Skillet came to Burlington, Iowa’s Steamboat Days festival on June 15, 2017 as part of their Unleashed Tour. Hot, humid 95 degree temperatures and a plethora of bugs did nothing to damper the enthusiasm as the crowd arrived early for their chance to see the band.
The band started out with performances of “Invincible” and “Whispers In the Dark” and the energy of both the band and crowd was apparent right away as the audience sang along with every lyric. Lead vocalist John Cooper established a great rapport with the crowd very early; for those who don’t know, Burlington, Iowa is right on the Mississippi River so the connection with the band’s hometown of Memphis, Tennessee is apparent. Cooper gave a message before the playing of “Sick of It” that everyone can relate to and audience member Kenny Dresden from Keokuk, Iowa had the opportunity to briefly assist with the singing of “Those Nights.” Cooper even mentioned how the summer festival atmosphere and the barrage of signage advertising a wide-variety of fried food made him feel right at home!
It is apparent that Skillet puts much thought into the arrangement of their set list. After playing “Sick of It” and “Rise”, Skillet played their current hit “Back From the Dead.” This stuck out as it has become commonplace for bands to start with their most recent release before moving into older material. I thought holding off on this song for a little while was a nice touch and showed variety compared with how bands organize their performances. Skillet ended the night by playing “Monster” and “Rebirthing” to cap their performance.
Most music fans know this by now, but Skillet is unapologetically a Christian-based band. However, I feel that in their performances they do a very good job of letting that be known while not being overly preachy as well. Their music possesses great messages and a good, solid upbeat vibe that everyone can relate to and get something out of.
In honor of this song drawing the strongest crowd reaction, please check out the official video for the 2006 release “Rebirthing” and check out future dates for the Unleashed Tour below!
Future Tour Dates:
*disclaimer: All Serenity of Summer tour dates feature Korn, Skillet, Stone Sour, Babymetal, Yelawolf, Islander, and Ded*
*disclaimer: Skillet’s headlining “Unleashed Tour” includes special guests Art Of Dying and Spoken*
June 21 Big Ticket Festival Gaylord, Michigan (appearing w/Matt Maher, Chris Tomlin, For King & Country, and The Big Ticket)
June 22 Spirit Song King’s Island, OH (appearing w/Hollyn)
June 23 Lakes Jam Brainerd, MN
June 24 King’s Fest Doswell, VA (appearing w/King’s Dominion)
July 1 Creation Festival Northeast Shirleysburg, PA
July 3 U.S. Naval Station Great Lakes, IL
July 7 Lifest 2017 Oshkosh, WI
July 8 Anthem at the Hard Rock Sioux City, IA
July 15 Creation Festival Northwest Kennewick, WA
July 19 Serenity of Summer Tour w/Korn Syracuse, NY (also appearing Stone Sour, Babymetal, Yelawolf, Islander, and Ded)
July 20 Serenity of Summer Tour w/Korn Mansfield, MA (also appearing Stone Sour, Babymetal, Yelawolf, Islander, and Ded)
July 21 Wally’s Pub Hampton, NH (w/Red Sun Rising)
July 22 Rise Above Fest Bangor, ME (also appearing Korn, Stone Sour, and Falling In Reverse)
July 23 Serenity of Summer Tour w/Korn Hartford, CT
July 25 Serenity of Summer Tour w/Korn Toronto, Canada
July 26 Serenity of Summer Tour w/Korn Camden, NJ
July 27 Serenity of Summer Tour w/Korn Holmdel, NJ
July 29 Fishfest Bellevue, NE
August 1 Serenity of Summer Tour w/Korn Cincinnati, OH
August 2 Serenity of Summer Tour w/Korn Cuyahoga Falls, OH
August 3 Rock the Desert Midland, TX
August 5 Wild Adventures Valdosta, GA (appearing w/Days To Come)
August 7 Jackson County Fair Jackson, MI
August 11 Pulse FM Downtown Summer Series South Bend, IN (appearing w/Colton Dixon)
August 19 Rock the World Santa Claus, IN
September 1 Las Colonias Amphitheater Grand Junction, CO (appearing w/Colton Dixon)
September 2 Colorado State Fair Pueblo, CO
September 3 Unleashed Tour Casper, WY
September 6 Unleashed Tour Vancouver, Canada
September 8 Unleashed Tour Edmonton, Canada
September 9 Unleashed Tour Calgary, Canada
September 10 Unleashed Tour Regina, Canada
September 11 Unleashed Tour Winnipeg, Canada
September 15 Uprise Festival Shippensburg, Pa (appearing w/Demon Hunter)
September 16 PointFest 2017 Sandusky, OH (appearing w/Lauren Daigle)
