All In The Nielsen Family: Rick, His Sons And A Living-Room Style Rock ’n’ Roll Riot At The Arcada

Dec 16, 2025 admin_bitlc Features, Music News, Reviews 0

By James Currie

Rick Nielsen has always treated rock ’n’ roll like a living room sport, loud, loose, and best enjoyed with people you love, and that spirit was on full display when The Nielsen Project rolled into the Arcada Theatre in St. Charles. Part family reunion, part rock show and part comedy hour, the night felt less like a formal concert and more like being invited to pull up a chair at the Nielsen household while the amps just happened to be turned up to eleven.

At the center of it all, of course, was Rick Nielsen, mischievous grin intact, guitars swapped with cartoonish efficiency, flanked by his sons Daxx and Miles Nielsen, who have been playing together for well over a decade (well, most of their life anyway) but as of recently, it’s become an official gig. That comfort level was obvious from the first downbeat.

Daxx’s drumming was powerful but playful, locking in with the kind of instinct that only comes from years of shared stages and shared DNA, while Miles handled guitar and vocals with ease, sounding both reverent of the Cheap Trick legacy and confident in his own musical voice.

The band was rounded out by an all-star group of friends and collaborators. Kelly Steward (Miles’ wife) shared lead vocal duties for much of the night bringing grit, swagger, and a whole lot of personality as well as being a multi instrumentalist, while Adam Plamann added color and texture on keyboards, fleshing out the sound without ever crowding it.

Filling in on bass was Jason Narducy (Verboten, Bob Mould, Split Single & Michael Shannon), who fit in so naturally it felt like he’d always been part of the family. His playing sharp, supportive, and locked tight with Daxx’s drums. And also a local native with Evanston being his home turf.

What truly made the night special though, was the chemistry. The onstage banter was relentless and hilarious, with Rick tossing out jokes, eye rolls, and asides like a proud (and slightly unhinged) rock ’n’ roll dad, while his sons fired right back. It genuinely felt like sitting in on a private jam session at the Nielsen home. One where the jokes are just as important as the riffs, and nobody’s afraid to laugh if something goes sideways. Hearing the short stories about how those beloved Cheap Trick songs were wrote or inspired from, were worth the price of admission alone.

Musically, the setlist was a joyful mix of Cheap Trick classics. The Cheap Trick songs came off loose and affectionate rather than museum-piece precise, played with the freedom of musicians who know this music inside and out and no longer feel the need to prove anything.

Example of the performance found here.

Some songs retooled as with the 1978 teen anthem “Surrender”. What eventually became a stadium sing along, now was a near solo performance by Miles as he broke it down strummed a guitar and sang his dad’s lyrics about generation differences between kids and parents. A real heart wrenching part of the show that normally would have people shouting, “We’re all alright!” in unison, was now a silent lucidity that almost brought a tear to your eye.

Adding a touch of spontaneity, and maybe even a little bittersweet magic to the night, Miles told the crowd that while doing these shows is “so much fun,” they’re also limited, joking (and half-teasing) that “this could be the last one ever.” Whether said with a wink or a hint of truth, it made the Arcada performance feel even more special, like everyone in the room was in on a moment that couldn’t be repeated or taken for granted.

By the time the night wound down, the Arcada Theatre felt less like a venue and more like a shared hangout, an audience full of people who’d just spent a couple of hours laughing, rocking out and getting a rare peek behind the curtain of one of Rockford’s most beloved families. This Nielsen project may be a side project on paper, but live in St. Charles, felt like something much more personal. A reminder that at its heart, rock ’n’ roll is supposed to be fun and nobody seems to understand that better than Rick Nielsen and his kids.

For more on Cheap Trick, click here

For photos from the show at the Arcada, click here

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Setlist: The Nielson Trust live at the Arcada Theatre in St. Charles, IL – December 14th, 2025