As I continue to explore Colorado and knocking things off my (second) bucket list, I wanted to provide a review on an excellent concert from a band that I was just introduced to this summer - Wardruna. One of my bucket list items has been to attend a concert at the Red Rocks Amphitheater in Colorado. I have been to almost 50 concerts to date and have been waiting for the opportunity to see a concert play at the Red Rocks Amphitheater for quite a long time. That opportunity presented itself on Thursday, October 3, 2024.
Over the years when I attend concerts, I like to get to the location and scope out parking, access points, local things to see and do that may get missed at the end of a show, etc. While in my younger years, going to concerts was all about getting to the show and getting inside and letting the party begin! However, I changed that approach a long time ago and really try to make attending concerts an event and to try to experience as much of the moment as possible. Before the Wardruna show, I drove to the Red Rocks Amphitheater and was pleasantly surprised to see the hiking trails and amazing views all around. I arrived in the early afternoon and decided to take the Geologic Overlook Trail to check out the area and get some nice pictures.
The trail is not for beginners, although there are plenty of places to stop and rest. In addition to the moderately strenuous hike, there is also the altitude to deal with, however, I found the fresh air and amazing views well worth the amount of time that I went on the hike. As you get closer to the Red Rocks Amphitheater, there is an awesome tunnel and photo opportunities around the rock formations.
Once you arrive at the main gate to the amphitheater, they have some nice informational signs and memorial rocks.
After a long hike and breathtaking views, I headed back to the hotel to clean up and relax before going to the concert. I left for the concert early as another lesson learned in life was to go early to avoid all the crazy traffic. Word to the wise: While Red Rocks Amphitheater is set up beautifully, there are not many passing lanes heading up to the venue so give yourself plenty of time to get there. I do want to offer my compliments for the staff directing traffic and parking as they were very efficient with the whole process.
The Concert
I was introduced to Wardruna earlier this summer while checking out some other music videos on YouTube. I was introduced to Wardruna through their video “Hertan”. I was impressed with both the music and the cinematography of the video. Many people do not know that I was a drummer growing up as a kid and have always been into bands with heavy drumming and tribal music. After watching that video, I started checking out their other videos and found that this band spends the time and effort to put together well produced videos and music. I ended up adding all of their albums to my music library…this is an amazing and talented band. Then by complete chance, I happened to see Wardruna was currently on their 2024/2025 world tour…and Red Rocks Amphitheater was going to be their only U.S. tour date. It also happened to be that I had already planned to be in Colorado during the time of their upcoming show. How could I not buy tickets for this concert?!?!?...and so I did…two tickets for row 7, front and center….
The opening act for Wardruna was Chelsea Wolfe. I am not familiar with this band or music, although I was very impressed with the band. They were all very talented musicians and very tight in terms of playing together as a band. The band members were completely in tune with each other, and it was very obvious to me this band is practicing hard and playing hard. Their music may be a bit on the darker side for some people, however, they are very talented musicians, and I enjoyed watching them play as an opening act. Then came the headliners…Wardruna….
I will come out and say right away that Wardruna exceeded my expectations. I already had high expectations for them playing Red Rocks, listening to all of their albums, and watching several of their awesome and well-produced music videos. Warduna blew away those expectations with not only their live performance, the incredible musical talent, but also the incredible stage show and their use of multimedia technology. The fact that this concert was held at Red Rocks Amphitheater just put the event completely over the top.
Even though I have been to so many concerts over the years, the precision with which the stage crew and the band worked in such harmony that I just continued to sit back amazed at the production. The two bands that come to mind in terms of producing a concert like this are Rush and Pink Floyd. This concert was truly a beautiful production.
The very surprising thing to me about this whole concert that happened just before the last encore, a solo performance by the lead singer, is what the lead singer said to the audience. He expressed what was obviously heartfelt thanks and amazement at the reception the band had received. He stated that it was because not only was this specific concert the only U.S. tour date…it was also the first time the band had played together in front of a live audience like this in over a year. I could not believe I had just witnessed this band, who had not played in front of a live audience in a year…just blew away this entire concert venue! It was absolutely amazing and the final encore so the singer putting every ounce of his soul into that performance.
The final encore, of course, was incredibly well received and the band came back out for another roaring applause for their well-deserved efforts. I will definitely be going to another concert at Red Rocks Amphitheater at some point in the future and given I am a short drive from there currently, I also plan to check out more of the hiking trails that are around the venue. I would highly recommend going to the Red Rocks Amphitheater to see your favorite musical artists or the venue and surrounding area is well worth the visit.
For those of you around the world, especially my friends overseas…I would strongly recommend that if Wardruna is playing in your country or near you…then go see this band. I do not normally put forth such strong recommendations given that musical tastes are very personal, however, as someone who has been to almost 60 concerts now, the Wardruna concert has earned its place in one of my Top 10 concerts that I have been too and they are probably closer to inching into one of my Top 5 shows to see. My prediction is that after this World Tour 2024/2024….Wardruna is going to explode even more than they have so if you have a chance to see this amazing band and what a very professional stage crew can do to transform a musical experience….then get a ticket to go see Wardruna…you will not be disappointed!
