Friday September 7, 2001 Teabag Imagika Steel Prophet Order of the Illuminati (aka Agent Steel) Saturday September 8, 2001 Chain Link Faith Black Symphony Sicnest Zero Hour Byfist Silencer Jarra Onward Talon Cage DC4 Burning Rain Sunday September 9, 2001 Ken Tamplin (Poolside) Fred Flory and Jimi Powers (Poolside) *Chain Link Faith members Tony Harnell and Mark Reale (Poolside) Sonic Jungle ????? (Coy Clark, I think) Thrust Cut Throat Shards of Seven Iain Ashley Hersey's Fallen Angel Robin Brock Stone Prototype Vicious Rumors Summary The showcase was a bit farther this year for me so I missed the first night of performances after a long drive. After a decent night's sleep it's was on to the festivities. Kicking off the showcase was Phoenix, Arizona's Chain Link Faith. Very catchy with good melodic hard rocking music. Great way to kick it off. One of the shows biggest suprises in my opinion was Black Symphony. Very heavy edged band that convey's a serious amount of energy live. Really liked these guys. Sicnest is a more modern sounding metal act. Seemed solid, but not exactly my thing. Very aggressive style music in the vein of more modern style acts. Zero Hour followed with their progressive shred-fest. I was familiar with these guys already and they can really become explosive live. Silencer took the stage next with their power metal style showcase. Decent act live. Lion Music recording artist Jarra performed next with tracks from their recent album 'Test of faith'. Jarra is fronted by female vocalist Kathie Jarra. The band is a solid hard rocking act and is now based in Arizona. Onward played next in heavy metal fashion and showed why Century Media signed these guys in the first place. Solid sounding outfit here.  Another signed act, Talon who is signed to Now and Then showcased their melodic rock music. Talon sounds solid and many seemed to like their show. Returning from last years showcase was San Diego's own Cage. These guys are very heavy. The band has opened for some greats in their day and really know how to attract attention. You had to see the drum cage. Raised up a few feet, I got to wondering if it was gonna hold with the pounding that was going on. It did. With it getting rather late, the band DC4 which features Jeff Duncan of Armored Saint and his 2 brothers and a childhood friend, Hyland Church really were another highlight. I have to claim naivity on these guys. Didn't know Jeff Duncan had another project, but was damn impressed with their heavy yet catchy sound. Keep an eye out for their first album titled 'Volume 1' coming soon. One of the reasons I decided to return to the show this year was the fact that Doug Aldrich and Burning Rain were performing. I guess you would consider them the headliner of the day. The set was absolutely amazing. I had been a big fan of Doug and had the chance to meet him. Doug is not only a great guitarist, but one of the nicest guys you'll ever meet in the business. It was about 3:00 am in the time zone I came from, so I was feeling it. Had to sleep! I slept in until a 1/2 hour before Ken Tamplin was set to do his acoustic gig. I arrived a bit late, but did catch a it of it. The acoustic stuff was done by the poolside and there were quite a few attendee's. Much to everyone's surprise, Fred and Jimi from Chain Link Faith were asked to do a few acoustic tracks. They did a great job, especially with the short notice. Another extreme highlight for me was seeing both Tony Harnell an Mark Reale from Westworld doing their acoustic set. Tony is one of my all time favorite vocalists dating back to TNT as well as Morning Wood and Westworld. Tony is another really nice guy that sang absolutely awesome. It was also a real pleasure to meet Mark from Riot. Remember 'Swords and Tequila'?? Yep, that's the guy! The set was very enjoyable and included a cover tune or two, Westworld tunes, and an encore of '10,000 lovers in one' from TNT which the crowd sang along.  After the poolside it was off to catch Sonic Jungle which was another great act. The band was formed from the Aerosmith tribute act 'Rocks'. The sound was great hard rock 'n roll in the flavor of what we have been sorely missing for a long while. Watch for more on these guys from the Resource! With a few bands not showing the lineup changed a bit on both days.  Filling in one slot was 1 guy and his keyboard. Irritation to the ears. Sorry, not my thing. Moving on, Thrust got us back to what we expected. These guys were asked to fill in on short notice and did a great job. Thrust is pretty damn heavy and have a pretty strong presence live. One of the bands I was familiar with, had talked to, and also had reviewed an album was ready to assault the senses. Cut Throat is Skid Row on steroids. These guys rock like hell! I had some interaction with the band throughout the weekend which was cool. This band needs to be seen live. Ramsey, the drummer even played the set perfectly with a very sore hand. (We won't talk about it though!) Anyway, be sure and check their albums out as well as their shows. These guys should revive the L.A. scene if someone would open their eyes. Very good act all around! I missed Shards of Seven who were up next. I did hear they were decent though. Iain Ashley Hersey's Fallen Angel was a different pace for the day. Surely hard rock 'n roll, but with a twist. Iain is a shredder that is at the core of the band obviously. There were instrumentals as well as tracks sung by a female vocalist that at times came across like Tina Turner. Speaking of female vocalists, Robin Brock returned this year, but played plugged in. The music was from her albums including her new release via A2 Records. Another good set. One of the surprises of the weekend was also blues rockers Stone. The band is very bluesy, but heavy at the same time with very good vocals. The band had a track, 'Teaser' featured in John Carpenter's Vampires. They also have music in Carpenter's new movie 'Ghosts of Mars'. As a matter of fact, the band works frequently with John on music for various things. Keep your eye on these guys! I was interested in Prototype who jammed next. These guys turn some heads and command some attention. The music is intense as well as precise. The band had some technical difficulty which shortened the set a bit, but they got their point across anyway. Good band. Last, but not least was intensity at its best, Vicious Rumors. These guys also played last year. This go around featured Brian O'Connor on vocals. This guy really has a presence. He also has good vocal range. The set was tight and was a great way to close the event. Personal thanks to: Dave, Deb, and Sean for pulling this thing off for the second year. I know it's stressful, but we do appreciate your efforts. The Atomic Chaser and The Rocker for the chum time and introductions. Rick and Steve from Steel Prophet for being cool and the laughs. Doug Aldrich for just being Doug and treating me with importance. The band rocks! Kyoko for your charitable attitude and efforts for coming all the way from the land of the Rising Sun. It was fun to hang with you. Tony and Mark from Westworld, it was an honor meeting you guys. Never let it end! The guys in Cut Throat for just being cool and kicking my ass live! Chris Leibundgut for the chat and leads. JJ, Brad, and Briam from Stone. You guys sounded great! Stay in touch! Geoff Thorpe from Vicious Rumors. Great set! Mike from Halford. Great to meet you. We'll talk more soon! Karlo from Havvn. Make sure you get me that melodic music! All of the rest of the great bands including Sonic Jungle, Zero Hour, Black Symphony, amd the rest. It was a blast. L.A. for sharing that 4.2 earthquake with me. Just wouldn't have been the same! Last but not least, my Sis, Suzanne for coming along and absorbing. Hope you enjoyed it!

Burbank Hilton, Burbank, CA      September 7-9, 2001

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