Black Stone Cherry w/ Citizen Zero
El Corazon, Seattle, WA
06.06.17

It’s rare to see Black Stone Cherry in a venue as small as Seattle’s El Corazon, but the intimacy of the setting made for an undeniably memorable evening.

Detroit, Michigan’s Citizen Zero were there as direct support for BSC and they brought a great show and high production value for such a small stage. The Bright lights of their “CITIZEN – ZERO” metal marquee assured we knew who was rocking the stage.

Frontman Josh LeMay delivered a great brand of anthemic rock songs while sharing guitar licks back and forth with guitarist Sammy Boller. Bassist Sam Collins and drummer John Dudley delivered an energetic performance, the crowd eating out of the palm of their hands by the conclusion of the set.

It’s rare to find these days, but after 16 years as a band, BSC has retained all its original members. Touring behind their 2016 release, Kentucky, BSC has built quite a fan base with their brand of uplifting Southern-rock anthems, and they had so much energy. Guitarist Ben Wells was amazing to watch as he and bassist Jon Lawhon traded places back and forth on the stage. Drummer John Fred Young was one of the most intense drummers I have seen in a while. So many great moves and hard hits. It was hair-flipping, stick-flying madness.

Lead singer/guitarist Chris Robertson said, “We have opened for various artists before but this is our first ever headline show, Seattle. You all came out to have a great time. We can’t think of a better sweaty bottom basement vibe than right now to spend our first headline show with you all.” Then they broke into a colver of “Whole Lotta Love” by Led Zeppelin and their own track, “Cheaper To Drink Alone.”

“You aren’t getting tired on us are you Seattle? It is a Tuesday after all. Oh, wait, it is pretty late.” To this, someone yelled, “I don’t care,” and the whole crowd broke out laughing with the band.

They played so many great songs from their five-album catalog. They even rocked a special performance of the Jimi Hendrix classic, “Voodoo Child.” Near the end of the set, their drum tech took a family photo with everyone to commemorate such a positive and fantastic show. It was great to see such incredible musicians just rocking out and having a great time together on stage.  A fun evening was had by all in attendance and no one looked like they were the least bit disappointed.

Review and photos by Neil Lim Sang

Black Stone Cherry

Citizen Zero