It was a nice day for a White Wedding. Just ask Robin from Rhode Island, who showed up at Mohegan Sun Arena in full wedding gear, ready for Billy Idol. And what a day it was.
August 8th was an absolute scorcher in Connecticut, and the world-famous Mohegan Sun was packed to the gills. In the middle of its 30th birthday year, the entire property was firing on all cylinders. TerrifiCon filled the convention center for one of its biggest weekends yet, a free fan giveaway had the casino buzzing, and thousands more poured in for a sold-out night with DEVO and Billy Idol.
Outside, Connecticut was cooking. Inside, the ’80s were about to come roaring back. DEVO kicked things off with a 14-song set reminding everyone that these guys were never simply a novelty act with funny hats. The Akron originals were punk, new wave, electronic, art-rock and wonderfully weird long before weird was marketable. Nearly five decades later, DEVO still knows exactly how to put on a show.
Check out the full gallery of DEVO photos from this night by Joel Shover Photography here.
And, of course, eventually came those unmistakable red Energy Domes. You knew what was coming. “Whip It.” Whip it good! The Arena erupted. For a few glorious minutes, DEVO transported the room back to the early days of MTV, when these strange guys from Ohio looked and sounded unlike anything else coming through the television. DEVO brought us back to the ’80s.
Then Billy Idol came out and made us feel like we never left. The lights dropped. The roar went up. There he was, the hair, the leather and of course the fist and sneer. It was Billy Freakin’ Idol! In the flesh!
Plenty of people inside Mohegan Sun Arena had probably seen Idol before—some perhaps 30 or 40 years ago. But the moment he hit the stage Saturday night, something happened. We all felt like teenagers again. And Billy? Billy apparently doesn’t age. More importantly, he still sounds fantastic.
The appropriately titled “Still Dancing” kicked things off before Idol tore into “Cradle of Love” and the unmistakable groove of “Flesh for Fantasy.” The newer “77” showed that Idol isn’t simply touring his past, while “Love Unchained” carried the show into the haunting “Eyes Without a Face.”
Then Billy stepped aside for the other essential piece of the Billy Idol story. The Steve Stevens story. For more than four decades, Stevens’ guitar has helped define Billy Idol’s sound, from “Rebel Yell” and “Eyes Without a Face” to “Flesh for Fantasy.”
His résumé away from Idol isn’t too shabby either. That’s Stevens ripping through Michael Jackson’s “Dirty Diana.” And that soaring guitar on Harold Faltermeyer’s “Top Gun Anthem”? Stevens again—a performance that earned him a Grammy.
Following “Eyes Without a Face,” Stevens took over Mohegan Sun Arena for a proper guitar showcase, slipping in Led Zeppelin’s “Over the Hills and Far Away” before tearing into Eddie Van Halen’s “Eruption.” Pure guitar-hero territory.
Billy returned with “Mony Mony,” cover, turning the Arena into one giant party, followed by “Trouble With the Sweet Stuff” and the Generation X throwback “Ready Steady Go.” Then came “Blue Highway.” This was where Stevens reached into another famous chapter of his career, folding the unmistakable “Top Gun Anthem” into the song.
Then Idol went straight for the knockout. “Rebel Yell.” More. More. More. Mohegan Sun answered, Loudly! The encore reached back to Idol’s Generation X days with “Dancing With Myself,” followed by “Hot in the City”—a pretty appropriate choice after the furnace Connecticut had been sitting in all day.
The newer “People I Love” followed before there was only one piece of unfinished business. That guitar rang out. “Hey little sister…”……….“White Wedding.” The sold-out Mohegan Sun Arena exploded. And somewhere in that crowd, Robin from Rhode Island—in full wedding gear—had picked the perfect outfit.
What a way to cap off a scorching summer Saturday at Mohegan Sun. DEVO brought the Energy Domes. Steve Stevens brought the guitar fire. And Billy Idol brought the fist, the sneer and a catalog that still rocks as hard as ever. Thirty years into Mohegan Sun’s story, nights like this are exactly why this place continues to be one of the great stops in live entertainment.
And for a couple of hours Saturday night, a whole lot of us felt like teenagers again.
As for Robin? She picked one hell of a day for a White Wedding.
Go See Live Music…….
Till the next show…..Joel
Check out the gallery of Billy Idol photos by Joel Shover Photography here.
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