By Christopher David,<\/p>\n
One of the most underrated and versatile players in all of rock and metal (though it seems almost limiting to describe him that way), John 5 and his power trio, the Creatures, arrived in Chicago on Sunday night and enjoyed a spellbound capacity crowd at Reggie\u2019s Rock Club.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s a specific kind of musician and character. I say character not as an insult or to imply that he\u2019s putting on airs, but \u201c5\u201d occupies a special kind of niche; immersed in an image that mirrors that of his current full-time band leader (Rob Zombie) with monsters, serial killers, and creepy imagery in abundance, his is truly an artist of his own making. And when he picks up a guitar, he makes it clear that there is no one like him.<\/p>\n
With a zombiefied backdrop and massive skull-and-crossbones glaring over the stage, \u201c5\u201d took the stage in a furry, glam-rock half cape and face paint, not unlike a Universal Monsters\u2019 inspired Brian Eno and tore through 75 of solo and re-imagined cover songs. Focusing mainly on selections from 2014\u2019s Careful With That Axe<\/em> with a few earlier solo tracks making an appearance (\u201cFirst Victim\u201d from 2007\u2019s The Devil Knows My Name<\/em> and \u201cSin\u201d from 2005\u2019s Songs for Sanity<\/em>), it was a very pure performance; it takes a special kind of musician in the streaming-media age to command a roomful of adoring fans with an hour-long instrumental set. To that end, it was always interesting \u2013 the famous \u201clight\u201d guitar and \u201clava lamp\u201d guitars made brief appearances, and things went up a notch when he trotted out the first of his 2016 tracks (being released monthly for collective release later this year), \u201cBlack Grass Plague.\u201d \u201cBlack Grass\u201d saw an effortless switch from guitar to electric mandolin to banjo, tearing a fiery hole in a series of classic bluegrass progressions, highlighting just how wide John 5\u2019s sphere of influence extends. When introducing \u201cBehind the Nut Love\u201d — a silky, light country-styled song \u2013 he noted how the song was inspired by a love of 1970\u2019s TV show \u201cHee Haw\u201d and the use of lap steel guitar \u2013 not typically the open-book you\u2019d expect from a guitarist so closely associated with heavy\/industrial metal.<\/p>\n The Creatures \u2013 Ian Ross and Rodger Carter on bass and drums, respectively \u2013 are an unbelievably tight rhythm section that offer the perfect balance of steady backing and musical color \u2013 the aforementioned \u201cBlack Grass Plague\u201d saw a call-and-response between bass and guitar that was as smooth as could be, and during the grand finale \u2013 a medley of rock riffs that included just about everything one could think of from Slayer to Iron Maiden to Van Halen and everything in between \u2013 the interplay between the three was astonishing.\u00a0\u00a0 Attacking a rapid succession of riffs with razor precision, \u201c5\u201d was all smiles, thanking the crowd profusely and clearly appreciative for the attention.<\/p>\n He deserves it, perhaps more than any other guitarist currently out there.<\/p>\n John 5 and the Creatures \u2013 March 6, 2016, Reggie\u2019s Rock Club, Chicago, IL (setlist)<\/strong><\/p>\n We Need to Have a Talk with John (intro)<\/p>\n Flight of the Vulcan Kelly<\/p>\n Villisca<\/p>\n This Is My Rifle<\/p>\n Sin<\/p>\n El Cucuy<\/p>\n Jiffy Jam<\/p>\n Portrait of Sidney Sloan<\/p>\n *guitar solo*<\/p>\n Six Hundred & Sixty Six Pickers in Hell, CA<\/p>\n Behind the Nut Love<\/p>\n Making Monsters<\/p>\n Black Grass Plague<\/p>\n First Victim<\/p>\n Beat It (Michael Jackson cover)<\/p>\n First Victim (reprise)<\/p>\n Feisty Cadavers<\/p>\n *Rock Medley*<\/p>\n ——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————<\/p>\n To find out more info on John 5 & The Creatures including more tour dates, click here<\/a><\/p>\n For photo gallery from the Reggies show, click here<\/a><\/p>\n