Journey and Styx Won’t Stop Believing During Santa Barbara Bowl Show

The Santa Barbara Bowl stood, almost like a reservoir, for 1970’s and 80’s fans- as Styx and Journey stopped in this week.  This was part of Journey’s ECL1PSE Tour, promoting their brand-new album of the same name that was released earlier this year.

Styx opened the night, rocking their hit singles, including “Blue Collar Man (Long Nights),” “Too Much Time on My Hands,” and “Come Sail Away.”   Apart from their quality mix of different song genres into a single setlist, Styx also proved themselves different from other bands as their onstage bond was impressive- obviously unwavering through time.  Their energy was contagious, with Lawrence Gowan rocking the swiveling keyboard as proof.  For their two-song encore, they started with a fabulous cover of the Beatles’ “I Am The Walrus” and sealed it with their 1979 hit, “Renegade.”

Styx readied the stage and the audience for the main act, Journey, who hit it off with “Separate Ways (Worlds Apart).”  Their replacement vocalist (for original member Steve Perry) and Filipino singer, Arnel Pineda, didn’t spend much time keeping still.  He rounded the entire dancing space on stage and rocked it hard through the end of the set.  Journey powered up the excited audience and would not rest.  Their night included most of their biggest hits, not forgetting their ever-popular ballads, “Open Arms” and “Faithfully.”  They also introduced their “ECL1PSE” album with “City of Hope,”- a song about Manila- Arnel Pineda’s hometown.  Journey also performed a two-song encore with “Anyway You Want It” and, of course, the iconic “Don’t Stop Believin’,” the very powerful heart of any Journey set.

The most moving part of this show was the generous energy that Styx and Journey delivered to the crowd, and both bands certainly relished the “good times” for their audience by not playing too much of their newer songs and dwelling mostly on their greatest hits that took them to where they are now.  The loud volume in the venue overtook any acts this season.

For more on the bands, check out Journey’s web site and Styx’s website.