After Shaky Start Pointfest Ended Strong

–by Sean Derrick

After almost two seasons wiped out from the Covid-19 pandemic attendees of the first Pointfest since 2019 on Saturday had to wait a little longer for the music to start.

Numerous technical issues abound beginning with an issue with the electrical generator powering the side stage. The outage was so extensive that local band The Ricters had to be cut from the lineup due to time constraints.

Main Stage openers, and local favorites, Greek Fire had to have their start time pushed back 30 minutes due to technical issues with the sound system. This ultimately meant cutting their set short, as well.

When they finally started at 5:30 and thanks to hot sets from the lineups (both literally and figuratively) the night ended on a very strong note.

Greek Fire set the tone with a hot, albeit short, set starting with “Doesn’t Matter Anyway”. Lead vocalist Moon was his usual energetic front man, covering every inch of the stage, as well as venturing into the crowd a couple of times to play on top of a table by the soundboard.

Victor Ribas, drummer for the band Hurt, filled in for regular drummer Johnny Venus who couldn’t attend the performance. Ribas, who filled in for Venus when he was battling cancer several years ago picked up like he never left, and kept the show going.

It was my firsts time seeing Badflower live and they certainly didn’t disappoint. The California quartet followed Greek Fire’s active set with a vibrant set of their own that included the first ever live performance of “Johnny Wants to Fight”, a treat which the crowd loved. They were also joined onstage by Grandson to perform a broody “Heroin”.

Seether performed their usual excellent show in the dark. Although it was tough to see lead vocalist Shaun Morgan (nothing new in that department) I could hear that they were in top form from the first kerrang of “Gasoline” to “Fine Again”, “Country Song”, and “Fake it”, ending with “Remedy”.

By then the crowd was really amped up for headliner Shinedown. Of course they were lit, and so was the stage with the concussive pyro that the band is known for.

Throughout the hot set vocalist Brent Smith let it all out as much as he was sweating it all out on stage immediately with “Cut the Cord” (The humidity sure didn’t help, either).

Smith and the rest of the band (guitarist Zach Myers, bassist Eric Bass, and drummer Barry Kerch) were in top form and tight. Smith’s vocals were sharp and engaged the crowd exceptionally (All anyone has to do is see the energy he can extract from nearly 15,000 fans during “Enemies”. Every concert should have energy like that.).

By the time Sound of Madness ended the crowd exited this year’s Pointfest for the most part satisfied more at how it ended than how it began, and looking forward to next year’s lineup.

Be sure to check out the full photo gallery after the setlists below.

 

Shinedown Setlist:

Cut the Cord

Unity

Fly From the Inside

State of My Head

If You Only Knew

45

Save Me

Diamond Eyes (Boom-Lay Boom-Lay Boom)

I’ll Follow You

Enemies

Devil

How Did You Love

Get Up

Bully

Monsters

Second Chance

Simple Man (Lynyrd Skynyrd cover)

Sound of Madness

 

Seether Setlist:

Gasoline

Fine Again

Country Song

Nobody Praying for Me

Rise Above This

Bruised and Bloodied

Wasteland

Let You Down

Dangerous

Fake It

Remedy

 

Badflower Setlist:

Fukboi

Don’t Hate Me

Johnny Wants to Fight (1st time performed live)

30

The Jester

Heroin (with Grandson)

Ghost

Girlfriend

 

Greek Fire Setlist:

Doesn’t Matter Anyway

A Real Life

Under the Stars (With Abbie Steiling)

On Top of the World

Dreaming in Deja Vu