Extreme and Living Colour opened their joint tour on Wednesday at the State Theatre in Portland, Maine. You can see the set lists and videos below.
Both groups will share the stage for a month of U.S. dates on the Thicker Than Blood tour, which runs through the end of August. They’ll head overseas for additional shows in Australia and Japan before the trek concludes on Sept. 26.
Extreme is touring in support of Six, their first studio album since 2008’s Saudades de Rock. Singer Gary Cherone recently told UCR they were particularly excited to play the new song “#Rebel” live. “That’s one we will probably do live for the rest of our lives. Because it’s aggressive,” he explained. “I think some of the one-off festivals that we play in Europe, it might even open up the set. It’s a punch in the face.”
True to his word, “#Rebel” was indeed the opening shot in Extreme’s blistering 21-song set. The performance featured five songs from Six, with “Other Side of the Rainbow” and “Small Town Beautiful” making their live debuts. Extreme represented each of their albums, going heavy on tracks from their breakout Pornograffiti and its follow-up, III Sides to Every Story.
They had fun, too, teasing a bit of Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven” before playing their chart-topping smash “More Than Words.” Six’s “Rise,” featuring a nuclear guitar solo by Nuno Bettencourt, helped wind down the concert in fiery fashion as the first song in the Boston band’s encore.
Living Colour’s nine-song opening set proved to be the perfect primer. The funk-metal veterans focused on their classic era, with the entirety of their stage time devoted to songs from their first three albums, Vivid, Time’s Up and Stain. Opening with Vivid’s “Middle Man,” Living Colour mixed in fan favorites like “Type” and “Leave It Alone” alongside deeper cuts. They closed out their performance with a powerful double shot of the classic “Cult of Personality” and “Time’s Up.”
The Thicker Than Blood tour continues tonight in Hampton Beach, New Hampshire.
Watch Extreme Perform ‘More Than Words’ in Portland
Watch Extreme Perform “#Rebel” in Portland
Watch Extreme Perform ‘Banshee’ in Portland
Watch Extreme Perform ‘Other Side of the Rainbow’ in Portland
Watch Extreme Perform ‘Cupid’s Dead’ in Portland
Extreme, 8/2/23, State Theatre, Portland, Maine
1. “#Rebel”
2. “Decadence Dance”
3. “Comfortably Dumb”
4. “Rest in Peace”
5. There Is No God”
6. “Am I Ever Gonna Change”
7. “Play With Me”
8. “Tragic Comic”
9. “Hole Hearted”
10. “Other Side of the Rainbow”
11. “Cupid’s Dead”
12. “Banshee”
13. “Take Us Alive”
14. “Midnight Express”
15. “More Than Words”
16. Flight of the Wounded Bumblebee”
17. “Get the Funk Out”
18. “Rise”
19. “It (‘s a Monster)”
20. “Small Town Beautiful”
21. “Song for Love”
Living Colour, 8/2/23, State Theatre, Portland, Maine
1. “Middle Man”
2. “Desperate People”
3. “Memories Can’t Wait (Talking Heads cover)
4. “Type”
5. “Ignorance is Bliss”
6. “Leave It Alone”
7. “Love Rears Its Ugly Head”
8. “Cult of Personality”
9. “Time’s Up”
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