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Artist
Venue
City
Date
Reviewer
Terry Ilous - Terry Lane Band 02/2008

Dingbatz

Clifton, NJ.

September 12, 2008


 

Official Sites:
www.xyzmusic.com & www.terryilous.com
Myspace Websites: www.myspace.com/terryilousxyz
Official Website: www.terrilanerocks.com
Myspace Website: www.myspace.com/terrilanerocks

When I first saw this show announced on the Dingbatz websiteTerri Lane (www.dingbatznj.com) it simply said “XYZ Acoustic”. I thought could this be the Terry Ilous-led XYZ? I saw Terry and XYZ play there back in 2005 and so I figured it could possibly be and I asked Brian at Rockeyez if he could check into it. Sure enough it was Terry Ilous doing an acoustic show and I figured this could be a very cool and casual show but I wondered would it just be Ilous armed with an acoustic guitar doing some of the old XYZ favorites with a different twist? Well I was in a real treat as there were definitely a few surprises in store on the night!

First, I was supposed to interview Terry before the show but some wires got crossed and it didn’t happen. As I arrived at Dingbatz I found out I just missed Terry as he made his way back to the hotel to rest up before the show. So there I was at the club a little on the early side and the opening act hadn’t even gone on yet. I figured ‘oh well, at least I’ll catch the opener and see what they have to offer’. I had only heard of the opening act TERRI LANE a few days prior to the show while on the Dingbatz website, as they had a link to her myspace page. I was casually impressed with the tunes I heard on the site but wasn’t sure I would be able to catch her set as I was supposed to be doing the interview with Terry Ilous (hopefully Terry and I can connect in the near future and still make that interview happen!). So anyway, a short time later the TERRI LANE Band finally took the stage and from almost the second Terri opened her mouth I was glad I was able to catch her show! Terri Lane’s vocals are strong and clear and immediately reminded me a little bit of Sandi Saraya of the highly underrated New Jersey act SARAYA from back in the day. The music is straight ahead blues-based rock with an edge. Lane and her band ripped through some harder rock numbers before settling into a few bluesier numbers. The band cranked it back up with last couple songs of their set as they turned back to a couple Terri Lane & Terry Ilousharder-edged tunes.

While Lane’s stage presence and vocals were impressive I also liked the guitar playing of Chris Bickley who was equally as impressive. The TERRI LANE band is definitely a group you should keep an eye on and as I understand her and the band are working on their first CD which should be out in the near future.

So with the first surprise of the night out of the way, it was time for Terry Ilous and XYZ to take the stage and give me a few more surprises! I noticed a couple familiar faces setting up their equipment. It was none other than guitarist Damon Marks of NJ-based LIPSTICK MAGAZINE (fresh off their appearance at Rocklahoma 2008!) and bassist Les Jansson of the JOURNEY tribute act EVOLUTION (who Rockeyez just had the pleasure of seeing back in July!). It was a definite surprise to see these guys were going to be playing with Ilous and the band for the night! I had the chance to briefly speak with Terry Ilous a few minutes before the show and he told me how he had just met both Damon & Les earlier that day and only had a quick run through of the songs at sound check! I thought ‘WOW, this should be interesting’…

The band was finally ready to go as they took their places on stools set up at the front of the stage… just picture the front cover of the “Five Man Acoustical Jam” album by TESLA and you’ll get the idea!

The band broke into “Two Wrongs Can Make A Right” which I learned later from Terry was a b-side to the “Face Down In The Gutter” single. Talk about sticking a rarity into your set! What a great way to open this little acoustic show.

Next up was “Follow The Night” from the debut album. It was a cool tune to set the mood for the evening after which Terry and the band broke into the single and video from the 2nd record “Face Down In The Gutter”. Terry featured this song in an acoustic version on his recently released “Hear And Gone” CD (2007 Fyco Records) so it was cool to actually hear it performed in concert that way.

Following that Terry treated the fans in attendance to one of his strongest solo tracks to date in “Got To Believe”. This is a song that just days before he performed on the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon broadcast in front of millions of people! The song originally appeared on the album Ilous released in 2000 under the name “FLYNN”. That was a simply brilliant release and if you can track down a copy consider yourself lucky! Terry shared with me that it recently sold for $70 on eBay!

The classic XYZ ballad “What Keeps Me Loving You” was played next. The song, in my estimation, was one of the better 80’s metal ballads to come along. Pure class.

After that Terry and the band had a little fun taking requests from the crowd. Partial versions of “Souvenirs” (another classy song), “Come On N’ Love Me” and “Maggy” were performed to the fans appreciation.

Another track off the “Hungry” release was given the acoustic treatment next as “Off To Sun” was rearranged from its heavier original form into a great, moody piece.

Then the song that started it all for XYZ, “Inside Out”, was up as the band really seemed to spread its wings on this number and have a little fun. That fun continued as Terry brought opener Terri Lane back on stage to do the Beatles classic (albeit they did the Joe Cocker version) “With A Little Help From My Friends”. Ilous and Lane shared the vocals for a great rendition and fitting end to the night.

As Terry was told they had a few more minutes before they had to go, the band decided to cap off the evening with another great XYZ track “When I Find Love”, which comes off the “Hungry” release.

All in all it was great night and even if the approaching effects of hurricane Hanna scared some of the potential crowd off, the fans in attendance seemed to really enjoy the show. It seems Terry makes his way to NJ every few years so if you get the chance to check him out next time he’s around I’d recommend it. With a voice like his whether it’s acoustic or plugged in you can’t go wrong!

Also, be sure to look out for Terry in his other band “The Monsters Of Classic Rock” which features some other great musicians doing some of classic rocks greatest songs. You can read all about them and more at www.terryilous.com.




BAND LINE-UP: Terri Lane Band Line-up:
  • Terri Lane – Vocals
  • Chris Bickley – Guitar
  • Duke Gunn – Bass
  • Brian Nesgoda - Drums

  • Terri Lane SETLIST:
  • Intro/Give Me All You Got
  • I'd Rather Be Your Lover
  • Faith
  • Good Lovin’ Gone Bad (Bad Company cover)
  • Rain In My Heart
  • Forever
  • Ain’t No Substitute (For You)
  • Bad Hair Days
  • The Cost Of Life
  • Hot In The Kitchen
  • Shoot To Thrill (AC/DC cover)

  • BAND LINE-UP: XYZ Line-up:
  • Terry Ilous – Vocals, acoustic guitar
  • Tony Marcus – Acoustic guitar, vocals
  • Rigo Amezcua – Drums
  • Damon Marks – Acoustic guitar
  • Les Jansson – Bass
  • XYZ SETLIST:
  • Two Wrongs Can Make A Right
  • Follow The Night
  • Face Down In The Gutter
  • Got To Believe (Terry Ilous solo song)
  • What Keeps Me Loving You
  • Souvenirs (partial)
  • Come On N’ Love Me (partial)
  • Maggy (partial)
  • Off To The Sun
  • Inside Out
  • With A Little Help From My Friends (Joe Cocker version) (w/ Terri Lane)
  • When I Find Love
  • Stickman Radio - The Loudest Rock


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