Maybe an indicator of how hard things have been these past few years, a double-bill of soft-rock seemed to be just what the doctor ordered Thursday night at the Minnesota State Fair.
REO Speedwagon and Styx paired up at the grandstand on a muggy night that was lightened by some of the breeziest rock hits of the '70s and '80s.
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Both the Illinois-reared bands have played Minnesota's fair many times (especially Styx), including a previous twofer show in 2009. But something about this time felt less like a stiff casino-showroom oldies flashback and more like a classic-rock affair that truly rocked.
Both bands admirably recreated their old sounds, albeit with help from younger members. They also impressively sold out the venue, drawing 13,165 on a weeknight — a feat maybe helped by the fact that many of their fans are now retirees.
Romantically mushy songs like "I Can't Fight This Feeling" and "Lady" — which would have found fans waving cigarette lighters back in the day — instead had them excitedly pulling out cell phones to capture the moment; yes, some with the flash still on. And rockier numbers like "Renegade" and "Roll With the Changes" (each band's respective finale) had the crowd cranking along on air guitars.
Styx is down to three heyday-era members, with guitarists/singers Tommy Shaw and James "JY" Young plus bassist Chuck Panozzo, the latter of whom only joined for a few songs Thursday. Nowadays, the band's key player (no pun) is keyboardist/singer Lawrence Gowan, hired in 1999 to fill in for original lead vocalist Dennis DeYoung.
Wearing a floral, sequined jacket straight out of a "Golden Girls"-themed drag brunch, Gowan was comparable to Journey's Arnel Pineda in the way he convincingly mimicked his predecessor in "Lady" and the encore kickoff "Mr. Roboto." But he's even more of a ham than DeYoung was. His 360-spinning keyboard remains a hokey distraction. His lengthy piano solo before "Come Sail Away" comically dragged on. And his between-song banter rivaled David Lee Roth for goofiness.
Gowan did wisely show off the band's familiarity with Minnesota's fair by introducing Young as "sweeter than Sweet Martha's cookies." Young, in turn, drew laughs by crediting 1976's Rush-flavored nugget "Light Up" for sparking today's wave of marijuana legalization. That's about as current as Styx's set got, but that's OK.
Topping off the night, REO returned with singer Kevin Cronin and keyboardist Neal Doughty still leading the ship since their early heyday.
Cronin, 70, is up there with Cheap Trick's Robin Zander as one of the few '70s frontmen still able to hit most of his vocal range. He proved as much early in the set with "Take It on the Run" and later in "Time for Me to Fly."
The singer proved as relatable and affable as ever, too.
"Is it just me, or does it seem like the world is getting crazier every day?" Cronin asked before "Live Every Moment." "I come up here to Minnesota, the nicest place in the world, and it still makes my heart happy."
Even a cynical music critic has to play Minnesota Nice after that kind of love fest.
