Ed Kowalczyk (lead vocals, guitars), and Patrick Dahlheimer (bass), of +LIVE+ rattled our bones!

The night at Raleigh’s Red Hat Amphitheater on September 1, 2024, was an explosion of nostalgia and raw, unfiltered rock, with Soul Asylum and +LIVE+ laying down the groundwork for what would be a thunderous evening headlined by none other than Stone Temple Pilots. Soul Asylum, hailing from Minneapolis, set the stage ablaze first, with frontman Dave Pirner’s signature growl on vocals and guitar, backed by Michael Bland’s pounding drumbeats, Winston Roye on bass, and Ryan Smith thrashing away on guitar. Their setlist included the timeless “Runaway Train” and newer tracks from their 2020 album Hurry Up and Wait. Fresh band tees and vinyls of Hurry Up and Wait lined their merch booth, a testament to their staying power in the scene since their last tour in 2022. Learn more about Soul Asylum at soulasylum.com.

Next up was +LIVE+, the pride of York, Pennsylvania, with a performance that brought the house down. Ed Kowalczyk, back in his rightful place on vocals, commanded the stage like a man possessed. Guitarist Chad Taylor provided the driving riffs, Patrick Dahlheimer’s bass rattled the bones, and Chad Gracey’s relentless drumming kept things primal. With hits from Throwing Copper and The Distance to Here ringing in the air, the band also threw in a few cuts from their latest release, The Turn (2014). The Awake & Alive tour kicked off in Camden, NJ, in July 2024, spanning 25 dates, with their next stop in Charlotte, NC, and a finale in Pittsburgh, PA, on October 4th. Fans crowded their merch table, snatching up retro designs, vinyl reissues, and all the grunge-era glory they could carry home. Check out more about the band on their website, freaks4live.com.

But of course, the night belonged to Stone Temple Pilots. Headlining this tour, they took the stage with a fire that only decades of honing their craft could bring. Their performance, which had the crowd in a frenzy, can be explored in more detail in a previous post on INDRA Magazine. For now, it was a night that perfectly captured the grit and glory of ’90s rock, reminding everyone that some flames never die out. For more about Stone Temple Pilots, visit stonetemplepilots.com.

Soul Asylum

+LIVE+