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Third Time’s the Charm for Matchbox 20

Matchbox 20, Rock, Rob Thomas, Brian Yale, Treasure Island

Last updated on June 25th, 2023 at 11:19 am

Matchbox 20 brought their Slow Dream Tour to the Treasure Island Amphitheater last Saturday, finally ending a three-year wait for the performance. The original show in 2020 was postponed due to the pandemic, and then again as the band was leery about hitting the road with Covid-19 still being prevalent.

Frontman Rob Thomas asked the Treasure Island crowd, “How many of you thought this show wasn’t going to happen?” The crowd roared in response before Thomas quipped, “Oh, it’s happening.”

Unfortunately with the postponement, we lost The Wallflowers as the opening act. But we also gained songs from the new album Where The Light Goes, which was released in late May.

Matchbox 20, Rock, treasure island,
Matchbox 20 Treasure Island

Their set started with “Friends,” the 1st of 5 songs from the new album. If you’ve never heard the song before, it’s an easy sing-along that’s well suited for a live performance, with a hook of “All my friends, all my friends are here.”

After the first couple of songs were in the books, Thomas took a moment to remove his jacket, getting whistles and claps from the crowd. He clapped back, saying “Oh stop, like you’ve never seen a 51-year-old man take his jacket off!” The front man wasn’t afraid to voice his opinion throughout the night.

Thomas and guitarist Kyle Cook sat down to a stripped-down version of “If You’re Gone,” showcasing his voice, which remains as strong as ever.

Rob Thomas, Matchbox 20, Treasure Island, Rock

 

The fans got to hear all the hits, spread throughout the show, with the biggest hits saved for the last portion of the night. One fan up front was a little impatient pestering Rob with a particular song title. Thomas replied, “We’ll get there brother. This isn’t the request hour, this is the shut-the-hell-up-and-listen-hour.”

Matchbox 20 pretty much skipped over the hated portion of the encore and capped the night with a 4-song finale featuring some of their biggest hits, including “3 A.M.,” “Unwell,” and “Push,” turning that impatient fan into the sing-a-long fan to finish the night.

Hudson Thames got the call to be the opening act. I wish I could tell you more about him, but I didn’t make it to the Amphitheater in time. Everyone that I talked to said that he sounded great and the ladies absolutely adored him. In fact, as I stood at the sound bar waiting for Matchbox to start, Hudson walked in and I heard a woman working in the area say, “oh my, he’s even prettier up close.” It sounds like his star is starting to rise.

Brian Yale, Matchbox 20, Rock, Treasure Island

Photos by Brett Allen Photography More photos here

Normally it takes about an hour to get to the venue, but for this show it took 2 hours and 15 minutes. I didn’t plan for that, taking a chance by trying to wait out the rain.

Concert fans should plan on all routes into Treasure Island being slowed down to a crawl before a big concert. Plan on leaving early, and if you arrive earlier than you’d like, enjoy some food and drinks or take a whirl at gambling. Just don’t make my mistake at gambling with your trip time. Matchbox 20’s show was a sellout, Carrie Underwood and Jason Aldean are also sold out, and Trample By Turtles will likely be sold out as the date gets closer. 

One constant refrain I heard from my fellow concert attendees was about how traffic was crazy coming into the show, but it was worth every second of it. I agreed, thinking Mother Nature and traffic couldn’t stop this opening night summer rock party.

 

 

Written by Brett

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