Downtown Las Vegas has had no shortage of live music lately, but that hasn’t always been the case. The Fremont Street Experience continuously steps up its game with a steady supply of headlining acts and cover bands on its three stages, while indoor venues such as The Fremont Country Club and the Bunkhouse book bands west of Las Vegas Boulevard.
The Downtown Las Vegas Events Center at Third Street and Carson Avenue across from The D (both owned by Derek Stevens) entered the fray in 2014 with a Sammy Hagar concert, but carved out its own niche this year with an outdoor event schedule that pairs the Goo Goo Dolls with Collective Soul on Friday (Sept. 16), followed by Rob Thomas and Counting Crows on Saturday night (Sept. 17). It’s all part of the fifth anniversary celebration of The D as a prominent force downtown.
Thomas, who reportedly has been performing the first co-headliner sets after opening act K Phillips, takes the DLVEC stage for the latest gig in what has turned out to be a two-year solo odyssey. Matchbox Twenty wrapped up its last tour in 2013, leaving Thomas free to explore his individual muse. He played shows on his own and recorded, releasing the single “Trust You” in May 2015 and full album The Great Unknown three months later. The uptempo contemporary dance sound of “Trust You” is a departure from Matchbox Twenty and an indication of where Thomas’ creativity roams when he’s away from the band that helped define mid-’90s pop rock.
Goo Goo Dolls
Thomas’ latest single “Pieces” brings him back to the piano for a ballad that sounds like it could easily nestle in among chart hits by Adele and Twenty One Pilots. The Grammy-winning (in 2000 for “Smooth”) singer digs into both his solo and Matchbox’s song catalogs for his sets, which in the wake of Matchbox Twenty guitarist Kyle Cook’s April announcement that he was leaving the band may be the only way to hear the latter for the time being. The fans don’t seem to mind as long as Thomas’ characteristic croon is delivering the lyrics.
Counting Crows preceded Matchbox Twenty by several years, gaining heavy rotation in the alternative nation with lyrically kaleidoscopic 1993 hit “Mr. Jones” and album August and Everything After. The band took a softer, more introspective approach than many of the alt-rock acts that had emerged in the early ’90s, and created a bridge to the “SHE Radio” formatting Matchbox Twenty would flourish on. The Crows released their last album Somewhere Under Wonderland two years ago this month and have been on their current tour since May, with a July 3 show opening for Bruce Springsteen in Rome a particular highlight.
The concerts continue as the weather cools, with Sublime with Rome celebrating the legacy of late Sublime bandleader Bradley Nowell on Oct. 14 and pop singer Charli XCX (“Fancy” with Iggy Azalea) headlining the official after-party concert for the 18th Annual PRIDE Night Parade. After shows earlier this year by Yes, Boston, Howard Jones, OMD and the bands of this year’s Summerland Tour (Sugar Ray, Everclear, Lit and Sponge) it looks like the DLVEC will have its hands full programming next year’s concert schedule.
Downtown Las Vegas Events Center, 200 S. Third St., 7 p.m. Sept. 16-17, starting at $39.50 plus tax and fee. 702.388.2111
