The show was a celebration for a local Philadelphia radio station, WMMR, not changing formats for 40 years. It is a milestone occasion in the business, especially with the way radio stations are bought and sold overnight. However, the show was more fitting for 1998 than 2008.

The lineup included three local bands, Jealousy Curve, Silvertide, and The Hooters, along with national acts Airbourne, Ashes Divide, Everclear, Staind, and Stone Temple Pilots. I didn't arrive on time so I missed Jealousy Curve and Silvertide, which was fine with me. I am usually the one promoting local acts, but Jealousy Curve has had national exposure. They were the Jack Daniels music artist of the year, they toured extensively nationwide, but they still can't seem to break into the industry. That may be saying more about the industry, but having listened to the music I think it might be due to their music. Their music can best be described as "So what." They have maybe one or two good songs, but the rest are filler. (**Update** They were the Zippo Hot Band, not the Jack Daniels artist)

Jealousy Curve has the opposite effect of Silvertide. Silvertide is a dead local band who had a big nationwide record backed by Clive Davis. But due to inner band turmoil (Nick Perri leaving), and more behind the scenes bullshit, they have done nothing in past two years. This is a kiss of death to a new band. You have to have that second record ready to go so people don't forget about you. Their live show, which used to border on chaos, has now become a tame, yawn fest. That certainly isn't helping their chances of recapturing the limelight.

I arrived just in time for Airbourne, who I felt were the unsung heroes of the day. Screaming vocals and guitar, speakers turned up to 11, AC/DC rip off riffs, and more energy than a Monster energy drink, they wowed the crowd and got the only standing ovation of the day.

Ashes Divide was next and I enjoyed them. Think of them as A Perfect Circle lite. The lyrics don't have the double entendre effect because Maynard James Keenan isn't writing them. But you can hear the influence of Billy Howerdel in the A Perfect Circle records. He loves the distorted whine guitar. I can't say I loved all the songs, and the stage antics were kept to a dull minimum, but they did play very well and seemed gracious that people actually wanted to hear them. I wish them best in the future because I love Billy Howerdel and his freaky Moby screwed Billy Corigan look.

The Hooters were, hands down, the worst band of the day. As Joe Wettner put it, "we are at a Christian rock festival." He was right. Between the songs about the Pentateuch and how much God loves us, the set was wholesome and boring. The band is from Philly and have a huge press behind them whenever they play. I have no idea why, they suck. They suck in song and they suck in concert. They also receive the BnR "Most Pretentious Instruments" award. Eric Bazilian can't play guitar unless it is a double-neck something or other. He had a mandolin, six string guitar combo and an acoustic, electric guitar combo. Rob Hyman is the keyboard, hooter, and accordion player. He wins the award for Most Annoying way to play dork instruments. Keyboards and accordions shouldn't be in rock n roll, and if they are put them in the back. I don't want to see a keyboard player attempting to rock out unless it is Trent Reznor. I say Trent because he scares me.

Everclear was the shock of the day. I really enjoyed their set. They played only the hits and then rounded the set out with covers of Far Away Eyes by the Rolling Stones, Rich Girl by Hall and Oates, and 867-5309 (Jenny) by Tommy Tutone. The Tommy Tutone cover provided the most entertainment as Art Alexakis started picking random women out of the crowd to come up on stage and dance. These women hurled themselves over the pit barrier so recklessly that most of them were not caught by bouncers and ended up flopping like dough on the venue floor. It didn't seem to bother them as they got up on stage and danced like strippers, even the ones you didn't want to see dance like strippers.

Staind was good too. The band was very tight. They were a machine, crushing out depressing song after depressing song while Aaron Lewis billowed away on mic. I was hoping they would have catered more to the rock crowd by playing more stuff off their first two albums (Tormented and Dysfunction). But alas, they stuck with the hits off Break the Cycle, 14 Shades of Gray, and Chapter V. They did close the show with Mudshovel, which is still great to hear live. If you like the new Staind, you will really enjoy the show. If you hated the direction the band took after Dysfuntion, you will be disappointed. I appreciated the musicianship and the irony that Aaron Lewis is singing about depression and suicide while Mike Mushok smiled and interacted with the crowd.

The final band of the evening was Stone Temple Pilots and they get their own post. Stay Tuned.

For video and pictures of the event, see www.wmmr.com.