Inside The Family Values Tour 2007

    icon Aug 02, 2007
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Fans crowded the hill at DTE Energy Music Theater for the 2007 installment of the Family Values Tour.
Bolstering a bill of rock and metal heavyweights, newcomers and legends, this year's tour features the best summer festival line-up. From founders Korn to new comers Five Finger Death Punch, Family Values offers something for everyone.

The Second stage hosted up-and-comers Twin Method, and Five Finger Death Punch. On the main stage Droid kicked things off after Neurosonic had to scratch from the bill due to an illness in the band. Droid came out guns blazing to kick things off. Singer James 'Buddy' Eason worked the crowd with the fervor of a seasoned veteran.

No stranger to big tours Sounds of the Underground and Ozzfest veterans Trivium hit the stage to show the crowd that the future of metal is in very good hands. Playing material off their recent album the Crusade, Trivium wowed the audiences with intricate guitar work. They even threw in a cover of Metallica's Master of Puppets, which garnered imminent crowd response.

From the youngsters to the veterans, the most buzzed about metal band of the year, Hellyeah was the first group to truly wind up the crowd. Featuring a line-up of some of metals finest the Supergroup reads like a New York Yankees roster. Guitarists Tom Maxwell (Nothingface) and Greg Tribbett (Mudvayne) lay down the grooves. Bottom end duties are given to ex-damageplan bassist Bobzilla. The voice of the band is Chad Gray, front man for the metal heavyweights Mudvayne. The most noted of the band is drummer Vinnie Paul Abbott. Most well known for his work with Pantera, Vinnie is returning to the fold with Hellyeah. Two years after the death of his brother Dimebag Darrell Abbott, Vinnie is once again behind the kit, providing the thundering double bass that he's been known for.

Opening with the title track Hellyeah the group had everyone singing along. Powering through album tracks Matter of Time and Goddamn the guys proved that this isn't your normal Supergroup. Hellyeah sounds nothing like the sum of its parts. If anything it is exactly what they say they are - a high-octane party on wheels.

The newest single Alchohaulin Ass proved to be one of the days best sing-a-longs. A Country tinged rock ballad, it's a little slice of heaven and a little bit of you. This all led up to their final song You Wouldn't Know - a song about life in the spotlight  - which was the crowd favorite.

With hard shoes to fill Flyleaf took to the stage proving that they are one of the forces to be reckoned with. Singer Lacey Mosley proved that dynamite comes in small packages. She finessed her way through the hits Fully Alive and I'm so Sick. Her band was tight bundles of energy, with bassist Pat Seals jumping off the drum riser and stage monitors throughout their set.

Atreyu were up next. No stranger to festivals, Atreyu has played every major festival to hit the U.S. in the last few years.

This was followed by female fronted goth rockers Evanescence. Frontwoman Amy Lee bounced all over the stage like a ballerina on a sugar high. Adding both grace and power to her show, the singer entertained the crowd with Going Under, Call Me When You're Sober, My Sacrifice and more.

Lee's stage presence is amazing. She has a way of mesmerizing the crowd with her voice. While she has been through a host of band members through the past few years her live show is top notch.

It is well known that Korn is a tour de force when it comes to their live show. This show was no exception. With new guitarist Clint Lowery (Ex-Sevendust, Dark New Day) and replacement drummer Joey Jordison (Slipknot, Murderdolls) the band rocks harder than ever.

Giving the fans a taste of their old stuff like Fake and Trash the show was a surprise to old-school Korn fans. Singer Jonathon Davis thrashed about stage with his usual vigor. With two platforms on each side of the stage the fans off to the sides got to see the band members up close.

Tracks like Dead Bodies Everywhere off of 1998's Follow the Leader were a welcome change from the radio friendly sets of the past few years. The band is definitely silencing critics who think that the days of their high-energy take no prisoners rock are in the past.

The evening's encores consisted of Twisted Transistor and the nu-metal anthem Blind.

This is one of the best package tours to date. With a strong line-up of high-energy rock it offered something for every rock fan. Korn has definitely created a franchise with this tour as well as one huge extended family. With people like Amy Lee, Vinnie Paul, Matthew Heafy, and Joey Jordison as extended family, it gives rock fans hope that rock is not dead but very much alive and kicking.

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