Once the ritual of participating in tailgate parties to the civic center in order to catch the latest tour by you and your friends’ favorite bands has run its course, atmosphere becomes an increasingly important factor in enjoying a show. In the summer, that atmosphere should be outdoors whenever possible, which positions the multistage Fremont Street Experience as one of the top places to catch live music in Las Vegas through Labor Day Weekend when Smash Mouth caps off the 2016 Rock of Vegas concert series. Joan Jett kicked things off with her May 28 appearance on the Third Street Stage, warming up the sound system for 3 Doors Down’s June 11 set as part of a program that also includes Cherry Poppin’ Daddies, The Doors’ Robby Krieger, Vertical Horizon and Melissa Etheridge.
This summer, Rock of Vegas celebrates eight years of bringing top acts to Fremont’s sound systems. Smash Mouth and 3 Doors Down are veterans, with Smash Mouth having performed as late as last June. 3 Doors Down played in June 2014, too, with Deep Purple, Lit, Papa Roach, P.O.D. and Soul Asylum joining them in gracing the stages of Glitter Gulch. The fact that 3 Doors Down is the one band back from the Rock of Vegas Class of ’14 is a testament to the Mississippi quintet’s enduring popularity.
The Grammy-nominated band saw two albums hit No. 1 after the success of debut single “Kryptonite” in 2000, third album Seventeen Days summiting the Top 200 in 2005 and their self-titled fourth album repeating that success in 2008. With their debut and sophomore album Away from the Sun having gone platinum many times over, the band released its sixth album, Us and the Night, in March. New members Chet Roberts (guitar) and Justin Biltonen (bass) play on the album, which is named for the song of the same title and reached No. 2 on Billboard’s Top Rock Albums chart.
Chubby Checker did the twist on multiple occasions when he performed on Fremont in 1998, the same year Cherry Poppin’ Daddies released monster hit “Zoot Suit Riot.” The Daddies may be the first swing band to play Rock of Vegas when they take the First Street Stage on July 2, but the finest proponents of jump blues and jitterbugging jams in the ’90s evoke the best of bygone eras wherever they roam. The Doors, meanwhile, have been a presence on Fremont since “Strange Days” was added to the Viva Vision canopy shows, but guitarist Robby Krieger will play his compositions—Krieger wrote “Light My Fire” and “Love Me Two Times,” among other songs in the Door’s catalog—in person at First Street’s Stage on July 23. Krieger is joined by his son Waylon on vocals.
Adult-oriented alt-rock act Vertical Horizon comes after Krieger on the First Street Stage with an Aug. 4 appearance, followed by powerhouse singer-songwriter Melissa Etheridge on Aug. 20. Etheridge exploded on the scene with “Bring Me Some Water” in 1988 and cemented her legacy with 1993 album Yes I Am, which featured perhaps her signature song, “I’m the Only One.” EDM fans may want to stick around after the live shows, as Tiesto—A Town Called Paradise plays on Viva Vision at midnight daily. But in the warm summer evenings it’s all about guitar, drums, bass and vocals—all delivered in Downtown Las Vegas.
3 Doors Down, Fremont Street Experience, 9 p.m. June 11, free. 702.678.5600
