September 2026

28 I attended Mötley Crüe’s Return of the Carnival of Sins concert with two incredible opening acts, Extreme and Tesla. The show started at 6:30 PM and went on till 10:30 PM. What a night it was! EXTREME Extreme opened the showwith the incredible energy they’ve always had. I saw them live several times and I honestly couldn’t believe how little their sound has changed. While some bands seem to be slowing down with age, Extreme is speeding up! Gary Cherone’s vocals sounded better than ever! Soft and beautiful on the ballads, yet gritty and powerful when the hard rock kicked in. Nuno Bettencourt is an absolute guitar god, and I’ve always felt he doesn’t get nearly the credit he deserves. His playing is always flawless! Pat Badger is an incredible bassist, and we can’t forget Kevin Figueiredo, who keeps the entire band locked into that perfect rhythm. Extreme is one of my favorite bands, so watching them play live was an amazing gift. TESLA I’ll admit it: I was never a huge Tesla fan. But after last night, they completely changed my mind. Every song was catchy, and I absolutely loved the guitar riffs. I kept thinking, “Why don’t I own their albums?” That will be corrected today! Now, because this is an honest review, I have to mention something. As we all know, there are some ’80s/’90s singers who simply aren’t able to sing the way they once did. Unfortunately, Jeff Keith is one of them. His stage presence and energy were fantastic, but his vocals sounded strained and weak at times (mostly in the upper range). However, I found myself thinking, “Would I rather have Jeff Keith up there or some fill-in singer pretending to be him?” My answer was simple: Jeff Keith all the way! He may not have the powerhouse vocals any longer, but we all can admit how unique his voice is. Without him, there is not Tesla! TRULIANT AMPHITHEATER Monday, August 17, 2026