Rainy season has finally fallen upon Spokane and with that comes the HALE ( see what I did there? ). Dad jokes aside, the night was one to remember. Seeing everyone cheering and dancing in their seats was something to behold.
First up was the Finnish phenomenon best known as Apocalyptica. Known as the pioneers of the “cello metal” genre. Founded in 1993 in Helsinki, Finland, Apocalyptica is Eicca Toppinen, Perttu Kivilaakso, Mikko Kaakkuriniemi, and Paavo Lotjonen. They were formed at the Sibelius Academy, and mostly covered Metallica songs before they branched out.
In 2024, they released their tenth studio album, Plays Metallica, Vol. 2, a sequel to 1996’s Plays Metallica by Four Chellos.
They began the night with Battery, and I have never seen such a sight. It was amazing to see all these classically trained cellists rock the stage fully. It was refreshing to hear a new take on a setlist full of classics. Honestly, I want more of this in the scene because replacing the sound of guitars with cellos is brilliant.
Next up was the co-headliner, Lindsey Stirling.
A phenom in her own right, Lindsey Stirling hit the scene running after she proved the judges on America’s Got Talent wrong. I’ve had the absolute pleasure to see her more than once and every time is a treat and no two performances are even remotely the same.
She started off the night with one of my favorites, The Arena mixed with Underground. Watching her glide across the stage effortlessly was nearly breathtaking. The Santa Ana native hit the ground running on youtube and built a huge following due to her eclectic sound and mesmerizing dancing ( she even competed on Dancing with the Stars ).
Following up with The Phoenix, her show was just non-stop energy that it was honestly a challenge to keep up with in the best way possible. Sprinkling in her original songs and various covers make her set one you don’t want to miss ( my favorite was her rendition of Sandstorm by Darude ).
To close out the night was Halestorm, on the heels of powerhouse Lizzy Hale’s birthday.
From the back, we could hear the crowd singing her happy birthday as they set up between acts. The electric energy was hard to miss even if we couldn’t see them. It had us singing along in the back room.
Formed in 1997, the Pennsylvania sibling duo of Lizzy Hale and Arejay Hale formed the powerhouse Halestorm with Lizzy having one of the most powerful voices in modern rock. The raw and vulnerable tones in her voice was something that needs to be seen live to fully appreciate.
Being the first female brand ambassador for Gibson Guitars is just another massive accomplishment for this Grammy winning band. They started the night off with Fallen Star and the energy never waned once. I was fortunate to be able to hear How Will You Remember Me?, their tribute to the late, great, Ozzy Osbourne.
