News

November 18, 2009

IN CONCERT: Chris Daughtry

WHO/WHAT: Daughtry

WHEN/WHERE: 7:30 p.m. Monday at the Wachovia Arena at Casey Plaza

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THE SHORT WORD: He might have started out on “American Idol,” but Chris Daughtry is quickly becoming a bona-fide rock star. The fourth-place finisher from season five of the pop-music juggernaut and his namesake band brought the “Leave This Town 2009 Tour” to the Wachovia Arena on Monday, and they rocked. On its first arena headlining tour, Daughtry (the band) has more muscle in concert than on record, with a powerful three-guitar, bass and drums attack. Opening acts Cavo and Theory of a Deadman each played impressive sets to get the crowd warmed up, but the night clearly belonged to Daughtry.

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THE HIGHLIGHTS: Cavo played great versions of “Let It Go” and “Champagne” to kick off the evening. Theory of a Deadman followed with a kicking 40-minute set including standouts “By The Way” and “Bad Girlfriend.” Daughtry (which took the stage about 9:15 and was still going at Monday’s deadline) rocked the house with opener “Every Time You Turn Around” and “Ghost Of Me” and played all the songs its fans came to hear, including new single “Life After You.” The first song of Daughtry’s two-song encore was a wonderful version of the band’s hit “Home.”

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THE SURPRISES: Daughtry did a spectacular, almost solo-acoustic rendition of Phil Collins’ “In The Air Tonight.”

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FAST FACTS: Chris Daughtry turned down an offer to be lead singer of Fuel before forming his own band. His debut album, the top-selling disc of 2007, spawned five hit singles, including “It’s Not Over,” “Home” and “Feels Like Tonight.” Daughtry’s second album, “Leave This Town,” was released in July and debuted at No. 1. Both Theory of a Deadman and Cavo played the Toyota Pavilion at Montage Mountain in September as part of “Crue Fest 2.” Theory of a Deadman was signed to a record deal after singer Tyler Connolly gave a demo tape to Nickelback’s Chad Kroeger. Cavo made its major-label debut earlier this year with “Bright Nights * Dark Days” and has a song on the soundtrack to “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen.”

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THE CROWD: A Wachovia Arena official estimated Monday’s crowd at 5,000.

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UP NEXT: Next stop for Daughtry is Thursday in Fairfax, Va. Next show at the Wachovia Arena is Trans-Siberian Orchestra on Friday.

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