CUYAHOGA FALLS, Ohio -- If Nickelback is truly the band everyone loves to hate, nobody told the packed crowd at last night’s sold-out Blossom Music Center show.
The Canadian outfit opened with the ripping “San Quentin,” the lead single from the group’s 2022 album “Get Rollin’.”
The rock radio hit set the band’s tone, with singer Chad Kroeger (formerly Mr. Avril Lavigne) belting out, “Let’s get this circus on down the road/We’re taking bets how far a tank of gas will go/Call up your best friend, then call two more.”
It turned out the group’s fans -- including a large female contingent -- did just that.
Clocking in at just over 90 minutes with a 16-song set, the rock band -- known purveyors of shot-taking, beer-chasing and chest-pounding anthems -- surprisingly swapped its calling card bombast for earnestness, defying any sappy expectations.
Still, this was Nickelback, which -- like AC/DC -- built a platinum career swimming in sexual double entendre.
“If we tried to release this today, we’d be immediately canceled,” said Kroeger introducing the promiscuous and crowd-favorite “Figured You Out.”
“They’ve been trying to do that for 25 years and it ain’t happened yet. I’m glad everyone here knows what a joke is. I’m the singer for Nickelback, you don’t think I can take a joke?”
To Nickelback’s credit, the band doesn’t pretend to be something they’re not. Even though rock radio loves the group, the material is truly written and delivered as pop songs, often with a harder edge, but sans any heavy guitar soloing.
We’re reminded of their formula that began with 2001 chart-topper “How You Remind Me” followed by one sing-along anthem after another.
Hearing them all played -- “Someday,” “Photograph” and “Rockstar” -- tightly together in a set led to an interesting theory.
Hear me out: There’s a good argument to be made that nearly a quarter of a century ago Nickelback laid the future foundation for country music’s modern pop-melody, guitar-heavy aesthetic -- the familiar yin and yang pulling in both the ladies and the guys.
Proof could be found in the fact the worlds seamlessly melded on this night with the audience equally familiar with and embracing both Nickelback and the raucous sounds of Music City opener Brantley Gilbert.
The secret to Nickelback is rhythm guitarist Ryan Peake, whose vocals aren’t too far from Kroeger’s shot-and-a-beer range but still provide some depth.
One of the more interesting songs was the deep cut “Worthy to Stay” from the group’s obscure 1998 album, “The State.” Decidedly a digression from the Nickelback platinum formula, the moody track -- with Peake on vocals -- was lost on the bathroom break audience.
Another highlight found Kroeger, wearing a lightning bolt t-shirt, kowtowing to the rabid crowd.
“I spent a lot of time in Ohio,” he said
“I’ve been to a Buckeyes game, I even know the (expletive) I should say in stage -- O-H.”
The crowd replied with the obligatory “I-O.”
“See, I love Ohio,” said the proud singer.
Apparently, “Burning It to the Ground” is a theme of sorts with Nickelback.
Not only is that referenced in set opener “San Quentin” -- along with truly Nickelback lyrics “Tequila just hit me/Oh, we got no class, no taste/No shirt and (expletive) faced” -- but the group ended the night with the raucous anthem.
Mission accomplished on this evening, which started off with the bad-ass rocking country sounds of Gilbert.
Wearing what appeared to be a Guns N’ Roses t-shirt, which upon closer look was actually the band’s logo promoting gun manufacturer Sig Sauer, the Georgia singer-guitarist played what felt like almost co-headlining role riling up the already rowdy crowd with his “Bottoms Up” songs.
The tatted-up “redneck” artist, who before playing the less-than-subtle “Bury Me Upside Down” said he didn’t understand a lot of what’s going on in the world today, succeeded in turning Blossom Music Center on this night into the Dirty South.