KRUNK
with Motley Crue
at San Diego Sports Arena

by Sheridan

"Krunk Sucks!" Thus quoth lead singer Jimmy Rachitt as they took the stage. Well, far be it from me to disagree, but Krunk rocks! Finally, a band that connects with the audience, moves around on stage, and plays songs you can actually sing along with. See this band now, cause they're gonna be huge. Soon.

Krunk have the energy of old Clash, the attitude of Green Day, and they're eclectic in a Cheap Trick kind of way. Their songs are power-pop/punk/youth anthems that are so groove-heavy, they could even give a white man rhythm.

Rachitt's throaty and raspy voice was clear enough to hear every word, ATHENA's rock-steady meter was always in the pocket, bald guitar player DAVE rocked hard on his low-slung Flying-V, and bassist TONY thumped out the low-end. Tight band, great musicianship (no overplaying), and the band used the stage to it's fullest - I was way up in the cheap seats and Krunk made everything big. Sporting one of the best guitar paint jobs ever, Rachitt's iridescent Les Paul reflected all around the 10,000 seater.

Arena anthem Generation X got a huge response from the crowd. Pro-American Get out of my Kountry brought out the Prop 187 in everyone. Hi-energy No Krunk 'Til Hammersmith showcased their intensity as well as their sense of humor with lyrics like "I'm a jerk; I'm a dork; The other white meat; Eat more pork." Missing from their set list was my fav cut on the CD - Teesdale Blvd. Now there's a hit song if there ever was one.

So, the inevitable has happened...the 80's have returned (or at least they're trying to). Many of us still like that kind of music - Arena Rock. And, some of the old heavyweights are back at it, but they're playing clubs. Krunk, on the other hand, are playing arena-rock in ARENAS where it was meant to be played.

Will Quiet Riot, Dokken, Motley Crue and Poison be the ones to make 80's retro a reality? I don't know. You see, the whole thing with this kind of music all about being young and hungry and full of energy. Krunk has that in spades.

The show went so well that Crue reportedly picked them up for several more dates as well as their upcoming Japan tour. Great news for Krunk, but maybe not such a good idea for the Motleys...remember what happened when Van Halen opened up for Black Sabbath - or when Motley Crue opened up for Ozzy?