Motley Crue and Def Leppard Rock the JMA Wireless Dome 8/5/23

Photos and Review by Chris Besaw

It’s August and concert season in Central New York is heating up. Saturday night at the JMA Wireless Dome was just one of many tours making a stop in Syracuse this month. We were fortunate enough to be the kickoff date for Motley Crue and Def Leppard’s co-headlining world tour.

The opener for the evening was the legendary Alice Cooper. Cooper along with his talented band Glen Sobel (drums), Nita Strauss (guitar), Tommy Henricksen (guitar), Ryan Roxie (guitar) and Chuck Garrick (bass) kicked things off in true Cooper style by holding a mock trial onstage condemning Alice for his crimes before launching into “No More Mr. Nice Guy.”

Alice Cooper and company played an incredible set consisting of classics “Feed my Frankenstein.” “I’m Eighteen.” and “School’s Out.” The performance incorporated monsters, ghouls and of course Cooper being beheaded, and the crowd loved every second of it. Although the show was shorter than a typical Cooper show, they still managed to pack in a lot and left the fans wanting more.

Setlist:

Lock Me Up

No More Mr. Nice Guy

Under My Wheels

Billion Dollar Babies

Fallen in Love

Snakebite

Feed My Frankenstein

Poison

Guitar Solo

Black Widow Jam

Ballad of Dwight Fry

Killer

I Love the Dead

School’s Out

Encore:

Elected

Smoke starts to fill the stage and the screens start to flicker; a warning message starts playing through the crackling speakers, and like a gun shot, Motley Crue hits the stage kicking things off with their heavy hitting track, “Wild Side,” a fitting choice to lead off the bad boys of metal’s set. Fans decked out in fishnets, mile high teased hair, studded jackets and leather could not agree more.

I remember seeing the Crue on their Shout at The Devil tour and that younger fan in me really came out when they played “Shout at the Devil.” They played an incredible mix of songs from their forty-one plus year career including “Too Fast for Love,” “Looks That Kill,” “Dr. Feelgood” and “Girls, Girls, Girls.”

I want to acknowledge that although I do miss seeing the formidable Mick Mars, John 5 is a great replacement. He brings their sound to another level. Motley Crue ended their set with their classic hit “Kickstart My Heart.” They took their bows and thanked their fans before making way for the night’s headliner.

Setlist:

Intro

Wild Side

Shout at the Devil

Too Fast for Love

Don’t Go Away Mad (Just Go Away)

Live Wire

Looks That Kill

The Dirt (est 1981)

Guitar Solo

Rock and Roll, Part 2 / Smokin’ in the Boys Room / Helter Skelter / Anarchy in the U.K. / Blitzkrieg Bop / (You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!)

Home Sweet Home

Dr. Feelgood

Same Ol’ Situation (S.O.S.)

Girls, Girls, Girls

Primal Scream

Kickstart My Heart

The stage goes dark, and the crowd’s excitement begins to build as the countdown clock on the screens reaches 3, 2, 1 and then Joe Elliot and company lead off the evening with “Take What You Want.” with only a brief pause before going into a laser light filled and thunderous sound version of their classic “Let’s Get Rocked.” The band played an eclectic set, mixing their classic songs along with some of their newer ones, all combined with some of the most amazing laser light show stage lighting that I have ever seen.

This is my second time seeing Def Leppard this year and singer Joe Elliot still sounds great. A few other highlights from their performance include a massive drum solo by Rick Allen and the entire crowd singing along to “Pour Some Sugar on Me.”

Def Leppard finished their set with their mega hit “Photograph” to which the fans sang along with immense energy. Even though the Syracuse crowd wanted more Joe Elliot had indicated that they would definitely be back! Overall, a great night in Syracuse for some amazing heavy metal music. Please enjoy my photo highlights from the show.

Setlist

Take What You Want

Let’s Get Rocked

Animal

Foolin’

Armageddon It

Kick

Love Bites

Promises

This Guitar

When Love and Hate Collide

Rocket