Journey: Sounds Like Old Times
Lead singer Arnel Pineda is from the Philippines, but he's the vocal twin of long-gone Journey frontman Steve Perry.
(By Ethan Miller -- Getty Images)
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Back in 1998, Journey found a replacement for singer Steve Perry in Steve Augeri, whose rhyming name tickled the world and near-beer vocals were close enough for fans who accepted that they might never see the classic lineup again. But late last year, the band recruited Arnel Pineda to front them, a 40-year-old Filipino who shares something more crucial with Perry than a first name: His. Exact. Voice.
Pineda, along with long-standing members Neal Schon (guitar), Ross Valory (bass), Jonathan Cain (keys), and decade-long drummer Deen Castronovo, dropped several thousand jaws at Nissan Pavilion Wednesday, belonging to folks who likely showed up to see the YouTube-plucked novelty but left feeling like it was 1983 all over again.
Journey offered a few new songs off its latest album, "Revelation" (including the suitably named "Change for the Better"), but mostly stuck to its hits during a 95-minute set. While tracks such as "Lights" and "Any Way You Want It" sounded close enough to what you hear on Mix 107.3, other monsters were truly astounding: "Only the Young," "Separate Ways," "Open Arms" and "Faithfully" were owned by Pineda, who not only has the vocal chops but proved to be a tireless and charismatic physical presence as well.
Oh, yeah: The rest of the band was impressive, too, tightly re-creating three decades' worth of favorites and matching the energy of the newcomer. But it was Pineda's show. "You guys ready to sing along with us?" he asked in typical warm-the-crowd fashion early in the set.
Nope, let's just listen to more of you.
-- Tricia Olszewski
