By Lisa Burke
March 12th 2016, The Whisky-A-Go-Go, West Hollywood CA: Last Saturday March 12, 2016 I attended the Ultimate Guitar Experience Tour with my favorite Scorpions guitarist Uli Jon Roth as the headlining act.
Of course with the show being at the Whisky-A-Go-Go there were numerous support acts on the bill besides the tour package bands. I arrived around 8 PM and the support acts I saw were Andy Timmons, Jennifer Batten, Made N America, and Rhedoric. The latter band consisted of all Japanese guys and was an alternative pop rock group. It had some elements in it that were reminiscent of Red Hot Chili Peppers and Stone Temple Pilots. It was fun and energetic and they seemed happy to be playing in America. That’s pretty much where my story ends on that one, and as far as fitting in with the rest of the night they definitely stood out but not necessarily in a bad way.
Next up to grace the stage with their presence was local LA dirty rock n roll band Made N America. It was pretty much everything an American rock ‘n roll band should be, with some bluesy riffs, very fun and creative bass jams, and stellar vocals consisting of a large amount of American cheese in the lyrics. With songs called ‘Hell Yeah’, ‘Sin City’, and ‘Black Widow’ you can be sure to get your fill of biker party heavy rock songs. These dudes were very pro in their stage attack and although completely different bands there was a grace about them that reminded me of watching an American UDO. Between the sparkly purple bass and the use of a mini megaphone for vocals in one of the songs, there was much to appreciate. The drums were exactly as they needed to be and used a hard hitting commanding attack. Tough and talented, these guys put on an entertaining show and further proved my theory that rock ‘n roll still exists.
Now is the part where it gets unique and guitar driven, as the tour title suggests it should. The first guitar soloist was Andy Timmons who came on stage in a trio and if you aren’t sure who he is, well he’s that guy from that late ’80s glam metal band Danger Danger. As strange as this seems for him to do a very technical guitar solo project with all straight jams and solos and no vocals, he pulled it off very well. If I had never heard Michael Shenker, Yngwie Malmsteen, John 5, or anyone else do a technical guitar solo show like this then I could even write it off as excellent. He also plays on a Fender Strat Sunburst which is the first and only guitar I ever owned, and I’ve never heard it sound so good, so he gets that credit. The bass player he played with was a good match and kept up with the program and harmonized nicely. The tone was pretty mellow overall and even went a little bit in a country direction at times. There was a decently rendered Jimi Hendrix tribute of ‘Electric Gypsy’ and a couple of Beatles tributes to the late producer George Martin which included ‘Lonely Hearts Club’. The Beatles part was definitely my favorite and he made it count.
After this, I had no idea what to expect as they set up a square shaped video screen towards stage right and then one single woman appeared on stage. This woman happened to be instrumental rock, jazz fusion guitarist and solo artist Jennifer Batten who has performed with Jeff Beck and Michael Jackson. She is very highly influenced by Jeff Beck, and as a woman competing in a man’s world of guitar gods, she’s definitely an inspiration in her own right. She has adapted this two tap fret board method she uses often, which is certainly interesting to say the least. She currently lives in Portland and somehow this comes across in the artistic way she presents herself. The video screen showed a variety of snippets from various shows such as Godzilla and there was also a black-and-white cartoon of a cat going into a meat market which was fascinating and totally turned her into the ‘guitar cat lady’ for an entire song. This song was called ‘Cat Fight’ and I wondered if she had ever taken a cat on tour the way she was talking about it and instantly she became my cat lady guitar hero. She really figured out how to make some pretty bizarre guitar stories that definitely translate in a visual way, and the combo with the actual videos made for a pretty wild ride. She used all backing tracks to enhance the performance and the drumming was particularly successful as there were times when I kept wanting to look behind her and see the live drummer who clearly wasn’t there. She played some Jeff Beck tributes and she definitely played ‘Beat It’ by Michael Jackson which was a good time and very interesting without any vocals. Again, I really gained respect for her coming out on stage as a woman alone and playing for such a long time while blowing my mind with her weirdness that I totally dug. To me her guitar looked like it was custom made on an alien planet and with the tapping technique, strange reverb, and overall style it suited her needs extremely well, regardless of origin. She played for about an hour and fifteen minutes which put the show a bit behind schedule as it was on time before that, but the journey she took us on was interesting enough that it was worth the extra wait for Uli Jon Roth who finally took the stage around 12:05.
I saw Uli Jon Roth perform a few years ago at a benefit at Paladino’s and remember having a great time. This night was absolutely amazing with him playing so many ’70s era Scorpions songs. The Scorpions have always been one of my favorite bands in the hard rock genre, and while I enjoy a vast amount of their works spanning over four decades I really enjoyed the earlier ’70s era as it was more spiritual and raw, and less filled with love and cheese. Uli Jon Roth as a solo artist primarily presented Scorpions songs from his time in the band, including ‘The Sails of Charon’, ‘In Trance’, and my absolute favorite of the night ‘We’ll Burn The Sky’, as well as a Bob Dylan tribute and a cover of ‘Little Wing’ by Jimi Hendrix. Watching Uli Jon Roth on stage is an absolutely magical experience as he is just so fluid and fast and talented on the guitar, and his hair blows in the wind like he just doesn’t have a care in the world the whole time, for an enhanced effect. He wears a turquoise bandana, ring and half turquoise/half white feather earring as part of his signature, further setting the spiritual tone. He’s also known for creating a special guitar with extra frets and a scalloped fret board called the Sky guitar which he plays beautifully and allows him to get a higher sound similar to that of a violin.
He also played another song off his other solo project called Sky Of Avalon, which was a treat. On this night, he had two other guitar players on stage with him and if you know Uli you know he can command a room alone, however what it did bring was a surround sound quality into the mix that was very well balanced on each end with Uli louder than ever in the middle. It worked just the way he wanted it to, and did not take away the focus from him in the least. The keyboard player with his braided beard is a nice and very skilled enhancement to the overall performance, and I only wish it was turned up just a hair to fill out that part of the sound. In terms of vocals there are instrumental times as well as times when Uli Jon Roth sings himself, but tonight’s replacement on vocals for Klaus Meine was what appeared to be a Native American version of a taller Klaus with his fringed outfit and row of feathers sticking out of the side of the microphone stand.
He was also reminiscent to a softer, less obnoxious version of Axl Rose in sound quality, and I was very impressed with his technique overall. Uli’s all classic all the time guitar approach is beautiful from start to finish no matter whether it’s Scorpions tunes or his solo works, yet for me the Scorpions tunes will always be my favorite highlight. If the turquoise theme wasn’t enough, Uli also came prepared with a black sparkly shirt and a white fur padding patch on his guitar strap that further defines his personality and playing style. I must say also that I enjoyed this show twice as much as the October 2015 Scorpions show due to their mediocre set list and cheesy stage antics. Uli brings out the best of the Scorpions for me, and if only we could get that lineup back again for a reunion …
This tour package is unique and full of non-stop in-your-face guitar that you definitely don’t want to miss out on. The Whisky-A-Go-Go with its intimate setting is a really fantastic place to see this type of show as well. In fact, it definitely topped Michael Schenker at the House of Blues that I attended years ago because of the more intimate setting and it’s also such a great entrance to see them come down the stairs from the upstairs dressing room. With most of the Sunset Strip turning into hotels and/or condos, we are lucky this legendary venue still exists, and I hope to keep supporting it for many years to come.
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Uli Jon Roth set list:
01. All Night Long (Scorpions cover)
02. The Sails of Charon (Scorpions cover)
03. Still So Many Lives Away (Scorpions cover)
04. Sun in My Hand (Scorpions cover)
05. We’ll Burn the Sky (Scorpions cover)
06. In Trance (Scorpions cover)
07. Starlight (Sky Of Avalon cover)
08. Fly to the Rainbow (Scorpions cover)
09. Dark Lady (Scorpions cover)
Encore:
10. All Along the Watchtower (Bob Dylan cover)
11. Little Wing (Jimi Hendrix cover)
Remaining Tour Dates:
Mar 16: Redding, CA @ The Dip
Mar 17: Portland, OR @ Dantes
Mar 18: Seattle, WA @ Studio Seven
Mar 19: Vancouver, BC @ Venue Nightclub
Mar 22: Denver, CO @ Oriental Theater
Mar 24: Moorehead, MN @ The Garage
Mar 25: Savage, MN @ Neisens
Mar 26: St Charles, IL @ Arcade Theater
Mar 27: Chicago, IL @ Reggie’s
Mar 28: Detroit, MI @ Token Lounge
Mar 29: Toronto, ON @ Mod Club Theater
Mar 30: Montreal, QC @ Katacombes
Mar 31: Londonderry, NH Tupelo Music Hall
Apr 01: Ottawa, ON @ Brass Monkey
Apr 02: Poughkeepsie, NY @ The Chance
Apr 04: New York, NY @ B.B. King’s
Apr 05:S ellersville, PA @ Sellersville Theater
Apr 06: Pittsburgh, PA @ Rex Theater
Apr 08: Melbourne, FL @ Black Box Theater