Y&T- Live in Milwaukee, Wisconsin (Concert Review)

Finally, after an almost 3-year hiatus (mine, not theirs…. the band are road dogs and play 75+ shows a year), I got an opportunity to see the almighty Y&T for the 44^th (yes, forty-fourth) time.

Growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area, you cannot earn your hard rock/metal stripes without being into Y&T.  Since 1974, this incredibly underrated band has been surprising fans all over the world and their music is an ABSOLUTE staple in the Pooni iPhone playlists.

The show was at Shank Hall Niteclub in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  A simple set up… there is a small stage, standing room only capacity of about 300 with a bar lining the front of the venue.

I know that many of you don’t partake in the opening bands, but I always do.  The opening band, Electric Revolution, is a local blues-based rock band that sounds a bit like Bad Company.  I thought it was funny that the bass player looked like Wadzilla (aka Ian Wadley of the Rock & Metal Combat Podcast) and the drummer reminded me of Hirsh Gardner (the drummer of the 70s band New England).  Overall, this 4-piece band played for about 35-40 minutes and then cleared the way for the upcoming onslaught.  By the way, although the guitar player was pretty good…. I’d hate to be the guitarist that opens for Meniketti.

As the band/roadies were tearing down, I decided to survey my surroundings.  The average age of attendee was about 50 (I felt SUPER young only being 48).  Also, I noticed that out of the 200 (or so) in attendance only about 10 were women.  That is a tuuurrribbble (gotta say it like Charles Barkley) men to women ratio.  And finally, the tickets were only $25, so Y&T isn’t exactly getting rich on this Tuesday evening.

9pm on the dot and the intro to “Black Tiger” starts.  Aaron Leigh (the new bass player), Mike Vanderhule (drums), Dave Meniketti (God himself) and John Nymann (guitar) walk onto the stage and go right into the energetic opener “Black Tiger”.  The band sounds great, Dave’s vocals are on point, the guitar solo absolutely ripped out of the sunburst Gibson Les Paul that looks like it’s been through a war and the crowd is going nuts.  Dave’s guitar tone is still giving me goosebumps.  Holy cow!

Next up, the classic from Earthshaker, “Dirty Girl”.  I notice that John has this huge smile on his face (he had that smile painted on all night) and that Aaron is a more serious and focused musician vs. his predecessor, Brad Lang, who was more loose, fun and flamboyant on stage.  Both are great, but you notice a polar opposite difference.

“I’ve been waitin’ girl to get you alone…” starts “Eyes of a Stranger” from 1987’s Contagious.  This is when I first noticed that the backing vocals sound great.  I was looking for signs to see if backing tracks were being used, I didn’t find any.

Mean Streak was represented via the next 2 songs, “Mean Streak” and “Lonely Side of Town”.  Both great songs from an album that gets somewhat lost in the Y&T catalog.  If you have never heard this album, it could be a new favorite…check it out.

What next?  Well, the old argument…. Should a band play “new” songs for the “new” fans, stick to “the hits” or play “deep cuts” for the “diehard” fans?  If you ask Paul Stanley, you’ll most likely get a “stick with the hits” type of answer.  Ask Steve Harris, you’ll most likely get a “we wrote the new songs for a reason”.  Y&T went with the “deep cuts” answer and played “Storm” from Meniketti’s solo album released in 2002.  Afterwards, right into another deep cut “Masters and Slaves” from In Rock We Trust.  I didn’t see anyone running for the bathrooms or the bar, I didn’t see anyone leave or says negative comments about it…. Instead, I saw 200+ diehard fans appreciating Dave’s choices and screaming like crazy for this 40+ year legacy band.

The anthemic “Hang ‘em High” blasted the crowd back into a frenzy and then the emotional/powerful “I Believe in You” brought the crowd to tears.  The guitar solo in “I Believe in You” was f***ing perfect and the feeling just oozed out of Meniketti’s fingers onto the well-travelled Les Paul.

“Contagious” and “Rock n Roll’s Gonna Save the World” bookended a short bass solo and a well-done drum solo.  I’m not a fan of drum solos, but Vanderhule really surprised me with his talent.  The song finishes and someone yells “I’ll Cry for You” and Dave goes right into the instrumental.  Coincidence?  Probably not, but it was cool anyway.

Y&T’s biggest hit “Summertime Girls” was next, and again NO backing tracks (or keyboards woohoo!) followed by one of my all-time favorites “Barroom Boogie”.  I think it’s a favorite because I’ve woken up with a “trash can head” many times in my life.

Closing out the regular set was “Squeeze” with John on vocals and the newer classic “I’m Coming Home” from 2010’s Facemelter.

“Y AND T, Y AND T, Y AND T, Y AND T” chants the crowd and the band comes back out onto the stage.  Dave asks the crowd “what do you want to hear…”, a couple of folks are yelling “Lipstick and Leather” and the band obliges.  Finally, no Y&T show can be complete without the 2 most recognizable songs, “Rescue Me” and “Forever”.  Again, lead vocal & backing vocals perfection, excellent musicianship and incredible guitar playing.  After these 2 songs, Dave could’ve asked for another $25 and everyone would’ve paid it.

How was my first Wisconsin concert going experience overall?  Well….a hammered waitress kept asking me if I wanted a drink (when clearly she’d had more than enough), a guy asked to sit on my shoulders so he could see better (to which I responded “I’m married” and apologized that I couldn’t help him), I was the darkest complexion guy in the room (which is somewhat normal) and one of my favorite bands ROCKED THE HOUSE for 2 solid hours!!!!!!  So, basically similar to my prior 43 Y&T experiences 😊

Thanks for reading.  Pooni out!

Buy: Y&T

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