On a Saturday night in Oshawa, rock & roll fans came together at the Tribute Communities Centre to show some love for long-time favourites Stone Temple Pilots, Seether, and Default.
From the front row to the last, fans of all ages (children to seniors) showed their love for loud guitars and big rock hits all night long. And as waves of nostalgia mixed with bright lights, Saturday night became the show we imagined it would be.
Let's take a quick moment to get something out of the way. Seeing STP, or even hearing their classic hits, will always remind us of Scott Weiland. The world of rock & roll was more talented with him in it, and he is missed.
As the Oshawa crowd filed into the building to take their seats, Default hit the stage to kick off the night of loud rock & roll music.
Frontman, Dallas Smith was reunited with bandmates Jeremy Hora, Dave Benedict and Danny Craig, and to hear them play, you'd never guess that they ever went away. Along with guitarist Darren Savard, the band sounded tight all around, playing a seven-song set to start the show.
Canadian music fans are likely aware that Smith has been forging a very successful career as a solo country artist since Default's last played together. That time on stage, honing his craft and developing as an artist showed on Saturday night with the band. The same enthusiasm and energy were evident. And as the boys played through their set of hits and fan favourites, he fit perfectly with his original music family.
As the songs rolled on, the fans became more and more engaged. And when Default reached the end of their set with the trio of #1 hits, Wasting My Time, Count On Me, and Deny, you could hear the fans singing from all corners of the crowd.
We don't know what's next for Default, but if this is the start of something, and a "we've still got it" statement, we're here for it.
Default Setlist, Oshawa Tribute Communities Centre
🤘 Hiding From The Sun
🤘 I Can't Win
🤘 Sick & Tired
🤘 It Only Hurts
🤘 Wasting My Time
🤘 Count On Me
🤘 Deny
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Seether was next to hit the Oshawa stage, and the South African rockers came out hot.
With bright lights and the volume turned up, Shaun Morgan, Dale Stewart and John Humphrey had the growing crowd cheering at every turn. There was a warm reception when the trio hit the stage to start the show, and the cheers got louder and louder after every song through the set.
But the loudest they may have been was during Platinum 2004 hit, Broken. There were massive cheers when the crowd recognized that the song was starting, and they carried that enthusiasm til it ended with more cheers and singing at the tops of their lungs.
With new merch available at the concourse level table, and old shirts sprinkled through the crowd, Seether fans were many and easy to spot at the Tribute Communities Centre. And by the end of the set, when the band roared through Fake It and Remedy, they'd gotten their fill of exactly what they wanted.
Seether Setlist, Oshawa Tribute Communities Centre
🤘 Gasoline
🤘 Let You Down
🤘 Words As Weapons
🤘 Nobody Praying For Me
🤘 Country Song
🤘 Fine Again
🤘 Broken
🤘 Rise Above This
🤘 Betray And Degrade
🤘 Fake It
🤘 Remedy
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Last on the night, headlining the show, and bringing more hits than we can count on our fingers, were the Stone Temple Pilots.
Founding members, Dean DeLeo, Robert DeLeo, and Eric Kretz were joined on stage by new lead singer Jeff Gutt. Gutt, who joined the band almost exactly one year ago, looked comfortable and steady in his role as the frontman as STP ripped through a set of old favourites and new songs.
There was no doubt that the fans in Oshawa wanted to hear their old favourites. With seven #1 singles on the US Rock charts and another 11 singles that went Top 10 or higher, Stone Temple Pilots had no shortage of material to draw from to give the fans what they wanted.
The 14 song set included five #1 hits, Vasoline, Interstate Love Song, Big Bang Baby, Trippin' On A Hole In A Paper Heart, and Plush. And it was during Plush that things got special.
The band's first #1 hit and their mainstream introduction to the world is still held as STP's gold standard to many fans. So when Gutt and Dean DeLeo started the song on stage alone, in a stripped down fashion, the fans got involved quickly to sing along. And after the second verse, when Robert and Eric brought in the bass and drums for a full, dramatic, rock & roll sound, the fans got even louder. Before the song ended Gutt invited the Oshawa crowd to take a chorus on their own, and they came through. With strong, loud, clear voices, the fans belted it out and gave us goosebumps.
As mentioned, STP did include new songs, playing Roll Me Under and #6 single, Meadow from their 2018 self-titled album. The songs fit well in the set and more importantly, with the sound and vibe of the Stone Temple Pilots. If the future of the band includes more songs and sounds like these, they could have a lot more touring and albums in them.
There were moments of memories and nostalgia, there were fans dancing in their seats and jumping in the standing room GA on the floor, and there were smiles on fans faces. On Saturday night, Stone Temple Pilots showed everyone that they've still got all of the music they've loved since Scott Weiland and their early-90s debut through Chester Bennington's run with the band in the mid-2010s.
The arena may be smaller now than it once was, but the band, and the show, and the sound were just as big as ever.
Stone Temple Pilots Setlist, Oshawa Tribute Communities Centre
🤘 Wicked Garden
🤘 Vasoline
🤘 Crackerman
🤘 Down
🤘 Big Bang Baby
🤘 Big Empty
🤘 Plush
🤘 Meadow
🤘 Interstate Love Song
🤘 Roll Me Under
🤘 Dead & Bloated
🤘 Sex Type Thing
Encore
🤘 Piece Of Pie
🤘 Trippin' On A Hole In A Paper Heart
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Photo Credit: Trish Cassling
