Powerman 5000, Static X, Mudvayne and Rob Zombie Bring a Night of Freaky Metal to Tampa – Photos and Feature on the Freaks on Parade Tour at the MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheater in Tampa, Florida 

Country and Reggae concerts may have some large crowds, but nothing draws quite the interesting, diverse, and downright freaky fans like a good old fashioned metal show. And Rob Zombie and Mudvayne did just that with their aptly named FREAKS ON PARADE tour which came to the MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheater in Tampa, Florida this past Tuesday, bringing their good friends Static-X and Powerman 5000 along for the ride. The early 2000’s nu-metal extravaganza drew quite an enormous crowd (especially for a weekday show) to the beautiful venue, which features a large covered seating section with beautiful views that provided a welcome reprieve from the scattered rain that sprinkled throughout the show.

Starting off the freaky festivities that night was Powerman 5000, and as the enormous backdrop featuring their logo was raised in the back of the stage, the lights came on and the band appeared on stage. Kicking off the set with Footsteps and Voices and Nobody’s Real, the band played songs from much of their storied catalogue. Lead singer Spider One, who happens to be the younger brother of Rob Zombie, did an amazing job amping up the crowd, and his backup band was very energetic and memorable (especially the bassist with the half red, half black hair). Finishing up their time on stage with their two most famous songs, Supernova Goes Pop and When Worlds Collide, the band disappeared backstage and the setup for the next band began.

Next up were veteran nu-metal heroes Static-X who also did a killer job warming up the crowd with killer songs from their first two albums, starting with Bled for Days and Wisconsin Death Trip. The band reunited as a tribute to their fallen leader Wayne Static, and the new singer (and old friend of Wayne’s) “XerO” did a pretty good job filling in the enormous shoes that were left by Waynes’ untimely passing. Clad in a grey leather “Wayne” face-mask complete with spiked hair, the singer blasted through classics from their first album Wisconsin Death Trip and even played one of my favorite songs, Cold, from their album Machine. The band finished off their time on stage with Push It and then the long wait for the main event began.

As a huge curtain featuring Mudvayne’s logo dropped in front of the stage, the anticipation began to build as the sun started to set. After what felt like forever, the opening notes of Dig began to play and the band exploded onto the stage as the curtain dropped. Chad Grey, dressed in his LD 50-era clown makeup, broke right into the set with a raw explosive fury that not many bands can bring to the stage, much less ones that have been inactive for the past decade before their heroic return this past year. Bassist Ryan Martinie effortlessly played his intricate bass parts while jumping around like a madman, and Chad ventured out into the crowd while singing multiple times for some fan interaction. Blazing through most of their classic debut album LD 50, and even some newer classics like Determined and Not Falling, the band kept the crowd excited for their entire set, and you could tell that a lot of the people in attendance were specifically there to see Mudvayne. Closing out their set with their hits World So Cold and Happy?, the incredible performance left both the band and the fans exhausted.

After a small stage break while the road crew moved around some giant props and LED screens, the lights dimmed for the final time and the giant LED screen flanking the stage lit up. Bassist Piggy D and the venerable six string samurai John 5 appeared on stage (in full makeup, of course) and broke into the first song The Triumph of King Freak as Rob Zombie appeared on top of a giant standing throne type structure and began to sing. Blasting through classics Superbeast and Meet the Creeper, the band expertly blended together old and new material (including his White Zombie era songs). But the music was just part of the theatrical show, as giant puppets danced around the performing band and the Giant LED screens adorning the whole stage played psychedelic visuals to complete the songs. After blazing through more hits like More Human than Human, Never Gonna Stop and House of 1000 Corpses, John 5 broke into a blistering guitar solo session that put 99% of players skills to shame. After playing the trailer for his new Munsters movie, Zombie and  the gang finished up their set with Dragula with much acclaim from the fans. Overall, this was an amazing show with a fantastic lineup, and I certainly hope to see these bands come back to the Tampa area soon!