Journey Vancouver Rogers Arena Review

[jrny84]

http://www.vancouversun.com/entertainme ... story.html

Yet again, the Canadian press are giving Journey pretty harsh reviews. Not much respect or appreciation from these Canadian newspapers.

Review: Journey brings nostalgia to arena rock in Vancouver

Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/entertainme ... z2E7SedmKI
Rogers Arena

Monday Night

Of the spate of legacy shows to arrive in Vancouver over the last few weeks, Journey is arguably the weirdest. Sure, they gave the world some of the catchiest pop hooks in rock history, but it wasn't so long ago that their kind of arena pop rock was relegated to county fair stages, their infectious anthems deemed too cheesy for the harsher millennium.

Then, of course, came that seminal episode of Glee when everyone remembered how good it felt to be alive in the 80s and suddenly they were everywhere. But is nostalgia really enough to please a stadium? This is what Journey and their opening acts, Night Ranger and Loverboy--legends in their own right--were presumably out to prove Monday night at Rogers Arena.

Where other acts struggle to prove their relevancy, bands like Night Ranger, Loverboy and Journey revel in their nostalgia, pulling out the same mugging moves they've been working for 30 years, urging the audience to sing along to their radio hits, all despite radically changed lineups.

Those of us who didn't experience their work in its heyday absorbed it by osmosis, their bar anthems becoming late night drunken singalong favourites. When I was in university, I had no idea that Sister Christian was Night Ranger's biggest hit, but that didn't stop me from shouting the soaring chorus into the cold Edmonton air on more nights than I can count.

On Monday night, the crowd wasn't quite ready for Night Ranger's 7 p.m. start time, but by the end of their set, they'd earned a lot of goodwill with their bouncy stage presence.

Loverboy, on the other hand, hasn't held up so well. Mike Reno is a pretty sedate frontman these days. Vocally he's still pretty solid but it's tough to keep energy up when just swaying through Lovin Every Minute of It and The Kid is Hot Tonight. The fact was punctuated when Journey's new frontman Arnel Pineda joined for I Can See Heaven in Your Eyes, bringing some much- needed verve to the saccharin ballad from the Top Gun soundtrack.

Loverboy are still solid musicians and Turn Me Loose and Working for the Weekend are still unbelievably catchy songs, but as a stage show, there isn't much more there than fond memories.

Journey took the stage with Never Walk Away from their 2008 album Revelation and them moved right into a rendition of Anyway You Want It. He may be new on the roster but Journey wouldn't be much good without soaring vocals. Pineda is a genial presence onstage, effortlessly equal to Steve Perry's vocal acrobatics and fearlessly tucked into a pair of jeans tight enough to make any 80s rock star proud.

The rest of the band came off as significantly more serious, especially Neal Schon who played to the crowd with an elaborate reverb laced solo guitar rendition of Oh Canada that finished off with digital fireworks and a waving Canadian flag.

But then drummer Deen Costronovo took over on vocals for Keep on Running. The crowd seemed visibly confused without the connection of a frontman as the guitarists wandered around stage together.

Pineda got the love back when he urged the crowd to bring out their cell phones for Lights. Jonathan Caine got an extended keyboard solo moving into Open Arms, one of the band's long list of power ballads, but it was Pineda who sold it. He even took a tour around the audience followed closely by a very beefy security guard.

Maybe that's the weirdest thing about Journey -- 4/5 of the band doesn't seem to care about the audience at all. They spent half their time playing to the drummer.

If only they had taken a cue from Night Ranger and shown as much joy as their music inspires. That band might have been on the goofy side but at least they seemed to be having fun.

The band couldn't go the night without playing Don't Stop Believin', the song that everyone had come to hear. Sated, a big chunk of the crowd exited in the midst of a thrilling rendition of Separate Ways (Worlds Apart), missing what turned out to be the highlight of the evening.

Journey's renaissance may be near its end with little more up their sleeve than rehashes of their former glories, but at least they managed to send the crowd at Rogers Arena out into the night feeling appropriately elated and filled with new inspiration for their next karaoke night.



Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/entertainme ... z2E7S3L1Up

[Gideon]

By no means is this a harsh review; it's a blunt one, yes, but there's good and bad to be found.
I plan on seeing the band as many times as I can from here on out since it seems to me like they're approaching the end, but I find a lot of these criticisms valid: Jon looks bored as hell, Neal looks happy but ignores everybody on stage, Ross makes silly faces and hovers near the back.

In 2008, these guys were energetic: Neal and Jon went back-to-back during Keep On Runnin', they ran across stage, all smiles and laughs. The crowd definitely notices.
Now Arnel's energy seems out-of-place because it is: no one else on stage is that exuberant and it comes off hokey.

The only thing I disagree with are his comments about Deen; it's people like this that will keep my gf from ever getting to hear him belt it out live.

[The Sushi Hunter]

By no means is this a harsh review; it's a blunt one, yes, but there's good and bad to be found.
I plan on seeing the band as many times as I can from here on out since it seems to me like they're approaching the end, but I find a lot of these criticisms valid: Jon looks bored as hell, Neal looks happy but ignores everybody on stage, Ross makes silly faces and hovers near the back.

In 2008, these guys were energetic: Neal and Jon went back-to-back during Keep On Runnin', they ran across stage, all smiles and laughs. The crowd definitely notices.
Now Arnel's energy seems out-of-place because it is: no one else on stage is that exuberant and it comes off hokey.

The only thing I disagree with are his comments about Deen; it's people like this that will keep my gf from ever getting to hear him belt it out live.

This may impact Arnel's performance because he may start to actually feel "hokey" being the only one on stage energetic. I've sort of been there, done that myself and after a while, you just want to do what the others are doing to fit in......sadly.

[jrny84]

By no means is this a harsh review; it's a blunt one, yes, but there's good and bad to be found.
I plan on seeing the band as many times as I can from here on out since it seems to me like they're approaching the end, but I find a lot of these criticisms valid: Jon looks bored as hell, Neal looks happy but ignores everybody on stage, Ross makes silly faces and hovers near the back.

In 2008, these guys were energetic: Neal and Jon went back-to-back during Keep On Runnin', they ran across stage, all smiles and laughs. The crowd definitely notices.
Now Arnel's energy seems out-of-place because it is: no one else on stage is that exuberant and it comes off hokey.

The only thing I disagree with are his comments about Deen; it's people like this that will keep my gf from ever getting to hear him belt it out live.

The karaokee comment at the end of the article was pretty dumb. Yes, they could be more energetic, but at this point with everything they have been through as a band and then to be in their 60s...im pretty thankful that they are still out there touring. These guys have paid their dues for quite a few years until they really started to get popular again in the last five years or so. Basically starting over (back in 1998) takes a toll on you in itself.

[Gideon]

This may impact Arnel's performance because he may start to actually feel "hokey" being the only one on stage energetic.

That's what I'm saying. In 2008, the energy (despite what some 'tards suggest) was largely well-received.
Now? Even I cringe at points and the crowd has gotten more subdued since.
Personally, I blame the other guys.

The karaokee comment at the end of the article was pretty dumb.

True, but that's long lost its sting, IMHO.

Yes, they could be more energetic, but at this point with everything they have been through as a band and then to be in their 60s...im pretty thankful that they are still out there touring. These guys have paid their dues for quite a few years until they really started to get popular again in the last five years or so. Basically starting over (back in 1998) takes a toll on you in itself.

Age definitely plays a factor, but I don't expect them to do cartwheels. I expect them to smile, to interact, to show some sort of motion. Neal has the badass rock star swagger on stage without the pointless guitar heroics, but I'll be damned if he doesn't come off like he's the only fucker on stage.

Little moments like, as I said, when they did the back-to-back jam session at the end of Keep On Runnin' are a nice touch that Mr. Schon apparently doesn't have time for anymore. I've seen Jon on stage do his best to try to sidle up to Neal and jam out, but Neal's like "lol no."

[RocknRoll]

Here's a short clip of AP joining Loverboy on stage in Vancouver. There's a full video of the entire song, but it's Facebook only. I'm sure another will show up!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcQ5um2H ... youtu.be&a

[steveo777]

Here's a short clip of AP joining Loverboy on stage in Vancouver. There's a full video of the entire song, but it's Facebook only. I'm sure another will show up!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcQ5um2H ... youtu.be&a

That's pretty cool!

[brywool]

"...but it was Pineda who sold it. He even took a tour around the audience followed closely by a very beefy security guard.

Maybe that's the weirdest thing about Journey -- 4/5 of the band doesn't seem to care about the audience at all. They spent half their time playing to the drummer. "

BINGO!

[SherriBerry]

One of the things I noticed was that there was almost no speaking to the audience at all - the band came right out and started playing NWA and after that Jon Cain said a few words. Beyond that, the crowd barely had time to clap for one song before they launched into the next. It was a stark contrast from Night Ranger and Loverboy.

Most people would not know that Deen normally sings a couple of the songs and I really don't think they explained that - Arnel just jogs off stage and suddenly the band is playing 'Keep On Running' and at first, I think the audience wondered where the vocals were coming from. The only time I saw the band playing to Deen was when he was singing, and it was only for 'Keep On Running' and 'Just the Same Way'. So big deal - that isn't half of the show! I love listening to Deen sing anyway. Every time Arnel jumped up onto a speaker I was afraid he was going to fall backwards and hurt himself, but at least he was trying to interact with the audience. (No one matched Jack Blades for energy though - wow!). Arnel could take a page from Mike Reno - he doesn't jump off of things on the stage and never really did. He mostly stays at the mic and belts it out and still has the audience energized and out of their seats.