Well, it was the first time for me in Spokane, WA at The Knitting Factory on Dec. 2, 2023, for the sold-out Mammoth WVH II Tour. This was a special show as it was also the night for Myles Kennedy‘s Future Song Foundation.
The opening act was Nita Strauss who is promoting her recently released CD The Call Of The Void. Her solo band is on a tour called Winter Storm Tour 2023. Nita’s debut album was called Controlled Chaos and it showcased the talent she was capable of as a solo artist. Nita Strauss started out playing in bands such as Femme Fatale, The Iron Maidens, Alice Cooper and Demi Lovato. Nita took a break from touring with Alice Cooper and took the stage with Demi Lovato. She has returned to the Alice Cooper touring band and has recently recorded on Alice Cooper’s latest release Road.
Nita Strauss has been on constant tours with either Demi Lovato or Alice Cooper and when she is not touring on either of those massive tours she is touring with her solo band whenever she can. Her solo band consists of players who are top-notch and have carved out their own in her band. Her solo band consists of: Josh Villalta (Drums), Johnny Young (Rhythm Guitar), Christopher Dean (Bass), Katt Scarlett (Keyboards), and Kasey Karlsen (Vocals).
Nita Strauss has a short 9-song setlist but the Spokane crowd was there in force to see not only Mammoth WVH but also Nita. As the band hit the stage in the darkness to the “Terminator 2 Theme” the crowd in the Knitting Factory went insane. This is most likely one of the loudest crowds I have ever heard in a club setting. They were blowing the roof off the place, they were ready to rock. And Nita Strauss did not disappoint as an opening act she came out like the “Hurricane” she has been nicknamed. Her setlist was mostly to promote her new album but she did throw in a few tracks from her first solo album. Nita has been on Guitar World Magazines as Guitarist of the Year and she was showing the Spokane, WA crowd what she and her solo band were made of. Nita has the rockstar grandeur down pat and knows how to interact with the crowd as well as her band. Watching her solo band you just know and can tell they are meant to be a force in the music world to be dealt with.
Nita Strauss Setlist:
Terminator 2: Judgement Day Theme (Brad Fiedel song)
Summer Storm
Our Most Desperate Hour
Mariana Trench
Alegria
The Quest / Drum Solo
The Wolf You Feed (with Kasey Karlsen on vocals)
Through the Noise (with Kasey Karlsen on vocals)
Dead Inside (with Kasey Karlsen on vocals)
Victorious (with Kasey Karlsen on vocals)
Mammoth WVH
Well first time Mammoth WVH has played the Knitting Factory in Spokane, WA. This was a sold-out crowd. This was not the first time I saw Mammoth WVH, the first time was in Alabama and then again in Georgia as they were out on tour to promote their debut album. The first time I saw Mammoth WVH the night before they played Wolfgang broke his foot stepping off his tour bus. So I saw his band play while his foot was in a cast. The first time I saw him I was taken aback that he decided to push through and keep playing while in a cast.
This time no cast on his foot and Mammoth WVH was ready to rock the Knitting Factory along with it being the Future Song Foundation show through Myles Kennedy. Mammoth WVH is out on tour again to promote their second album release Mammoth II. Mammoth WVH band consists of the following players: Frank Sidoris (Rhythm Guitars, Lead Guitars), Jon Jourdan (Rhythm Guitar), Ronnie Ficarro (Bass), Garrett Whitlock (Drums) and Wolfgang Van Halen (Vocals).
Mammoth WVH came out on stage in darkness to the “Night Prowler” playing over the sound system. When the entire band took the stage they kicked into “Mammoth” off their debut album. Mammoth WVH had the crowd in an uproar from the very first song, you could tell this sold-out crowd was ready to rock. Wolfgang and the band kept it going and kept the crowd clamouring for more following the first song of the night with tracks from their most recent album Mammoth II. The band was playing like a well-oiled machine, Wolfgang and the band knew how to keep a crowd eating out of the palms of their hands this crowd was on fire and you could tell the band was feeding off the energy from the fans at The Knitting Factory.
Mammoth WVH did slow it down for a couple of songs. “Distance” from their debut release and followed it up with “Waiting” from the current release Mammoth II. “Waiting” fits in very well with “Distance” as an acoustic interlude. It allows the crowd to catch their breaths so they can keep rocking out. And that is exactly what happened as Mammoth WVH came back out stronger and ready to show the crowd that they were ready to kick it back into high gear. They came back to rock and kept it going with a surprise guest Myles Kennedy who helped play on a cover tune “Them Bones” an Alice In Chains tune. Mammoth WVH continued to keep the tempo going closing out the night with the one song from their most current release followed by the last song of the night from their debut album.
The crowd was chanting from the front of the club to the back of the club as Mammoth WVH took their final bow for the evening. Wolfgang commented that Spokane was there to rock and that they had been the loudest, craziest crowd on the tour thus far and being there I believe it. That crowd was loud enough to make you think you were in an arena at a rock show.
Mammoth WVH Setlist:
Night Prowler (AC/DC song) walk out on stage
Mammoth
Right?
Miles Above Me
Like a Pastime
Optimist
Stone
I’m Alright
Epiphany
Think It Over
Distance (acoustic)
Waiting
You’re to Blame
Them Bones (Alice in Chains cover) (with Myles Kennedy) (Tour debut)
Take a Bow
Encore:
Another Celebration at the End of the World
Don’t Back Down
