Tesla, Sledd, NoMara, Emos, Austin
AUSTIN – Good rock shows are hard to find but with the resurgence of some of Americas greatest rock bands are making that search a little easier. Mix that in with new generation acts and you might say rock and roll is making a comeback. Tonight, Tesla with former friends Sledd were hitting the stage having toured together in the past making this a sort of reunion for both.
NoMara, a new generation hard rock band from Ohio, opened for a nearly sold out crowd at Emos in Austin. A small crowd had gathered to the stage not really paying attention. That was until NoMara, started playing with smooth vocals while the rest of the band ripped apart the song. There sound was clean yet powered backed by the drummer and wail of the guitars. By the end of the set the entire venue was at the stage wanting more.
“It’s like a book that you stopped reading a few years ago. Then picked it up and it is just as good now as it 
was then.” Quoting Peter Deluke as how he felt being back on the road with Tesla. Opening with songs from there recently released Get Rich Quick Scheme, Sledd showed how 20 years of experience can shape Heavy Metal. Sledd’s not the hair band sound but that deep reverberating rock, like Sound Garden or Queensrÿche. Part way into the set they brought out an American flag that had been signed by American Soldiers they had met the day before at Brooke Army Medical center. As they broke into there new song “Liberty”, the crowd was on there feet. By the end of the set, the band gathered at the front of the stage hands raised high to roaring cheers.
Before Tesla took the stage Jeff Keith wandered out and danced around a little to the house music which brought cheers and shouts from the crowd. Tesla broke into there library like they had never stopped touring. “Man out of Time” seemed to be a fitting song to open with, as Tesla has endured the test of time. The crowd, once teenage jean jacket wearing now 40 some things, sang along like kids driving there fists into the air yelling and shouting for an encore at the end. Tesla finished with “Lil Suzi” to round out the night.
In decades past, a band would disappear after their set. Fans would hang around for hours to try to get a glimpse and blurry Polaroid with any band member. Those times have changed. Now it’s about the fans. Band members can be seen at their Merchandise table making each fans evening with a chance to say hello and capture a snapshot with the band. Sledd and NoMara met with fans, signed albums and t-shirts and talked about what they love best….Heavy Metal.
Articles and photos by: Jason Bollenbacher
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