Photography Reviews

BLE Masquerade Day 3 – 2300 Arena in Philadelphia, PA 7/30/22

By Shannon Wilk / August 17, 2022

Day 3 of BLE Masquerade was a great finale for this 3-day festival. Starting up the final day of rock n’ roll debauchery were Babylon Shakes. They are a 4-piece “vintage soul rock n’ roll” band from Virginia. This band brought a good sound, good vibes and the look. With guns ablazing, the band rocked out primarily tunes from their latest album “Vintage Soul RockNRoll” released in 2021 as well as a couple songs from their debut album “Exile To The Velveteen Lounge”. 

Second of the day was a quintet of badass gentlemen from Louisville, Kentucky, hard rock band Native Sons. Their set at the Masquerade marks their first show with their newest young gun, Grady Steel on the drums. These 5 guys have clear chemistry that adds so much to their performance. All of the members interacted frequently throughout the set from guitarists JT Shea and Victor Adriel playing catch with their guitar picks to bassist Jim Quiggins and drummer Grady Steel exchanging smiles all while frontman Ashton Blake dances around the stage and lets his vocals soar. 

 Next up, the 3rd and final set from Shotgun Superstars for the weekend. This set was their best of the festival, possibly a result of the larger crowd they had this time around. The band’s frontwoman Annie Clark is just a ball of energy on the stage, jumping around, interacting with the crowd and even taking a ride around on some guy’s shoulders all while hitting all the notes. If you love modern European metal or the original ‘80s glam metal, you’re in for a treat with Shotgun Superstars.

You might’ve heard of a little band called Tesla, or maybe their former guitarist Tommy Skeoch. Well, Tommy’s got a new project called Resist & Bite and they absolutely kick ass. They put out their debut album in 2021 and have been steadily gaining followers since after playing the Monsters of Rock Cruise and other large music events. They have strong originals and a strong performance. All 5 members really bring their own unique niche to the band both live and in the studio. Resist & Bite are an all around great band with attitude, style and most importantly – fantastic tunes. 

A band whose members are from all over the country, SteelCity come together and kick ass without rehearsals. This is a group of true pros and not only that but extremely unique and talented musicians. Catchy melodies, big hooks and shredding… everything you could ask from a hard rock band.

From Memphis, Tennessee, Every Mother’s Nightmare took over the Masquerade stage. Half the band sporting long hair and vocalist Rick Ruhl speaks with a thick southern drawl telling the crowd about each song. They played a career-spanning setlist including a brand new unreleased track dedicated to the late Bill Chavis. 

Another Memphis-based band, Roxy Blue, lit up the stage with frontman Todd Poole commanding the crowd with an iron fist. There was no need for them to win over the crowd as the majority of the audience were loud and proud Roxy Blue fans. The band features 3 out of 4 original members, something that one can appreciate since it’s such it’s becoming more and more rare to have mostly original members in a band from back then. Roxy Blue’s set included primarily new material from their 2019 self-titled release on Frontiers. Fun, energetic and musically sound. I’d definitely see these guys again.

And still another Memphis band taking on the Masquerade stage, Tora Tora. These 4 guys have been kickin’ it since 1985 and have still got gas in the tank and many years left as a band. Blues-tinged hard rock with southern soul and some grit, that’s the recipe for Tora Tora and it works.

From the Great White North, Killer Dwarfs instantly took the energy to 11. Frontman Russ Dwarf ran around and rolled around the stage like a madman and somehow managed to not miss a single note, bassist Johnny Fenton throws up the devil horns and lays down the groove, drummer Darrell Dwarf bangs on that kit like no other, and guitarist Gerry Finn plays the classic riffs with ease and a smile. These 4 put on one of the best sets of the weekend. I’d go as far as saying they’re one of the most energetic live bands left from that era. 

Next up were Autograph! After the recent passing of the band’s only remaining founding member, bassist Randy Rand, they made the decision to continue his legacy through playing live and releasing their upcoming album dedicated to him. The current incarnation of the band features a badass frontman by the name of Simon Daniels, a super-shredder guitarist from my home state Mr. Jimi Bell, Metal Church’s Steve Unger on the bass and since 2014 Marc Wieland has been holding it down behind the kit for the band.

Closing out the night with a killer afterparty set, all the way from Los Angeles, California were Paradise Kitty. Off the stage these ladies are as sweet as could be but the second they hit that first note, they’ve got the same grit and attitude as Guns N’ Roses playing the Strip in 1987. From “Sweet Child O’ Mine” to “It’s So Easy” to “Rocket Queen” and more, this group brought not only the technical ability to be able to do justice to the songs, but also brought the proper stage performance necessary to give proper tribute to the Guns we all know and love. These 5 women have GN’R in their blood and it SHOWS! 

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