Sebastian Bach sold out Knuckleheads on a Sunday night when the football game was just on and the reality of the next day’s nine-to-five obligations loomed. Bach is 56 years old, and most of his fans are in that range. I was probably the only teenager in the audience. It wasn’t the typical crowd you see out late on a Sunday night, but he managed to keep the energy in the place electric. I was too busy rocking out to take any videos. 

Sebastian Bach is anything but the washed-up rockstar stereotype. His voice is as powerful and his songwriting as punching as ever, and while he doesn’t run and jump around the stage as much as he did in the ‘80s, his stage presence could get anybody up on their feet. He opened with “What Do I Got To Lose?” from his new solo album, “Child Within The Man.” I had heard it a few times before the show, but the live performance was on an entirely different level.

After “Big Guns” and “Sweet Little Sister,” Bach mentioned how awesome the ‘80s were. It usually annoys me when people do that, but he described it in a way that made me wish I was there. He said they were going to play one of the biggest rock and roll hits from the ‘80s. The people around me were three times my age and just as excited as I was. The guy next to me in an LA Guns shirt screamed, knowing we were about to hear “18 and Life,” which LA Guns Guy later mentioned was his favorite song. “18 and Life” blew my mind the first time I heard it on a Skid Row CD, and it exploded my brain live. It didn’t sound exactly like the record, but why would you want it to? Bach and his band play live, explosive rock without computers or backing tracks. 

After the song, he said if you’d told him in 1989 when he was 20 that he’d still be playing that song in 2024 at 56, he’d ask, “What have you been smoking? And can I have some of that?”

When “Piece of Me” started, I felt like LA Guns Guy during “18 and Life.” Its lyrics aren’t as philosophically profound, but it delivers the “fix of rock and roll.” No one took Bach up on his offer to “come up on stage and get a Piece of Me.” After the Jack Daniels Bottle Incident of 1989, that wasn’t a surprise.

I suspect their mashup of “Monkey Business” and “Tom Sawyer” might have been a ploy for Sebastian to show off his son Paris Bach’s drumming skills. He said he figured any parent whose kid can play “Tom Sawyer” on the drums must be doing something right. I never would’ve associated those two songs, but they meshed perfectly. The sound of “Monkey Business” almost reminds me of those old Western movies with the twangy guitar that kicks it off, and it blended with the Rush song in a combination that I think is up there with peanut butter and jelly or Bret Michaels and bandanas. 

Bach dedicated “I Remember You” to departed friends like Dimebag Darrell and Jack Russell. Everyone lit their phone flashlights (you couldn’t do that in the ‘80s!) and waved them in the air while Bach sang.

Bach said he only plays “Rattlesnake Shake” when he’s in a good mood, and he certainly was that night. It was a perfect crowd – no fights, no bad vibes, just pure rock. 

Near the end, Bach offered to sign any CDs or vinyl records brought up to the stage. He cut off “Youth Gone Wild” twice to explain to the audience that he wouldn’t sign it until they took the plastic off. But once he actually sang the song, it was – and I only use this word when absolutely necessary – epic. 

My ears rang for three days after the show. My throat was sore for a week. I probably should’ve worn earplugs or not cheered so much. But it was worth it. I always wished I could have seen these songs live when they came out, but Bach’s shows in 2024 don’t disappoint. 

Setlist:

1. What Do I Got to Lose
2. Slave to the Grind
3. Here I Am
4. Big Guns
5. Sweet Little Sister
6. 18 and Life
7. Can’t Stand the Heartache
8. Freedom
9. Piece of Me
10. Everybody Bleeds
11. Monkey Business/Tom Sawyer/Monkey Business
12. I Remember You
13. (Hold On) To the Dream
14. Rattlesnake Shake
15. Youth Gone Wild
16. Future of Youth