The Fremont Street 2018 Summer Concert Series got off to a roaring start on May 25th with 90’s alternative rockers CRACKER and CANDLEBOX in front of a huge crowd at the third street stage. Fremont executives explained that this is anticipated to be the largest attended summer concert series ever on Fremont Street, and from the size of the first crowd, it is well on the way.
CRACKER is a band formed by singer David Lowery and guitarist Johnny Hickman that made a splash back in the days of grunge rock with the gold selling album Kerosene Hat, that contained the hit songs “Low” and “Euro-Trash Girl”. They saved these two songs for last in a somewhat short set, and it was great to see David and Johnny still in the band and the crowd singing those two hits along with the band.
CANDLEBOX was the one many were waiting to see on this evening, complete with a meet and greet from Fremont Street before the show. Iconic front-man Kevin Martin poked fun at the Seattle bands early success by stating “for those of you who think we only had the debut album, we actually have like six or seven”. That debut album was certified platinum and contained the mega-hits “Far Behind” and “You”. With that much instant success it is a little understandable to have trouble reaching that pinnacle of success again, especially with the decline of grunge in the late 90's.
The highlight of the show definitely came when Kevin Martin took exception with the Jesus freaks carrying signs on Fremont that say everyone is going to hell, as he broke into the hit “Cover Me”, a song that just happens to be about questioning things such as religion. Kevin was relentless, telling the sign bearers to keep on walking until they were forced out!
The 2018 concert series down on Fremont promises to be a huge success this year with a very diverse line-up full of bands that should draw some record numbers. Congrats to the whole Fremont Staff for providing these free concerts to the community.
Fremont FREE Summer Concert Series Scheduled Shows
May 25 – Candlebox and Cracker
June 9 – Filter and Lit
June 30 – SiriusXM Presents Summerland Tour 2018 starring Everclear, Marcy Playground and Local H
July 4 – Billy Ray Cyrus
July 14 – The Cult
July 21 – Eddie Money and Jefferson Starship
Aug. 11 – Molly Hatchet
Aug. 25 – Halestorm
Aug. 31 - Melissa Etheridge
Sep. 29 – Ratt and Sebastian Bach
Cracker Photos by Harold Mountain / JustAFanPhotos
Candlebox Photos by Harold Mountain / JustAFanPhotos