Chevelle is currently in the middle of a 22-city tour and made a stop at the Hard Rock Live, Orlando this past week for WJRR’s ROCKSGIVING. Chevelle is an American hard rock band from Illinois consisting of Pete Loeffler (lead vocals, guitar), Sam Loeffler (drums), and Dean Bernardini (bass, backing vocals). I was super excited when this tour was announced but at the same time, it was bittersweet because I knew it would be the last opportunity to see Dean on bass.
Dean recently announced that he would be taking a break from the band at the end of this tour to spend time with his family and to focus on his fine art and furniture business. Dean has been with the band since 2005, so it’s understandable that it might be time to step back for a bit. However, this news or the fact that these guys have been around since 1995 didn’t slow them down one bit, they came and completely annihilated Hard Rock Live.
ROCKSGIVING, as the name implies, was just 2 days before Thanksgiving and it brought with it some unusually chilly air for Orlando, but that didn’t stop the fans from lining up early. When I got there at 5:30 pm the crowd was already pumped and ready for what we knew would be an incredible show. The show was slated to start at 7:30 with The Band Royale and Convey as the supporting openers. These guys got the crowd (and lights) warmed up for what we knew would be a serious rock show.
Chevelle took the stage at a little after 9:15 p.m. and the crowd went absolutely crazy. They quickly jumped into their set as they opened with “Young Wicked“, “The Clincher“, and then followed that up with one of their many hits “Take Out The Gunman“. The crowd sang along with every word. A Chevelle concert is no pause, no breaks, non-stop rock your face off headbanging, fist-pumping rock and roll.
The momentum continued through the night as other hits such as “Joy Ride“, “Jars“, and “Hats Off to the Bull” were played. There was a brief pause as frontman Pete Loeffler sang his cover of Soundgarden’s “Black Hole Sun”. I don’t think there was one person in the audience that wasn’t on their feet, singing along. Have you ever had that moment where you get goosebumps on your skin when that certain song is played? This was one of those moments. It seems with music, it happens for me a lot. Chevelle closed their set with “Envy“, “Still Running“, and “I Get It“.
I have been lucky enough in my life to attend a lot of concerts and I believe this makes 6 times that I have seen Chevelle live. They are absolutely amazing live, and have always been on my list of “go see” bands whenever they are close by. Their stage presence, energy, and stamina is incredible – I mean these guys don’t take a break! I don’t know what the future holds for these guys with their bass player taking a break, but I’m sure that after they gather themselves they will be right out kicking asses and melting faces at a festival or local venue or in the studio. I truly hope to see these guys regroup and get back out there soon. If this was the end of the road, then I’m happy to say I got to experience them one last time.
Enjoy these photos of Chevelle performing at Hard Rock Live, Orlando on November 26th. All photos copyright and courtesy of Chris Cornett.
