Vie’s Verses – What I’m Looking Forward To At M3
Next week I will be travelling down to Columbia, Maryland to enjoy this year’s M3 Festival (http://m3rock.webs.com) . Last year I attended the festival for the first time and was very glad to have done so. The food was great, the beer was cold, the fans were awesome, and the music was amazing. Sure, the weather was hotter than a Jenna Jamison flick, but I survived. This year, with the festival taking place in mid-May, the weather should be gorgeous, which will only add to the greatness of this festival.
I enjoy road trips. I especially enjoy road trips to a music festival. I’ve already determined what albums I’m going to listen to on the way down to Columbia, and when those albums aren’t playing, I’m certain that I will have Hair Nation dialed in on satellite radio. While I’m cruising down the highway blasting the latest from Whitesnake and Hurtsmile, I’ll also be thinking about the things I am hoping to see at M3.
KIX is headlining the opening night of the festival, and they are one of the bands that I am really looking forward to. Their performance at last year’s M3 was superb, and this year they get a headlining slot, which means a full set of KIX. In their home state of Maryland, this is going to be one awesome performance. I hope that they will dust off some rare gems, but I would be completely satisfied with a standard set of expected classics.
Warrant will be performing on the main stage just before KIX, and I think they are getting a full 90 minute slot as well. If that’s true, that would be wild. I hope to hear some songs from their new disc and I really hope they play some songs from Ultraphobic. That is one Warrant album that just doesn’t get enough attention. With lead singer Robert Mason in tow, Warrant is guaranteed to give a performance to remember.
On Saturday, the full day part of the festival, I am obviously excited to see Whitesnake. I have never seen this band live before, so their headlining performance to close out the festival is going to be a real treat. I want to hear a few new songs from their latest album, Forevermore. I hope that they don’t just play the current single. Forevermore is too good to ignore some of the other tracks. Other than that, a set of hits similar to last year would be fine by me. Other fans may not agree, but hey, it’s my first time enjoying live Whitesnake.
I haven’t seen Tesla live in many years, so I am looking forward to their set, which is right before Whitesnake. Basically any song that Tesla plays is going to be good, so I don’t even need to speculate on that set list. I’d like to see Mr. Big play a lot from their new album, but I have a feeling that it will be one or two songs at most. Their time slot is probably only 45 minutes, which really limits the songs that can be played.
I have no expectations for Lita Ford or Sebastian Bach. I think that they are both over the hill and I’m not sure if they can bring it in the live setting. Perhaps they will prove me wrong, but I doubt it. Every time I’ve seen solo Bach, it’s been pretty horrendous. As for Lita Ford, I’ve never seen her live, but I also haven’t listened to any of her music since 1989.
I am really hoping that Faster Pussycat plays their cover of “You’re So Vain.” Their version is one of my favorite cover songs of all time and I would just mess my pants if they played it live. It would make the festival for me. Perhaps if I get the chance to talk to the band, I’ll put in a special request.
I am also looking forward to seeing Gary Cherone’s latest project, Hurtsmile. I’m sure they will perform a lot of their songs, but I expect some Extreme songs mixed in as well. Maybe we’ll get really lucky and Gary will throw in a track from Van Halen 3, but I highly doubt that. It would be a real treat though.
All in all, I think this year’s M3 festival is going to be even greater than last year. The lineup is solid and the festival runs like clockwork, which leads to almost no waiting time in between bands. I am just counting the days until May 13th. To this hair metal lover, it’s like waiting for Christmas to arrive!
After watching That Metal Show, I am even more anxious to see Mr. Big. Paul Gilbert was on there as the guest guitarist, and my god…the dude is still an amazing player. Sebastian Bach has a new guitarist….some new little wunderkind Nick Sterling that is supposed to set the world on fire. It will be interesting to see how that works out.
Have a great time Ryo! Drink not one but three cold beers there for me! I wish I could make it to this year’s M3 myself. \m/