The event that I have been patiently waiting for, for the past 3 months had finally arrived. I was going to have the opportunity to meet and watch my favourite musician in the world launch his solo album tour here in my hometown. I honestly never thought this moment would come around.
I arrived at the venue four hours prior to the start of the show and went to check-in with the organisers of the meet and greet packages. On my way to the merchandise stand I saw some of the fans that were going to join me in meeting Myles. While I was waiting at the merch stand, deciding how I was going to avoid spending all my money I met two other Mylesâ fans and it was wonderful to meet like-minded people who adored the man as much as I did. We spent the rest of our time at the concert together and I really enjoyed their company.
Later on we got ushered into the venue, where we were allowed to watch Myles do a sound check. He seemed at ease and even joked around a little bit. He played âHaunted By Designâ with Tim Tournier accompanying him on the acoustic guitar. A real treat was watching Myles tune and play the steel resonator guitar in a lap slide guitar style. Myles didnât need to spend much time doing a sound check, as he would have if he was performing with his band. He seemed eager to wrap up sound check in order to meet us. Being even more eager, the fans started to line up for their chance to briefly chat to Myles.
I was feeling excited, but not nervous up until I stood face-to-face with him. I just thanked him for launching his solo album tour here in Cape Town and I told him that he was the only reason I went to watch âKings of Chaosâ in 2013. He seemed surprised that I held him in such high regard. What an honourâŚI will never forget that moment.
 There were two hours left before the show would start, which meant that we had a chance to absorb the experience we just had.
I made my way to my seat, which was perfectly positioned in the second row, right in line of the mic stand. Andy Mac introduced Myles to the audience, I felt quite emotional as he was speaking and had goosebumps the whole time.
Myles opened up the show with âDevil On The Wallâ, the third song that has been released from his solo album âYear of the Tigerâ. He entered with the haunting intro being played in the background, before he launched into the first verse of the song. I find the lyrics of this song very poignant and the guitar work is exceptional.
âStanding In The Sunâ was a pleasant surprise, a song that comes off the first album with Slash ft Myles Kennedy and the Conspiratorsâ âApocalyptic Loveâ. The song suited the acoustic set, with Myles belting out the chorus, true to form.
âBefore Tomorrow Comesâ was a hit with the audience and a welcome addition to the set. A song with lyrics that have the ability to make you wonder what a difference you can make to the world around you. This song was originally released as part of Alter Bridgeâs second album âBlackbirdâ.
âAll Ends Wellâ has never been performed live by Alter Bridge, so this is the first time that this song has been played live by any of the band members. I love the fact that Myles played this song and I think that was part of the vision for this tour, for him to get the opportunity to play songs he wouldnât get the chance to perform with Alter Bridge. This song comes from the bandâs fourth studio album âFortressâ.
âAddicted To Painâ is one of my favourite âheavyâ songs from Alter Bridgeâs catalogue and its rare that a song like that translates to acoustic so well. The power and intensity of the song is still evident, even through the acoustic version. This song also appears on âFortressâ.
âLife Must Go Onâ a track off of ABIII, has only been performed by Alter Bridge twice. It is an inspirational track that has meant a lot to fans, but is one of the lesser known songs that hide in the shadow of the monster that is âBlackbirdâ, among others. You know you are being spoiled when the artist performs a rare track and it sweetens the experience.
âStarlightâ on the other hand was not a surprising addition to the set list, because it has been a staple when Myles and Slash do their acoustic sets together, wherever they perform. Fans will know that Mylesâ vocal abilities shine on this track and last night was no exception.
âOpen Your Eyesâ was a killer sing along song for the crowd and Myles gave the audience a chance to harmonize which went well up until those high notes, much to Mylesâs delight. He threw his head back and laughed at our feeble vocals.
I was so happy when Myles started playing âTraveling Riverside Bluesâ, he is so adept at performing that Robert Johnson song and he has a creative way of playing it that suits the style of the song perfectly. Iâm sorry to report that I was jamming so hard to this song, I neglected to film it, but Iâm not sure if I should be apologising for that.
There were a few gems from the Mayfield Four era that Myles treated us to, namely âEdenâ, âMars Hotelâ, âLylaâ. I have to say that I really enjoyed his performance of âLylaâ, the entire song has a great melody to it and it still manages to lyrically convey the story to the audience. âMars Hotelâ is another popular acoustic track that Myles has been known to perform on occassion.
Myles Kennedy even performed two cover songs for the crowd. He performed âLevonâ, an Elton John cover and the highlight of the two was when he performed a cover of Led Zeppelinâs âGoing to Californiaâ which showcased his technical ability on the guitar.
âHaunted By Designâ is one of the songs from Myles upcoming solo album, that will be released on the 9th of March 2018. The song was performed with guitarist Tim Tournier accompanying Myles to perform the song that sounds like it was meant to be performed acoustically.
The stellar âYear of the Tigerâ met all of my expectations. I have loved the song from the moment I heard it and the crowd really got into it. Tim Tournier joined the performance once again, which added another dimension to the song.
The popular and highly regarded âWatch Over Youâ inevitably featured on the set list. Myles actually received a well-deserved standing ovation for that one. The song comes from Alter Bridgeâs second studio album, âBlackbirdâ.
Myles left the stage and to my sheer delight returned for an encore which ended the night with âRise Todayâ. An absolute Alter Bridge staple, that originated from their âBlackbirdâ album.
The entire night you could see that Myles was having fun, he became more and more at ease as the night went on with plenty of jokes and charisma to mesmerize the audience even further.
I want to thank Andy Mac and the team at AMP events that they made my dreams come true. I honestly thought I was lucky to see him when he came down with âKings of Chaosâ in 2013 , but I never knew I would have the honour to witness my idol playing solo on stage let alone being able to meet him.
Myles has been an inspiration to me and many others, he remains a humble human being despite his success and he keeps pursuing what he loves.
   Myles Kennedy, Cape Town Concert Review 6.03.2018 The Rock Riff: Facebook The Rock Riff: Twitter The event that I have been patiently waiting for, for the past 3 months had finally arrived.
