2024 M3 Rock Festival Day 2 Concert Review

After a killer first day of the 2024 M3 Rock Festival, I arrived at the Merriweather Post Pavilion early for the start of day 2. Luckily in contrast to day 1, the weather held out most of Sunday, with minimal rain and chilling wind. Initially, the day was supposed to start with Sun Dogs, a Rush tribute band featuring members of Kix, but unfortunately, due to an illness in the band, they had to cancel. To compensate for losing a band from the Sunday lineup, the times of the remaining bands were pushed early.

The leather boys with electric toys, Pretty Boy Floyd, opened the day at 12:45 PM. Bringing their sleazy Sunset Strip rock n’ roll to the M3 stage performing much of their debut record for the early afternoon crowd. Frontman Steve Summers is the sole original member that remains in the group, keeping their music alive with a killer drummer, Nick Mason, behind the kit, Dizzy Aster shredding a lefty Les Paul, and Lonny Paul holding down the low end on the bass guitar.

Read More: Top 10 Pretty Boy Floyd Songs

Next up on Sunday’s roster was Cold Sweat. The group has only played a handful of shows since their 2020 reunion, making for lucky fans who get to catch one of their performances. The band, who recently released their first album in over 30 years, features an entirely original lineup – a unique trait for groups of that era. Performing much of their album Break Out, Cold Sweat sounds just like the record. After hearing their set and talking to other spectators, I realized that they were undoubtedly one of the most impressive bands at the entire festival.

Roy Cathey and Marc Ferrari of Cold Sweat

Taking the stage in mid-afternoon was another one of Hollywood’s favorite sleaze rock bands, Faster Pussycat. This band is one of only a handful of acts still on the road doing full-on 6-week tours, which they are currently doing. Their longtime bassist Danny “Slim Tender” Nordahl had an incident and broke his arm, which led to L.A. Guns bassist Johnny Martin swooping in to fill the slot for the remainder of the tour, including the M3 Rock Festival. As expected, Faster Pussycat brought a fantastic no-holds-barred rock n’ roll show. And in typical Taime Downe fashion, the frontman says, “It’s all about the pussy, M3!”

One of the weekend’s older, more tame groups performed next – Y&T. Taking the stage at a quarter after 4 PM with a 9-song set, the band brought their slow-tempo blues-influenced rock n’ roll to the festival. The band’s only surviving original member, Dave Meniketti, keeps the music alive with his soulful voice and poetic guitar playing. The group has been touring, celebrating their 50th Anniversary, a feat that not many bands have reached – be it due to breaking up, retiring from touring, etc. Meniketti and his group of talented bandmates in Y&T continue the legacy he created all those decades ago.

As the early evening rolled around, the yellow and black attack Stryper was set to perform. The group recently went on the road for their To Hell With The Amps unplugged tour. But for tonight, the crowd was in for a treat with the band giving a fully plugged-in, fully electric set – playing hit after hit. Not only did Stryper perform their hits, but they also performed All She Wrote by Firehouse as a tribute to vocalist CJ Snare, who passed away recently. Stryper bassist Perry Richardson was a longtime bandmate of Snare in Firehouse, and the song was a touching tribute. Stryper is one of those bands known for their harmonizing guitar parts, which are not only executed perfectly in the studio but are also executed live with ease.

Beginning at 7 PM, Night Ranger took the stage. Just a couple of songs into the set, guitarist Keri Kelli fell over some stairs leading up to one of their risers. He stood right up, laughing, and finished the set like a total pro – despite having a severe sprained ankle. Night Ranger is one of those bands from the ‘80s that have been able to continue touring at a semi-major level to this day. The group collectively has high energy, especially frontman and bassist Jack Blades, at 70 years old. Blades and drummer Kelly Keagy share lead vocal duties, creating a more exciting band dynamic than the typical frontman, bassist, guitarist, and drummer setup. As other acts did throughout the weekend, Night Ranger dedicated their song Goodbye to CJ Snare of Firehouse. The band gave a 70-minute set complete of their radio rock hits – pleasing the MTV-oriented audience.

Finishing up the 2024 M3 Rock Festival on a high note was Poison frontman Bret Michaels alongside his incredible band. The group performed a set filled with ultimate party songs – many of which were Poison tunes, as well as Twisted Sister, AC/DC, and Lynyrd Skynyrd. Dee Snider, of course, joined BMB to perform classic Twisted Sister songs, We’re Not Gonna Take It and I Wanna Rock. Snider went on hilarious ramblings about the licensing success of the songs, lighting up the crowd with smiles. If you’ve seen BMB, you know it wouldn’t be a Bret Michaels show without his touching speech to veterans, military, and first responders.

This set also included a heartfelt dedication to Firehouse’s CJ Snare. To close out a killer festival, Bret Michaels put on an encore jam of Nothin’ But A Good Time featuring members of Tommy London, Faster Pussycat, Vixen, Cold Sweat, Y&T, and Night Ranger. The 2024 M3 Rock Festival was a beyond incredible experience. With so many amazing bands and a great atmosphere, the festival was a total blast – we will never let a little rain stop the party.

More great photos of Day 2 by Shannon Wilk

Shannon Wilk is a fantastic rock and roll artist, journalist, and photographer. To see more of her brilliant work, check out her other articles on ClassicRockHistory.com. You can also see more of her stunning photography and killer musicianship on her website below.

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