Something strange happened on August 6, 2008 in Salt Lake City, Utah - and no, it wasn’t the free show for hundreds of rock fans. The humidity climbed above 30%! Suddenly, eyes were staring Eastward, praying that the mass of black storm clouds would stay over the mountains while rockers, families, and the occasional dancing dude descended on a park in downtown Salt Lake City.

Nestled between the towering windows of the Wells Fargo Building and the elegance of the Marriott Hotel, just a couple of blocks from the Mormon Temple, there is a small amphitheater that at one time served as the medal podium for the Olympic Games. Now, it is a beautiful skating park in the winter and a well used concert venue in the summer. For the month of August, 97.5, Utah’s local hard rock and metal station, has taken over Wednesday nights at the Gallivan Center and they’ve done so at no cost whatsoever to the fans. What? Free shows? You mean it’s going to be dinky local bands who have never played before an audience, right? Nope.

On August 6, 2008, the revolution that began last year by 97.5 The Blaze continued with the start of Wednesday Rocks! – a series of four shows on the Wednesdays of August that includes Royal Bliss, 12 Stones, Tantric, Red, and Shinedown. Spencer Nielsen, The Hard Rockin Johnsons, Opal Hill Drive, and Jet Black Stare will be opening.

The first night treated fans to two local bands, one of whom is up and coming in the Salt Lake area and another who is already making national noise. (What, a Salt Lake rock band making headway on the national charts?! There isn’t rock music in Mormon-Ville! Ahh, how wrong you are!). Warming up the stage for local legendary heroes Royal Bliss, piano playing singer/songwriter Spencer Nielsen played the biggest show of his life and faced a rowdy crowd of rocker types to do it. He, bass player Vito Perry, and drummer Dan Pectal, gave an impressively rock worthy performance.

The 45-minute set consisted of 11 songs that included a cover of Johnny Cash’s “16 Tons.” The trio has a style that is as free flowing as the songs they play, varying easily from down right rocking to comfortable jazz and blues. Spencer Nielsen’s voice changes as easily as the songs – smooth and serene when it needs to be, harsh and jagged when it is called for. Taking time in his set to introduce almost every song, Spencer connected well with the crowd and, for many of the pieces that night, when I closed my eyes I could see the music dancing before me.

Truthfully, the show worked as well as it did because the piano and bass were a perfect fit for this comfortable outdoor venue. Around me, kids of all ages were dancing to the music and people milled around, chatting companionably. It seemed that the crowd, made up of the hodge podge of all styles of rockers who turn out to see Royal Bliss, gave these slow stylers a warm reception.

But, truly, there was more to come and it wasn’t long before the best all American drinking band in the country took the stage. There is one band I know of in Utah who will bring just about everyone out. The moshers, the head bangers, the casual rockers – everyone turns out for a Royal Bliss show and, as usual, the five guys did not disappoint.

Putting aside how much Salt Lake loves Royal Bliss, they are personally one of my favorite bands. I’ve been lucky enough to see them in small and large venues and had the chance to sit down and interview lead singer Neal Middleton on a couple of occasions. The passion he and the band have for this town, for what they do, and for how they do it has always bowled me over. They are five guys from Utah who all come from vastly different backgrounds – some from Mormon families, some not – all of whom bring together their styles, influences, and experiences to create good, hard, classic rock. In doing so, they have spent the last ten years winning Utah fans over through fun times, loud music, and immense professionalism. This performance was no exception.

Royal Bliss’ first major label release, Life In Between, is due out later this summer on Capitol Records and the first single, “Save Me,” is currently climbing national charts. Since the release of the 2006 power ballad “Devils and Angels,” the band has gained national attention and given fuel to an already emerging Salt Lake scene. “I love it when people don’t expect much out of you,” says lead singer Neal Middleton, speaking about national perception of music out of Salt Lake, “because then you can just kick their ass.”

Well, Royal Bliss did just that on Wednesday night. For the hour and a half they took over the stage, everyone in the audience was on their feet, rocking as hard as the band.

Royal Bliss, in a lot of ways, embodies much of the culture of the Utah Rock spirit. The sense of utter rebellion that lives in the rock culture here leapt from the lyrics of songs they performed. “Here They Come” (Here they come/Here they come/With the same old grin/Save me but you’re not my friend) and “Save Me” (I don’t know why/All I need is someone to save me/I believe/I don’t know why) were just two of the crowd rousing numbers.

From the solid drumming of the bald-headed Jake Smith and the almost ethereal playing of dread locked bassist (on both electric and upright bass) Tommy Gunn to the dueling guitars of clean cut Chris Harding and curly-haired Taylor Richards, Royal Bliss meshes five unique personalities into one powerhouse band. With the perfect blend of charisma and talent, Neal Middleton is a hard rocking, hard drinking lead singer with the perfect tenor voice for rock. He can go from a soft croon to a hard scream in .02 seconds flat.

Taking over the night with songs such as the wistful “Will You Wait for Me” and the angry homage to “snobby chicks” – “Fancy Things” - Royal Bliss delivered on all levels. In between songs, they passed the whiskey bottle and made toasts to each other and the fans. Yet, in all the partying, they never lost a sense of humility. They know where they have come from and they humbly thank the fans every chance they get.

The crowd was able to get into new songs such as “By and By” and “Finally Figured Out” just as loudly as the long-standing favorites of songs off 2006’s After the Chaos II. The politically motivated anti-war/pro-soldier piece “Brave” had the crowd up and angry. (Where was the white/When you were spinning Red and Blue/Well you shut your mouth/And closed your eyes/When we all needed you.) The band saluted the men and women who have lived and died for the country and Neal called out his pride not as a Republican or Democrat, but just as an American who wants his friends to come home from the battlefield.

Following the passion of “Brave” was the moving and haunting “We Did Nothing Wrong” which is on the upcoming Life In Between album. Soon there were a thousand voices singing along to the powerful lyrics. (You see these walls/They won’t kill that beast in your heart/Or deep in your soul/I want to know if it’s just opinion or lust/Why do we lose control?) There was a certain freedom to be a part of this crowd, standing in the heart of a city that is not well understood by the nation and that does not often understand why its children rebel, and to be singing “We did nothing wrong,” over and over again as the light of the setting sun cast shadows through the corporate and religious buildings of downtown.

“We did nothing wrong” is a sentiment that rings loudly in the days following the first Wednesday Rocks! show. It all came together perfectly on Wednesday night. Start to finish, it was a fun night out in the park, good times with family and friends, and music you can’t beat.

For Photographs and more information on the Wednesday Rocks! Series and how you can help keep local radio alive, visit www.theblazeonline.com

Please visit them at:
www.royalbliss.com or www.myspace.com/royalbliss
www.myspace.com/srnmusic