Ed Kowalczyk Fall US "Alive" Tour, September-October 2010 Options

[SJN1279]

Announcing the first leg of Ed Kowalczyk's ALIVE Tour 2010

Thu-Sep-16 Philadelphia, PA Theatre of the Living Arts
Fri-Sep-17 Lancaster, PA The Chameleon
Sat-Sep-18 Washington, DC HFStival 2010
Sun-Sep-19 Pittsburgh, PA Altar Bar
Tue-Sep-21 Cleveland, OH Beachland Ballroom
Wed-Sep-22 Cincinnati, OH 20th Century Theatre
Thu-Sep-23 Chicago, IL Lincoln Hall
Fri-Sep-24 Flint, MI The Machine Shop
Sat-Sep-25 St. Louis, MO The Old Rock House
Tue-Sep-28 Charlotte, NC Amos' Southend
Wed-Sep-29 Richmond, VA Canal Room
Thu-Sep-30 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom
Fri-Oct-1 Bridgeport, CT Klein Theater
Sat-Oct-2 Boston, MA Royale

Tickets go on sale to the public on Friday, July 23rd.

If you are an EK Society of Friends member (the Ed Kowalczyk Fan Club), you will receive a separate e-mail with a link to an exclusive 48-hour presale!

www.edkowalczyk.com

[LivesMeltdown]

Really good show tonight. About an hour and a half set. I think the only Alive songs that weren't played were Rome and In Your Light. Show ended with a great performance of Dance With You. They added a little rock jam towards the end of the song which was really good, IMO.

[livefan1999]

An interview in Cleveland's The New Herald announcing Ed's show there on Tuesday the 21st.

Talk about selling the drama. Over the past year, '90s alternative rock act Live — known for hit songs "Selling the Drama," "Lightning Crashes," "I Alone" and "The Dolphin's Cry" — has experienced enough infighting to make Van Halen blush.

While band members allege singer Ed Kowalczyk made a power play regarding Live's financial and creative future, the frontman has a different take.

"My perspective on it came a couple of years ago when I definitely came to an end-of-a-chapter moment in my life," said Kowalczyk, 39, calling from Antwerp, Belgium. "I was feeling this malaise about music and felt like I was in a routine. It kind of started to sit on my creative inspiration. Then I thought what would happen if I spread my wings, so to speak, and went out there and got some new partners in a band and we went somewhere totally different to make a solo record. As soon as I started thinking that way, I got really excited and started writing tons of music."

At the time, more than a decade had passed since Kowalczyk and Live were considered to be atop the alternative rock genre. The promise of the band's multi-platinum 1994 sophomore effort, "Throwing Copper," hadn't been fulfilled by equally successful and enthralling follow-ups. In a sense, an older Kowalczyk needed to shake things up. He needed to join his own "Fight Club" — his only feature film credit to date — to live again.

"That's pretty accurate," Kowalczyk laughed. "I think in any walk of life, especially one that's creative, you run into a situation where you're just going through the motions. And that's what I felt like. There's something in me that wants to continue to challenge myself and, this was the way of doing that. And as soon as I started my (solo) music, I really just took a notch up in terms of energy."

The result is Kowalczyk's recently released solo debut, "Alive," an 11-track rock affair that includes the lead single "Grace," along with the anthemic "The Great Beyond" and the alluring "Drink (Everlasting Love)." The latter track was co-written by "American Idol" alum Chris Daughtry. The album sounds Live-esque, and there's a spirituality that permeates the CD — maybe even more than flows through Live's catalogue. That explains why "Alive" debuted in the top 10 on the Billboard Christian Album Chart. Kowalczyk said his Christianity isn't any more evident now in his lyrics than it was in the past. Still, adding a new market of fans for a new solo career probably isn't a bad idea.

As for his former band mates, they've moved on with new group The Gracious Few, which includes the singer and guitarist from Candlebox.

"Oh, I haven't heard it," Kowalczyk said. "But I've heard of it."

Kowalczyk said he does plan on listening to the album soon but for now is focused on his debut solo tour, which includes a show Tuesday at Cleveland's Beachland Ballroom. Joining Kowalczyk on stage will be a full band tackling the majority of new album tracks, old Live favorites and even a cover or two.

Perhaps the question Live fans want to know is whether Kowalczyk feels his old act will ever reunite?

"I would never close any doors that don't need to be closed for the future, but I mentioned before sort of how every day and every show goes on into the solo project I'm just sort of getting deeper and deeper into this with more passion and excitement," Kowalczyk said. "So I really feel like I'm at the tip of the iceberg with it, and I'm going to be pushing in this direction for the foreseeable future."

He quickly added, "But I wouldn't rule anything out."

Details

Who: Ed Kowalczyk with openers Thriving Ivory and Miggs.

When: 8 p.m. Tuesday.

Where: Beachland Ballroom, 15711 Waterloo Road, Cleveland.

Tickets: $25.

http://www.news-herald.com/articles/2010/0...e/nh2998605.txt