SPRINGSTEEN - Still giving it his all.

There's a reason why classic rock acts are the only ones filling sports arenas today. It's plain and simple, really. These acts know their fans, know their repertoire and know how to deliver a satisfying performance. For Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, this was evident as the Boss has refused to gouge his fans with ticket prices, instead deciding to keep the top ticket under $100 while still playing a show that pushes two-and-a-half hours. It might not be the marathon set Springsteen used to perform, but for someone approaching 60, his return to Cleveland, a city that loves him perhaps as much as its sports franchises, was further validation there aren't many others quite like the Boss.

If there was anything to fault in this sold-out performance, though, it would be Springsteen's reliance on songs from his latest album, Magic. While not horrific, Springsteen's current long-player just doesn't compare to his classics. Even as the band opened with "Radio Nowhere," with a guitar duel between Springsteen and pretty-boy mobster Stevie Van Zandt, and proceeded through a half dozen others from the album, it didn't provide the right platform for the band to excel. That, however, was reserved for later.

"It's Hard to Be a Saint in the City" and "She's the One" were played back to back mid-set, the first erupting in a playground for a racing piano and the second pounding the arena behind the power of Mighty Max Weinberg. A rousing "Badlands" then closed the set, with 20,000 strong singing the lyrics back at Springsteen as he marched around the stage. The band quickly returned for a five-song encore, turning on the house lights to play the perfunctory but still poignant "Born to Run" and "Dancing in the Dark," both of which were performed with the necessary exuberance to make them the most memorable pair of the night. The concert then concluded with "American Land" from last year's Seeger Sessions, a fun Irish jig that was unlike anything else in the set but was still welcomed as if it were written by this national treasure instead of one from three generations ago. n

Coheed and Cambria

House of Blues
Tuesday, Oct. 30

Progressive, experimental rockers Coheed and Cambria opened up hard with "No World For Tomorrow," the lead track on its newest CD. New addition Chris Pennie, formerly the drummer for Dillinger Escape Plan, was no less than incredible. Lead singer Claudio Sanchez was also something to experience as he had a huge afro/mane of curly hair and an amazingly unique voice. He sounded just like he does on the studio versions of the songs, which, in an age of over-production and mass manipulation, is a feat in and of itself. The poppy "A Favor House Atlantic" was a standout as was "Suffering." The downswing of the set included a cover of Iron Maiden's "The Trooper" which was nothing short of brilliant. Like them or not, these guys are killer musicians, have a fresh gimmick and are heavy enough to anchor an impressive tour.

An experimental prog-rock trio out of Mukilteo, Washington, opening act Fall of Troy is definitely worth keeping your eye on. Its standout singer-guitarist Thomas Erak had long hair and legs like a newborn colt and was enchanting onstage. FOT is kind of like if King Crimson and Rush had a baby and it was raised by At The Drive-In and the Blood Brothers. Clutch, which followed FOT, was really the band I went to see. The khaki-clad fivesome took the stage around 8:30 and tore open the set with "SoapMakers" and "Burning Beard." Singer Neil Fallon has a commendable habit of letting the crowd focus on the rest of the band. Drummer Jean-Paul Gaster is a rager on the pots and pans. A few times, Fallon looked like a preaching medicine man possessed by the metallic hardcore doom/stoner rock that Clutch was playing. A live harmonica was audible throughout the show, giving Clutch the delicious blues twist for which it's known. Trademark songs like "Red Horse Rainbow" and "Elephant Riders" rounded out the show, prepping the eclectic crowd for Coheed and Cambria. - Jara Anton

Tori Amos

State Theatre
Thursday, Nov. 1

Tori Amos has gotten a reputation for being overly precious. But, accompanied by her three-piece band and her own formidable skills on numerous keyboards, she showed Cleveland just how ferocious she can be. Her latest album, American Doll Posse, features Amos as herself and four alter egos, one of which performs the first chunk of her set each night. Cleveland got to hear seven songs from her "Pip" persona, a seething, writhing vixen in a dark wig, clingy fuschia dress and black rubber leggings who performed such songs as the violently emotional and cathartic "Teenage Hustling," the dark, epic "Blood Roses," and "The Waitress," a sullen song that built to a frantic climax, before Amos came out as her red-haired self, more relaxed and flirtatious.

Still, there was an intensity throughout the evening which featured a healthy helping of the new album, with the exuberant '80s synth dance-style encore song "Bouncing Off Clouds" and the raging set-closer "Code Red" as the highlights. Longtime fans were treated to a sizable chunk of her early-career material, as she skipped over her last two studio albums in favor of numerous songs from 1992's Little Earthquakes and 1994's Under the Pink, including a couple of her most familiar tunes. "Cornflake Girl" was played with a slinky beat and a sassy flair, and "Crucify" was given a leisurely reading that milked the lyrics while Amos occasionally played two pianos at once. She gave the band a break for a two-song solo set during which the legend "T & Bš" was projected above her on the curtain, a reference to her Bšsendorfer grand piano. There too she reached way back and plucked out Little Earthquakes' "Leather," in which she pushed her typically dramatic vocals to the edge, and "Cool on your Island" from her obscure '80s pop-metal band Y Kant Tori Read.

Although Amos didn't waste much time on chit-chat, her theatrical, sensual poses, physical piano playing (during "Take to the Sky" she even beat a rhythm on its side) and mood-setting lighting (including an effect where beams situated behind her seemed to shoot out of her) added a visual element that intensified the musical moods. Barefoot singer-guitarist Yoav opened the show with a five-song set that showed off his ornate vocals that frequently swooped into a falsetto, and his forceful guitar playing, replete with percussive effects and tense drones that sounded influenced by U2's the Edge. - Anastasia Pantsios

Jens Lekman

Beachland Ballroom
Thursday, Nov. 1

Jens Lekman is a man who clearly feels like he's got a lot to prove. It's not really necessary, as his latest release, the ultra-suave and diverse Night Falls Over Kortedala, is the fulfillment of every bit of Lekman's promise. With his almost all-girl backing band dressed in all white (the lone exception was his DJ, who occasionally employed the "octopad" to present some well-timed samples), Lekman delivered an outstanding set to a somewhat surprisingly smallish Beachland crowd that made up in enthusiasm what it lacked in numbers. "We're gonna play a lot of songs tonight," quipped Lekman near the outset, and he did not disappoint on that assurance. Tearing through a chunk of the new record, Lekman and his band gave the songs a bit more organic treatment than their recorded counterparts. "The Opposite of Hallelujah" and "Your Arms Around Me" were early highlights, as each track sounded considerably more soulful than might have been expected, with the former punctuated by an outstanding violin arrangement. "A Postcard to Nina," perhaps the best song from Kortedala, was certainly the highlight of the night, with Lekman stretching the number out to include spoken-word narratives on the story behind the song.

The only lull was a too-quiet, somewhat downcast interlude of "A Higher Power" and "Cold Swedish Winter" that nearly lost the momentum evinced in the first half of the set. This was corrected by turning to Kortedala again for "Sipping on the Sweet Nectar" and "Shirin," which sandwiched a lively take on the favorite "Maple Leaves." After a brief break, the band returned with an energized "A Sweet Summer's Night on Hammer Hill," and a smiling Lekman delivered a relatively muted take on "Friday Night at the Drive-in Bingo" that eventually built into a rollicking finale. Re-appearing solo, Lekman presented a "You Can Call Me Al" cover that somehow sounded like one of his own songs, as well as an audience-assisted "Pocketful of Money" that ended the night on a high note for both the crowd and Lekman. In the end, it seemed that each was equally pleased. - Chris Drabick