BY PAM WHISENHUNT | Go Venue Magazine
Heavy metal artists, Bad Wolves, made their way to the Bourbon Theatre in Lincoln, Nebraska, July 26th, 2023. This rescheduled show was originally set for May 24th, featuring For the Fallen Dreams, Inimical Drive and Arson City. In May, the show was cancelled due to a medical condition Daniel “DL” Lasckiewicz (Bad Wolves lead vocals) had been working through. Less than a month later, the show was picked back up.
Lincoln was the last stop on Bad Wolves’ current tour, unfortunately the crowd was small. I can only speculate why attendance was down. All I can say for certain is a majority of Lincoln missed out on a hell of a show. The word I kept coming back to all night was “energy”; all the bands brought it. Bad Wolves certainly brought the best from all corners of the country, St. Louis Missouri, Detroit Michigan, Atlanta Georgia and Los Angeles California.
Local legends, Arson City (AC) kicked off the night. I could tell by the amount of people wearing AC merch, a large portion of the crowd was there for Arson City. AC has a large fan base, affectionately known as “Citizens”. The Citizens of Arson City always represent. Arson City played a shorten set due to the addition of The Funeral Portrait. Their performance was down and dirty but full of theatrics and energy. I hear they’ve been in the studio. I hope to see Arson City headline a show soon to get the full effect and maybe hear new music. When ever it may be, I highly recommend catching their show.
Next up was Inimical Drive out of St. Louis, MO. I struggled to pronounce this band name and had to look up what Inimical meant. The definition is unfriendly; hostile; harmful; tending to obstruct. Regardless, Inimical Drive played a heavy set, with Joey Colby (Lead Vocal) charismatically connecting with the crowd. Colby let the crowd know, “This won’t be the last time we party”. I believe him, St. Louis isn’t too far away. They are more than welcome to come back.
A late add to the bill was emo rockers The Funeral Portrait out of Atlanta, Georgia. They had tons of energy, each of them jumping round and pacing the stage, I couldn’t keep track of them with an exceptional of Lee Jennings (lead vocals). Jennings had neon green hair and was very easy to track. The Funeral Portrait was highly animated and played to the crowd. Jennings mentioned it had been a long tour. Their van broke down in Montana and is still sitting there. It seems to be a trend with touring band across the board lately.
The last band before Bad Wolves was For the Fallen Dreams (FTFD) out of Detroit, MI. FTFD were the heaviest band on the bill by far. Their drummer Marc Esses was insane on the kit, with hair and arms flying everywhere. Also notable were his solid vocals. Guitarist Damon Austen Tate not only had great vocals but was certifiable circling around the stage. He capped it off by ending the set shredding his guitar in the pit. I loved seeing the interaction with the crowd.
Finally, Los Angeles’ own Bad Wolves hit the stage. Whatever DL’s medical condition was, he must be recovering well. He was as energetic and charismatic as ever. It was obvious Bad Wolves like to keep it light and have a good time. The set was loaded with hits, they sounded great and did not disappoint.
Bad Wolves
For the Fallen Dreams
The Funeral Portrait
Inimical Drive
Arson City
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