show review
theautarch Fri Sep 13 '02
110
PNC Bank Arts Center, Holmdel,
Rank: 8 Posted: Wed Nov 25, '09 11:43 am
Well, this was my first Satch show, and as read before..Joe was awesome. However, the sound board op needs to be fired. PERIOD! the sound for everyone was MUDDY! Joe's tone was straining to come through the goop. However, I could have easily listened to another two hours of Joe. Guess i'll just have to wait for him to come around again, SOLO.

pj1955 Fri Sep 13 '02
110
PNC Bank Arts Center, Holmdel,
Rank: 10 Posted: Mon May 31, '04 1:31 pm
I've been listening to Joe since I first saw the ad for Surfing with the Alien in Guitar Player Mag back in the 80's. This was the first time I ever saw him live, he was totally incredible. Don't get me wrong Kings X, and Dream Theater did a great job that night, but Joe just let me wanting more-more. Hats off to the Worlds best guitar player since Jimi.

thebard_657 Fri Sep 13 '02
110
PNC Bank Arts Center, Holmdel,
Rank: 9 Posted: Wed Mar 26, '03 12:24 pm
This was my first ever Satriani concert. I thought it was a little short, but he played some cool stuff. I thought the lights at the beginning of "Flying In a Blue Dream" were cool, and it was the coolest ever when he played "Crushing Day." "Mystical Potato Head" was cool, too. Satch's 7-string is cool, and I loved the songs he played with it. I didn't expect him to play "Midnight", and that was a cool surprise. The only reason I'm not giving it a 10 is because of the length. It seemed to be over as soon as it started.

slappydm Fri Sep 13 '02
110
PNC Bank Arts Center, Holmdel,
Rank: 7 Posted: Mon Sep 30, '02 10:22 am

Great Show......However I was disappointed that I missed the 1st half of the Show. My wife bought tix online and printed them out on our printer. The ticket showed joe as the 2nd act (Which has historically meant that the 2nd listing is the main attraction and would close the show), so we figured that we'd miss DreamTheater (which we weren't interested in anyway), and catch Joe.

Well Needless to say we missed the first hour. I really hope in future the ticket specifies who goes on first and who is secont.

About the show.....Great to see him up close. Haven't seen him since Roseland Ballroom in NYC in 2000 (3 Hours of Joe). Starry Night- great.....and Mind Storm left an everlasting impression in my mind of Joe getting down with that piece. MY entire hour and ten-minutes was great none-the-less.

I hope he returns to the NYC/NJ area this year.....we lost out on some serious music and am going thru premature withdrawl....:-) Can't wait till next time....I'll be early

boze Fri Sep 13 '02
110
PNC Bank Arts Center, Holmdel,
Rank: 8 Posted: Tue Sep 17, '02 11:28 am

I too, would like to thank Joe and his band & crew for coming to the Art Ctr to play. This is NOT the 1st time I saw Joe, but it is the first time I'm writting a review, so here's goes. Big Fan of King's X. Seen them lots of times in this area. Only disappointment was that they only played for 25 to 30 minutes. Still, they had there sound together and Ty's playing was smooth as ever. And they pulled off some great vocals. "It's Love" was a great example with it's Beatle-esque mid-sec. Just GREAT!

Joe just ROCKS every time I see him! It was dark by the time he came on and that helped with the light-show. Big surprise for me was to hear "Crushing Day" on the setlist!! I love that tune and I always wondered how Joe pulls it off. Another fav on the set was "Potato-Head Groove Thing". Sonically, it's brutal. And visually, Joe just makes it look SO easy! The 7-string maghoney Ibanez that he used on the new tune, I think it was "Mind Storm", sounded muddy. You noticed it more when Joe went back to his white JS gtr, and even MORE when he used the chorme JS. Even though the chorme JS that Joe had stolen from him was MIA, THIS chorme JS sounded awesome. Only Joe would know where it sounded different. "Crush Of Love" is simply beautiful. Love the melody, and I liked the way Joe added the riff from "Memories" at the end. Joe LOVES to PLAY!!! And he was on fire the this show. How does he keep his glasses from falling off????!!!! I was surprised to see lots of kids in the crowd, as well as lots of girls & women. By the time Joe went into "SummerSong", the place was on thier feet!! The place went just CRAZY. For an encore, Joe and the band went into "Friends" and it just put a cap on the "feel-good" vibe that went across the night. Plus, Joe used that Ibanez "Snake" JS that was custom painted. WOW!! I've seen photos of that guitar but I never thought I'd see it. I should say something about his band. Jeff and Matt are a super solid team. Matt always seemed to me as a soilid bass plyr but showed that he has some chops as well. Great sounds from his frettless too. Jeff's awesome. Great drum sound andgreat grooves he set-up. I just could not get the 2nd gtr plyr's name down, but he was right on with all the fills he did and added gtr sounds. I wanted more. It seemed to me that Joe and the band just got started then they were bowing at the end. Too short, even thought they played for about and hour or so.

Dream Theater are a bunch of MONSTER players. These guys are SO tight it scrary! Even though they had a bigger production than Joe, I felt that their sound suffered, esp on the bassist and keys. John Petrucci and Mike the drummer sounded like CD quality. To me, the drummer was the highlight of DT's set. His character comes across even from behind the drum-kit. But, even with these few short-comings, Dream Theater put on a super-solid show, and the crowd loved them.

What a great early birthday present my wife gave me by buying me this ticket. I loved it.

Boze.

riffage22 Fri Sep 13 '02
110
PNC Bank Arts Center, Holmdel,
Rank: 10 Posted: Mon Sep 16, '02 10:00 am

First time I saw Joe, King's X, or Dream Theater live. Had listened to a number of his songs before, knew he was amazing on guitar, but had never seen the magic up close.

It blew my MIND. Absolutely incredible. Best concert I have ever been to. Great tunes, great playing, great lineup. Went out and bought Strange Beautiful Music the next day.

After the show I put on some of the music that I had in my car, and it just paled in comparison.

ceremony15 Fri Sep 13 '02
110
PNC Bank Arts Center, Holmdel,
Rank: 10 Posted: Sat Sep 14, '02 9:00 pm

I just want to thank Joe for comming here and playing an awesome show. Joe played an amazing set list.

The show was GREAT. It was my first time seeing both Joe and DT... Dream Theatre is a very talented group of musicians but I think they need to consider a new singer. I can't wait until the next time Joe comes around. I really recommend you check out this tour before it's too late.

laxma16 Fri Sep 13 '02
110
PNC Bank Arts Center, Holmdel,
Rank: 10 Posted: Sat Sep 14, '02 5:33 pm
WOW Every song was played better and faster than on cd or even on the G3 live DVD I have. Mind storm and Starry Night sounded so awesome and I'm running out and buying that CD ASAP. And the 3 string finger tapping...i'm still in shock. Absolutely better than I expected and I had high expectations!

peanutlover Fri Sep 13 '02
110
PNC Bank Arts Center, Holmdel,
Rank: 9 Posted: Sat Sep 14, '02 12:37 pm

The ONLY reasons I didn't rate the show a 10 are because it wasn't nearly long enough and the sound system was a bit blurry so some of the details of Joe's masterful playing got missed. As for Joe's performance, though...absolutely stellar! He was energetic and looking like there was nowhere on earth he's rather be! Crushing day was awesome...thanks Joe! And really notably, he did just a smashing job with Starry Night (and it was a gorgeous starry night!) and an awesome jam after friends! Midnight was a welcome twist to the show.

I tried to give Dream theatre a chance but after Joe, they just didn't compare. There's NO doubt that they are talented musicians, but the lead vocals left a lot to be desired in my opinion. Also, I'm not a metal fan, and their sound is very heavy metal and dark. Not for me!

AWESOME SATCH PERFORMANCE-I was out of my seat after almost every song, and I would have stood for the whole thing to show my support if not for my concern for other fans! Please come back, Joe!

skipw Fri Sep 13 '02
110
PNC Bank Arts Center, Holmdel,
Rank: 9 Posted: Sat Sep 14, '02 8:58 am
From the first note of Flying in a Blue Dream to the last one of Friends Joe totally rocked. The new songs sounded great (Mind Strom blew me away and Starry Night was beautiful) and the classic Joe stuff was crisp, clear and sounded as fresh as ever. Seeiing him do Midnight live was pure magic. Rating the show a 9 only because Joe's set seemed way to short (about 90 mins) Come back soon Joe.

jr Fri Sep 13 '02
110
PNC Bank Arts Center, Holmdel,
Rank: 9 Posted: Sat Sep 14, '02 7:33 am
..PNC Arts Center, 9/13. Like this venue, clear and concise seating, and overall the sound in this dug-out better than most semi-outdoor venues. Honestly, I did not catch Kings-X, arriving just as the stage was being changed for Joe and band. Joe Satriani was dead~on here, and played an incredible set. The set selections were perfect for a middle OR closer. Not since "An Evening with .." have I heard such a diverse picking of tunes. SBM tunes were fabulous live; Mynd Storm stands out, and the 7-string I thought was clear and rang every note - taking nothing away from the studio effort. Older tunes "Crush.." and MPHGT, are always a pleasure;Cool#9,AWMAWY, were terrific. Ryt'm guitar taken up by Galen Henson, added that back piece to fill in manysongs with a studio like polish, really adding to the overall delivery, a full sounding band, in many songs; not trio. Band tight, incredible. Jeff C. is an incredible drummer you couldn't fit a hair between the tempo, and Matty-B's bass carried the tunes with a very clear tone; playing many ryt'm parts in a bell like tone that almost put Joe's guitar in the role as the heavy.Joe's band had terrific sound, everyone knew it; dressing the ending of "Friends" before they left the stage. Joe was very "on" and every note on fire. SBM, .. Starry Night.., great. ALmost a "Best of JS" set, always room for more. I've seen Joe many, many times .. this tour/show was a great single set SHOT of Joe, Jeff Matt & Galen.

lauriek Fri Sep 13 '02
110
PNC Bank Arts Center, Holmdel,
Rank: 9 Posted: Sat Sep 14, '02 7:13 am
Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy -- This man mesmerizes me. I need more -- hmm, Jones Beach is just about a 90 minute drive . . . Rating is a 9 only because his set wasn't long enough.

ibztone Fri Sep 13 '02
110
PNC Bank Arts Center, Holmdel,
Rank: 8 Posted: Sat Sep 14, '02 12:23 pm
I just got back from the show and it was a great show. This was my first time seeing Satch live so I was very excited. I had great seats too, seven rows from the stage, right in front of Joe. I could see his wah pedal clearly. I really wish he had played longer. It seemed like Dream Theater had more time, but I'm not sure since I didn't have a watch on. Don't get me wrong though I'm a fan of Dream Theater too, but I mainly went to see Joe. The overall sound quality had too much bass in it. After I put my earplugs in I could distinguish the guitar much better. Joe played pretty much dead on. I couldn’t tell if he made a mistake or not. Mindstorm and Starry Night sounded excellent live. On a side note, Joe didn't play his double neck guitar. I hope he comes back to PNC for an Evening with type tour.