Okay kids. It’s time to get out that can of Stiff Stuff hairspray, tie on your fluorescent bandanna, and put on your denim jacket with the Motley Crue painting on the back. Yes, It’s time to review Rock Kandy, the 80’s Hair Band tribute. I recently caught them at Casey O’Toole’s in Wayne. This was actually a high profile gig. Eddie Trunk from WNEW-FM was broadcasting his “Saturday Night Rocks” show live from the back of the bar. Also, the band had appeared on WDHA-FM’s “The Tour Bus” show a week earlier. This helped them acquire more of a buzz, enough to make the bar well packed when I walked in shortly after 11PM.

This was certainly a rock show done 80’s style. Looking at the stage, you see a zebra-striped bandanna hanging on the lead mic stand, and a shiny striped drum set. Every guy in the band has long hair. The guys up front are all wearing flashy pants, and they are constantly moving around all areas of the stage. All members of the band sing also. As far as the lead guitar playing, there is no ego problem between the two awesome guitarists Mychael and Kevin. They were switching leads back and forth all night, and both were quite skilled in their technique. Ian is a great frontman and good singer. He’s not a diehard technical type singer like Tate/Dickenson, but more of a wild singer in the vein of StevenTyler/Tom Keifer. He did a good job of getting the crowd rowdy. With all this animation going on up front, there was Mike in the background always keeping a steady and lively beat. An interesting point in the night was when all the other members left the stage and Mike sang the song “Beth.” Kudos for that also go out to Jeff, who aside from being a jammin’ bassist, is an excellent keyboardist who sequenced the background tracks for that tune.

They played a lot of upbeat party songs throughout the night, by bands like Twisted Sister, AC/DC, Skid Row, Quiet Riot, Judas Priest, Poison, etc. By the time the third set got going, many people were getting up on the stage doing backing vocals. Some girls were going up on the stage just to dance, and some girls were dressed up in the 80’s style as well. By the time the band was playing “Rock n Roll All Nite” there were about seven girls dancing on the stage. If you’re up for the 80’s, check out Rock Kandy. They are sponsored by Budweiser, booked by S.T.A.R.S. productions, and their website is www.RockKandy80s.com .

My email is MikeZuteCTW@yahoo.com