Co-Headliners Asking Alexandria and The Hu’s Psycho Thunder Tour Brings Solid Heavy Metal to Stir

Asking Alexandria performing at Harrah's Stir Cove in Council Bluffs, Iowa on Sunday, October 1, 2023. (Photo credit: Bob DeHart)

WORDS BY DAVID TAYLOR AND PHOTOS BY BOB DeHART | Go Venue Magazine

Sunday, October 1 marked the end of Stir Cove at Harrah’s Casino and Hotel’s 2023 concert season, and they ended it off with a heavy one with Asking Alexandria and The Hu. This co-headline surprised me with how big the crowd was for a Sunday night in October. There were conflicting start times which led to some irritation (including me), but it was a good night overall for live music.

Zero 9:36 was the opening act of the night. I remember he opened up for Shinedown in Lincoln in 2021, so it was nice to see him still do his thing a few years later. He kept the energy up through his music. The mosh pit for the night started during his set. It was heavy and the rapping was on point. His backing band knew the assignment. Sadly, during his last song, they pulled the plug on him as he went over his thirty-minute set. I have never seen that happen to a national touring act before, but I guess that happens. On a positive note, he did post on his Instagram story that people showed up for him and sold out all of his merchandise.

The Hu, an eight-piece Mongolian folk metal band (you heard that right), was the first of the co-headline. My first introduction to their music was in the recent Star Wars Jedi video games, which makes sense as their sound is otherworldly. I love how unique sounding and looking they were, with a lot of morin khuur-playing and throat singing. They didn’t sing anything in English, which felt so natural with the type of music they were playing. There was so much head-banging in the crowd. Who knew folk music was that heavy? The mosh pit at one point was rowing. It was crazy! I was glad to finally check these guys out live. Check out their latest album, Rumble of Thunder.

And finally, it was time for Asking Alexandria’s return to the Omaha metro area. This band has so many ups and downs in their career, but to see them still on top is pretty incredible. Lead vocalist Danny Worsnop seems a little more humbled about performing live and that he still loves to play this music. I was kinda bummed that I didn’t see guitarist Ben Bruce, but it turns out he is helping take care of his family back home while his wife is ailing from medical issues, so you have to respect his loyalty on that front. Love to see all four of the guys having a fun time on stage. They played older material, in addition to recent material. The pit was on fire during their set. Shout out to touring member Paul Bartolome, who is helping out on guitar and vocals, for playing Ben Bruce’s leads on the songs live. Overall, really good set from these guys. Check out their latest album that came out a couple of months ago, Where Do We Go from Here?. I hope Stir Cove continues to bring out more modern rock/metal bands to their venue.

Asking Alexandria

The Hu

Zero 9:36

All images © Bob DeHart


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