It Was a Rockin' Birthday at The Machine Shop
It's easy to see how and why the Theory of a Deadman show at The Machine Shop completely sold out. Charm City Devils and Aranda opened up, it was manager Kevin's birthday and (of course) TOAD puts on one hell of a performance. Doors opened at 7 p.m., and by 8 p.m., it was already becoming difficult to move within the venue. And when frontman Tyler Connolly grabbed the mic, the whole place turned into a giant wall of smiling people. It was hard not to smile, though, as Connolly joked around onstage between each song (they were actually funny jokes – this isn't Dave Matthews we're talking about here). They played every major hit, both old and new, along with covers of "Cocaine" by Eric Clapton and "Paradise City" by Guns N Roses. Frankly, we couldn't have asked for a better show at a better venue.

Rock Monsters
The Maiden England tour invaded DTE Energy Theater last week for a sold out show with everyone's favorite rock icons. Detroit's own shock rocker, Alice Cooper opened the show, looking as evil as ever, and played a quick set filled with all the hits, like "School's Out" and "No More Mr. Niceguy." We were thrilled to see Alice brought on a smokin' new guitar player, the talented blonde bombshell Orianthi. This 27-year old doll has played with some of the biggest acts around, including Michael Jackson, Carrie Underwood and Steve Vai. Iron Maiden was up next, and singer Bruce Dickinson sang his lil' heart out while getting an aerobic workout on stage in the 100-degree heat. The stage was transformed to an ice blue arctic scene with plenty of pyro that melted our faces off. Of course they brought along their famous mascot Eddie, who is featured on every Iron Maiden album cover (and seems to show up at every show). This time Eddie came out on stage about 25 feet in height, with flames shooting out his head, fireworks exploding in one hand, and a lil' Eddie baby monster in the other hand! Oh Eddie, you've done it again.

Fireflying
We've had a case of wanderlust lately, so D-Days took to the road last weekend to check out Firefly Festival in Dover, Delaware. Why did we travel all that way for a festival? Five words: Jack White and Mayer Hawthorne. We love our hometown boys. Mayer's soulful crooning was a perfect midday treat during day one and Jack White headlined the same day with a set full of bluesy rock off his new album (plus some White Stripes classics). The rest of the festival was incredible, too. But we'd be lying if we said that 11-hour drive home wasn't excruciating.

"We Are Motorhead, and We Play Rock n' Roll!"
...Said the legendary Lemmy Kilmister. And yes, they did play some very fine rock n' roll for all of Detroit's rock fans that attended this year's sold-out Mayhem Festival at DTE. "Ace of Spades" turned the venue upside down – and since the capacity of Pine Knob (sorry, we're old school) is around 15,000, it's pretty safe to say that many people had their mind blown during that classic track. But it wasn't just Motorhead that rocked our faces off. Slayer nearly set the place on fire with some insane pyrotechnics and Slipknot...oh, where to even begin?! More fire, a rotating drum set that switched from horizontal to vertical, blinding lights, the usual masks, a confetti storm – the whole nine yards times ten. Um, and did we mention there was A LOT of fire?

Dance Epidemic
D-Days checked out Global Dance Festival, the two-night touring dance party, on both Wednesday and Thursday nights at the Royal Oak Music Theatre. The first night featured Wolfgang Gartner, playing some energizing electro, followed by Above & Beyond's set of uplifting trance. The night opened with YOS playing, but we were bummed we couldn't hear Mord Fustang. (He couldn't make it due to rumored visa issues.) Above & Beyond showed Detroit lots of love through their music and the messages they wrote to the crowd on the big screen. The second night was LOUD, with glow sticks all around, and full of bass to the face. The dubstep-oriented night brought us dirty beats all night from Emalkay, Dillon Francis and Knife Party. Needless to say, those two days nearly did us in.

One Elektrical Festival
The innaugural IDentity Fest at Elektricity Fair Grounds out in Pontiac kept us dancing all frickin' day last Friday. From Excision to Eric Prydz, Nero, Bingo Players, Audrey Napoleon and so many more great sets – we can't remember having that much fun rocking out to some of the best damned EDM in one million-degree heat! The costumes, the people, the booze – the fact that we have any memory from Friday is remarkable. The urban setting of this year's festival was fantastic, and the crowd turnout sure proved it! We're already making plans for next year, if that's any indication. | RDW