Styx sounds timeless during Viking Hall show

BRISTOL, Tenn. – Jack Blades headbanged around the Viking Hall stage, flopping his curly locks Friday night as if was 1985 again.

Yet, for a while, it might have been – at least in the dark, with nearly 5,000 fans poured into the Viking Hall Civic Center, all gathered to catch a rare, triple-bill, classic-rock show featuring Blades’ band Night Ranger plus Styx and REO Speedwagon.

And, when the lights came up between the acts?

Well, all those kids from the ‘80s – the ones who probably had their first kisses while “motoring” to Night Ranger’s “Sister Christian” – now looked as if they were gathered for a 25-year high school reunion.

But, wait , never mind the snow on the roof or the middle-aged spread of this 40-somethings audience. For most of Friday night, indeed, ol’ Ronald Reagan was back in White House and MTV had gone back to playing music videos.

Ah, to be back in the ‘80s …

That’s surely how Blades acted – as if the cameras were on him – shaking and swaying at center stage.

The hair-band king from California pranced with seemingly uncontrollable vibrations, playing his bass, as guitarist Brad Gillis ripped through a power-packed “Don’t Tell Me You Love Me.”

Earlier, Blades enticed Styx’s Tommy Shaw to the stage to reprise “High Enough,” their hit from The Damn Yankees during Night Ranger’s set.

A glow of little lights hovered above the crowd in one of the evening’s most flameworthy moments.

“Look!” some guy in section 18 shouted. “It used to be lighters. Now, it’s all cell phones.”

So, OK – it wasn’t 1985 anymore.

Never mind: Styx later sounded timeless during its hour-long set, placing a meaty backbone on “Too Much Time on My Hands” and performing “The Grand Illusion” like a five-man orchestra.

REO Speedwagon ultimately closed the show, playing a set of mixed material, often as if the band couldn’t decide if it wanted to be hard rockers or crooners of syrupy ballads. Bassist Bruce Hall’s “Back On the Road Again” blasted like heavy metal thunder; singer-guitarist Kevin Cronin’s “Can’t Fight This Feeling” sounded quite light by comparison.

Like Styx, REO began releasing records in the early 1970s and posted many of its biggest successes in the late ‘70s.

Crowned with a crop of white hair, the ever-bouncing Cronin presented many tunes with a preface. He took a couple minutes, in a monologue, to explain the history behind “Golden Country,” an elaborate, adventurous song dating to 1972.

More mainstream tunes, such as “Take It On the Run,” needed no introduction.

For Styx’s turn in the spotlight, Shaw sang larger-than-life compositions called “Crystal Ball” and “Fooling Yourself.” He played a mean guitar. And he talked about growing up in Alabama.

In all, Styx’s bombastic blast provided the hottest hour of the night, especially as the charismatic Shaw connected with the crowd. He was rivaled only by the energy put forth by Styx keyboardist and singer Lawrence Gowan.

Joining the group in 1999, a few years after Styx’s hitmaking heyday, Gowan was once a star in his own right in Canada.

On Friday in Bristol, Gowan proved he had the chops to lead Styx with powerful vocals and comical antics, like constantly spinning his keyboard on a rotating turntable – or playing notes behind his back.

Gowan’s performance on “Come Sail Away” was worth the price of admission alone.

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