Nita Strauss entertained a sold-out crowd at Toronto’s legendary Horseshoe Tavern this past Father’s Day, June 18, the first sold-out show of her Summer Storm tour and only Canadian stop.
Strauss was originally slated to play The Horseshoe in December of 2021 but had to cancel due to COVID. That night, Brampton band Sticks N Stones filled the void left by the cancellation, and this night they were the openers. Although she has played across Canada many times with Alice Cooper over the past nine years, this was Nita’s first solo show in Canada, and some fans traveled far to see it. The young couple beside me were Colombians living in Tampa, Florida, who made this show part of their vacation.
The show began with the band, guitarist Johnny Young, bassist Christopher Dean, and drummer/manager/boyfriend Josh Villalta, finding their place on stage. Nita started playing off stage then ran onto the stage to the loud roar of the crowd and performed 'Summer Storm' from the new album 'The Call Of The Void,' which was released July 7. The next few songs were all instrumental, mainly from her debut album 'Controlled Chaos.'
The show was not without its hitches. Early on, there was a pause while her crew worked on a monitor issue. Nita explained that she could only hear her guitar at the very front center of the stage and her “sweet spot” was about four inches from the fan, front and center. He didn’t seem to mind.
Nita moving around stage thrashing and flinging her long blonde locks around to the music.
Once things got rolling again, everything seemed to go pretty smoothly, with Nita moving around stage, thrashing and flinging her long blonde locks around to the music. After a drum solo from Josh and the single 'Pandemonium,' singer Kasey Karlsen joined the stage, performing songs from the new album. She began with 'The Wolf You Feed,' a powerful track featuring Arch Enemy’s Alissa White-Gluz on the recorded version.
Karlsen did a great job covering a multitude of vocal styles, not an easy task. She performed 'The Golden Trail,' which features Anders Fridén on vocals, 'Through The Noise' (featuring Lzzy Hale), 'Victorious' (featuring Dorothy), 'Dead Inside' (with David Draiman), and finished the night with a cover of Pantera’s 'Cowboys From Hell.'
It’s quite a testament to Nita’s talent and appeal that this array of hard rock/metal singers worked with her on this album. Think of the first Slash album for comparison, and I would rank Nita with Slash on the talent scale.
As mentioned earlier, Brampton band Sticks N Stones opened the night with a spirited set for the hometown crowd. Nita Strauss mentioned during her set that she has a local band open every show on her tour. This kind of kindness and generosity is a big reason she has worked with Alice Cooper for the last nine years.
Metalcore headbangers Lions at the Gate are the main support for this tour. Formed by former members of Ill Niño in 2021, these guys were heavy and really got the crowd wound up. Guitarist Diego Verduzco was a hoot with his long dreadlocks swinging and his interactions with the people at the front of the stage, and bassist Stephen Brewer was on a mission to get the crowd pumped up as much as possible. It was a hell of a fun performance.
