Opening for Mötley Crüe isn't a tough gig for Sacramento rockers Tesla. The '80s rockers emerged around the same time, and share pretty much the same crowd. This wasn't a controversial choice by Crüe (and neither, for that matter, was Extreme, also on the bill). Everybody here knew pretty much every word to every Tesla song.
But also, while Crüe's Vince Neil can't hit the high notes like he used to, while his voice has been trampled by time, Tesla's Jeff Keith still sounds phenomenal. If not for Crüe's fireworks, dancers and animation, Tesla would have absolutely stolen the show, and some might argue that they did anyway.
Not only can he still sing his heart out, Keith also looks great. He struts and slides around the stage like the rock 'n' roll lifer that he is. Meanwhile, the rest of the band sounded huge as they kicked into opening beast "Modern Day Cowboy" from the debut Mechanical Resonance album.
Tesla leaned heavily on 1989's The Great Radio Controversy album, quickly pulling out "Hang Tough," and then blasting into "The Way It Is" and "Heaven's Trail."
By now, they've made their cover of British duo Ph.D's "Little Suzi" their own, and that too sounded immense in the coast side surroundings of the F&M Bank Amphitheater in Long Beach, right nest to the Queen Mary ship.
Tesla closed with "Signs," and then it was time for Crüe. But at the end of the whole show, nobody forgot about the quality of Tesla's set.
Photos by Alex Kluft, taken at the Talking Stick Resort Amphitheater, Phoenix, AZ
