who was performing with his eigth different band on the stage of the world-renowned House of Blues that night.

And that’s just a sampling.

These aren’t just “your friend who plays guitar.” They’re seasoned musicians who have spent years on major stages, some internationally, and who choose to spend some of that time playing music they love.

🥁 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗢𝗕𝗝𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗦: did you see Chris Irpino’s gong?

Or Chris Manning’s dragon suit?

And if you’re into gear, ask John Land and John Inman about their ESPs and Les Pauls (if you're into gear, you should ask!).

But let’s get to the 𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗡𝗧𝗦 part.

🎸 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗠𝗨𝗦𝗜𝗖.

In an era when only a handful of major touring bands retain half their original members, and some legendary vocalists no longer perform at peak level, tribute bands are where the magic of music can be found again.

THE SETLISTS have the obvious hits, but they also have the songs you don’t necessarily expect.
Def Leggend, for example, played *“Comin’ Under Fire”*—a deep cut from 1983 that Def Leppard played for the first time ever in 2024, a decade after our local friends began performing it.
And while Led Zeppelin NEVER performed *The Rover* or *Good Times, Bad Times* in their entirety during the 70s, both were part of Saturday's show.

And there’s something else I love about this scene: you get to hear the music of bands you wish you could have seen live, even when those bands never actually shared a stage.

Def Leppard, Led Zeppelin and Dokken never played the same bill.

That’s not the problem.

That’s the beauty of it.

Anyone who really loves ’80s hard rock knows Dokken had a unique combination of melodies, guitar virtuosity and incredibly crafted songs. Rokken delivered the goods with Shane Zehner’s soaring vocals, Jamie Northrop’s powerful drumming and the vocal harmonies that are such a big part of the Dokken sound.

For Led Zeppelin fans, The Zeppelin Project has four guys onstage who clearly understand that honoring Zeppelin means more than just playing the notes. The theremin solo was a nice touch, but the foundation was Rick Read’s masterful bass playing and Irpino’s passionate drumming, with Manning’s guitar work and Roberts’ vocals bringing it all home.

And then there was Def Leggend.

Their sound is built around the same enormous musical architecture that has carried Def Leppard through decades of stadiums and arenas: and Ronnie Dean's drums creating the sonic landscape, effects filling the space, and the interplay between Hamill and Inman’s guitars bringing the songs to life.

TaylorTaylor’s contribution is more than note-for-note bass playing. Did you catch the “live version” bass intro to “Hysteria” (one of my favorite songs, and versions, of ALL TIME!)? He brings his own energy to the stage, while the four-part harmonies hold everything together. Yes, all four guys sing. That gives JustinJustin room to show what his voice can really do: SOAR... from “newer” songs like “Promises” to the unexpected encore of “Wasted.”

All of that, to me, is the real value of the tribute scene.

You can ignore it. You can love it. But if you genuinely care about live music, I honestly don’t know how you can hate it.

Because these musicians are choosing to keep this music alive.

🤘 𝗦𝗢 𝗚𝗢.
1. Pick your spot.
2. Think about the band whose music you wish you could have seen live.
3. Find a date.
4. Buy a ticket.
5. Walk into the room... and WELCOME

𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 “Welcome to the Scene” wasn’t just something Justin said to a room full of first-timers. It was an invitation.

And judging by the number of hands that went up, there are plenty of people ready to accept it.

If you were there Saturday, share your favorite moment.

If you missed it, follow the bands for their upcoming shows.

There’s plenty more music to hear.

Rokken - Tribute to Dokken
The Zeppelin Project
Def Leggend - The World's Greatest Tribute to Def Leppard

Call now to connect with business.

Other than political campaigns, I am also interested in Kickstarter campaigns, and I am so excited about this one!!

My girls have turntables of their own, entry level (the walmart and ebay kind), so I still haven';t purchased one for me, until now!

Their goal was to raise $25,000 and they raised over a quarter million yesterday! ($289,338) so the project IS A GO.

If interested, click here and we both can earn points for future projects from this company.

Fuse Audio GLD: The Vertical Vinyl Record Player Premium Record Player with Bookshelf Speakers, Ashtree Wood Case, and an Audio-Technica Cartridge: Functional Art Meets Premium Sound

- an olympian athlete who trained with Mary Lou Retton
- a perfomer in the Superbowl # # (yes, the Janet Jackson one)
- a former President
- a Grammy winner (2024 awards!)

What do they all have in common?

They are all a sample of guests to appear in the first season of my NEW podcast Dime Con Quien Hablas, a podcast about stories taking flight, landing, or making a layover in Guatemala.

Tonight, the PREMIERE episode, with The Powerful Athlete's founder.

Tune In:

María Inés Flores, primera gimnasta olímpica de Guatemala y Centroamérica. Maria Ines Flores, comparte su historia de vida. Como primera gimnasta olímpica de Guatemala, compitiendo en Seúl 1988, luego de ha...

Inching closer to the final one. Your vote is welcome 🤟🏼😎

Your input is welcome, and needed 🤟🏼😎
Would you rank them 1-2-3 for me? 🙏🏼

This week is career week, and today I was told a majority of students at the school where I work listed "pop singer, musician, music performer" at the top of their dream career list.

We are having a career fair this FRIDAY, May 17 between 8 and 10:30am to have adults explain to elementary students what does their career look like, how did they get there.

Anyone here could volunteer a couple of hours, and maybe bring along an instrument to show students what it means to be a performing musician?

Ideally it would be someone who makes their whole living (or most of their income) in music or live performance related activities, but anyone who can inspire them to pursue music as a career by presenting it live, would be great.

For 95% of these students, seeing you perform on a guitar or keyboard would be the very first time they're able to see anyone outside their music teacher perform some music.

Let me know if you would be interested. This Friday, 8 to 10:30am, at a school in Balch Springs, south of Mesquite

There are moments, brief moments when what works best is silence.
The best word for it is Rest. Because it is bookended by MUSIC!

Would love your support at this event.
If you’re considering attending please click Going or Interested on the link in the comments.
So many bands and musicians are coming together to support our comrade and it will be a phenomenal music performance.

ROCK BEATS CANCER, a Celebration for Dave Gallegos.

THIS SUNDAY March 24, from 2pm to 10pm.

I never plan to
support live music.
It simply happens that live music supports me.