One of the best feelings as a fan is seeing a band grow, blow up, and reach amazing heights while being on the ride with them. Though I haven’t been with Shinedown since the very beginning, it still amazes me to see how far they have come since I first saw them in 2017. It was one of my first shows at the then newly built House of Blues, Anaheim. I knew a couple songs from the band, but that night they cemented me as a fan. Six years later and Shinedown has released blockbuster albums that have allowed them to headline Amphitheatres and arenas. This October, Shinedown came back to the FivePoint Amphitheatre for the third time in their career, bringing with them Papa Roach and Spiritbox on the Revolutions Live tour. This was the perfect concert at the end of FivePoint’s season, and I couldn’t wait for the music to start.

Speaking of watching bands grow and blow up, one of the most recent bands in the metal community to do just that has to be Spiritbox. The first time I heard “Holy Roller,” like many, my mind just exploded from what I was hearing. The energy of the song, the melodic melodies of the verses, and the ferocious screams captivated me. And they released hit and hit, and I knew I needed to see them bring this energy to the stage. Opening with a new song “Jaded,” vocalist Courtney LaPlante seduced the audience with her clean singing, but it was her roars that set the venue on fire and fueled the mosh pit. Guitarist Mike Stringer layers playing perfectly, letting LaPlante’s vocals shine, and filling in his moments with bounce riffs that you can’t resist but headbang to. Bassist Josh Gilbert and drummer Zev Rosenberg have their bassline and double kicks in perfect sync that let you feel the weight of these songs. With songs like “Hurt You,” “Yellowjacket,” “Rotoscope,” “The Void,” “Circle With Me,” and ending with “Holy Roller” the fans made sure to show up early and get the mosh pit flowing. Though they were the opener, Spiritbox’s music got the mosh pit moving with more ferocity than any other band this night.

Papa Roach is another band that I have been with since the beginning. Like many, my first experience was hearing and seeing the music video for “Last Resort” on MTV’s TRL. I begged my grandma for the album that this song came off, and she bought me it. I had to play this album on loop for months as I was enamored with it. This was now my third time seeing Papa Roach, and hearing their songs live will always bring me back to listening to that album in my room when I was a teenager. Not only can this band write some of the best songs in the rock community, but their live show is filled with nothing but energy. Vocalist Jacoby Shaddix is the ideal front man. He ooze’s charisma, has a smile that will make anyone fall in love with him, still sounds like he did on record, and is not afraid to get up front and personal with his fans. During “…To Be Loved,” he jumped into the crowd and walked to the middle of the venue letting every fan he passed sing with him. Even jumping back into the crowd at another point to hug a disabled fan who managed to make his way close to the stage. The man is grateful for everything he has due to his fans, and he gives that love all back to us. But Papa Roach is more than a one-person band, and they are rounded off by top tier musicians. Guitarist Jerry Horton has created some of the most memorable riffs of their generation, while bassist Tobin Esperance and drummer Tony Palermo hold down the rhythm section that let that fans go wild. Papa Roach played a 13 song set consisting of songs like “Between Angels and Insects,” “Kill the Noise,” “Getting Away With Murder,” “Cut the Lin,” “Firestarter,” “Leave a Light On,” “Scars,” “No Apologies,” “Born for Greatness,” “Help,” and ending with “Last Resort.” Though they were direct support on this tour, Papa Roach gave the fans a show that would have satisfied any headlining show they could have performed.

As the lights went out, and two 40ft tall LCD screens lit up with the Planet Zero logo, Shinedown arose from beneath the stage. Four spotlights hit each member of the stage as they took in the screams and cheers from the fans, before breaking off to blast into the first song “Diamond Eyes (Boom-Lay Boom-Lay Boom).” This was my fifth time seeing Shinedown, but this show honestly felt like the band had evolved into an even bigger version of themselves. With a thrust going right into the audience, an elevated stage that allowed for lights and pyrotechnics to shoot out from the floor, ceiling lights that were on robotic arms to change the dynamic of the stage, and a flying piano that would descend from the roof throughout the show. It was a spectacle for the eyes. But if you strip away all the theatrics and just leave the band, you would still be in for an amazing show as all four members of the band are entertaining musicians in their own right. Vocalist Brent Smith has a powerful voice, with just a touch of twang that is candy to the ears. Guitarist Zach Myers runs around the stage making sure to play to every single person in the crowd, while still making it back to the mic to provide backing vocals. Eric Bass is a multitalented instrumentalist. Not just laying down solid bass lines but filling in on acoustic guitar and piano when needed. While Barry Kerch lets the dreads fly everywhere as he wails away on his kit. These four men teamed up have created some of the best modern rock songs in the last couple decades. Giving the crowd a nearly two hour set that included “Dead Don’t Die,” “I’ll Follow You,” “State of My Head,” “Devil,” “Unity,” “45,” “Enemies,” ‘A Symptom of Being Human,” “Planet Zero,” ‘Second Chance,” a cover of Jimmy Eat World’s “The Middle” with Zack handling vocal duties, “Simple Man,” “Monsters,” and ending with the high energy driven “Cut the Cord.” Shinedown left the audience panting trying to catch their breath, and still we begged for more.

FivePoint Amphitheatre has been an amazing venue where I have been fortunate to see many amazing shows at. Sadly, with their 2023 season coming to an end, there is a chance this venue won’t be back next year as their lease has expired. I, along with millions of others, hope that the Irvine company can come to an agreement to keep a music venue in Irvine, as this is one of the best venues in Southern California. However, if this venue does get taken down, to end my experience with FivePoints, I could not have asked for a better show than Shinedown, Papa Roach, and Spiritbox. The quality of the music, the amazing showmanship of the bands, and how much the crowd came together to sing with every song every band played. This was a night none of us will forget any time soon.