STONE SOUR Destroys the Myth – Show Review

Stone Sour

Hydrograd Tour

Myth Nightclub 9/27/2017

Saint Paul, MN

Don’t call it a side project!

Touring in support of their sixth studio record, it’s safe to say that Stone Sour is more than something Corey Taylor uses to kill time between Slipknot records. The Hydrograd Tour made a stop in the Saint Paul suburb of Maplewood at the Myth Nightclub. Next to a shopping mall and surrounded by strip malls, a Best Buy and a furniture store, I made my way to the Myth from the parking lot of Toys R Us.

Stone Sour is on tour in support of Hyrdograd, which may be their strongest effort since 2006’s Come Whatever May. The band must agree, as five of the seventeen songs performed were from the latest output, including the first two songs of the night “Taipei Person/Allah Tea” and “The Knievel Had Landed” before going back to their self-titled debut for the song “Take A Number”. At some point during the opening number Taylor tweaked his back. He informed the near capacity crowd of that as the bad news part of a Good News/Bad News announcement. The good news being he didn’t sing with his back.

It didn’t seem too debilitating. He may have spent a little less time head banging, but his voice and enthusiasm showed no noticeable sign of a man in pain. Spending a couple of decades fronting Slipknot may strengthen your pain tolerance. Aside from the brief pause between the first and second song, Stone Sour performed the rest of the set almost surgically. Heavily showcasing the latest record whilst pulling out the larger tracks from their past like “Through Glass”, “Say You’ll Haunt Me” and “30/30 150”.

It’s easy to think of Stone Sour as just another Corey Taylor project, but that would be an injustice to longtime guitarist Josh Rand and drummer Roy Mayorga as well as more recent additions Johnny Chow (bass) and Christian Martucci (guitar). The band is no joke. And thankfully they stuck to their own music and not any of the many covers they have released in recent years. While largely happy with the set, a small complaint may be the omission of “Come Whatever May” or “Zzyzx Rd.”, but that’s more of a compliment to the strength of their catalog as I’m not sure what to cut out.

The tour runs through the middle of December where it wraps in Italy. Look for them coming to a town near you. Support was provided by Steel Panther.

Stone Sour Official / Stone Sour Facebook / Stone Sour Twitter / Stone Sour Instagram

bakko@decibelgeek.com