In one of the more unique local events in recent years, a platinum-selling heavy metal band, Stone Sour, rocked the late-summer air Friday afternoon in Bradford.
Hundreds of people flocked to the Zippo/Case Museum as Zippo hosted the band for one of the company’s Zippo Sessions.
Zippo Sessions are exclusive, intimate acoustic sessions with some of the hottest bands playing at the major festivals that the Zippo Encore booth attends. People who buy a lighter onsite are able to sign up for a Zippo Session, but they don’t know who will be performing until they walk on stage.
The show began at 2:15 p.m. with Jose Mangin, a radio host on Sirius XM’s Octane channel, speaking to more than 700 people in attendance, then introducing Stone Sour. As the band made their way to the stage in the parking lot of the museum, a thunderous roar swelled from the crowd and would be met by the band kicking off their performance with “Song #3,” off their newest album, “Hydrograd.” The group then played “Miracles,” from “Audio Secrecy;” “Wicked Game,” a Chris Isaak cover; “Through Glass,” from “Come What(ever) May;” and finished with “Rose Red Violet Blue (This Song is Dumb & So Am I),” from “Hydrograd.”
Stone Sour consists of five members — vocalist and guitarist Corey Taylor (also the vocalist of Slipknot), guitarists Christian Martucci and Josh Rand, bassist Johnny Chow and drummer Roy Mayorga.
Mayorga told The Era that he thinks Bradford is a beautiful place with great energy.
“This is the first time I’ve been here,” he said. “It’s an honor and privilege to be here, to see the (Zippo) factory and to meet all the people inside that helped develop lighters and helped develop our lighters, as well.
“So, we’re fully thankful for that,” Mayorga added. “To just play this show for everyone in town is pretty awesome … great energy out there.”
When asked to describe the newly released album and his favorite songs from the album, Mayorga said, “‘Subversive,’ which is on the deluxe as one of the bonus tracks, that’s one of my favorites and I’m actually happy it’s seeing the light of day. I’m really happy about that coming out, and ‘Burn One Turn One’; these are some of the bonus tracks that we had recorded before.”
He added that the band recorded nearly 30 songs and he is glad they were able to release all of the tracks they recorded.
“I love jamming these new songs. It’s a really cool, raw side and raw element of this lineup of people in the band and it’s good to play them live,” Mayorga said.
Stone Sour traces its roots to Des Moines, Iowa, in the early 1990s. After a brief hiatus, the band reformed and released its first album, “Stone Sour,” in 2003. The band earned two Grammy Award nominations, both for Best Metal Performance, for the singles “Get Inside” in 2003 and “Inhale” in 2004. From their 2006 album, “Come What(ever) May,” the group received another Grammy Award nomination for Best Metal Performance for the single “30/30-150.” The group’s latest album, “Hydrograd,” came in July of 2017. The album reached the top 10 on the charts of eight countries including reaching the number eight spot on the US Billboard 200 chart, number one on the US Top Hard Rock Albums chart and number two on the US Top Rock Albums chart. On Oct. 24, 2017, “Hydrograd” won the award for Hard Rock Album of the Year at the Loudwire Music Awards. A deluxe edition of the album was released Friday, as well. The band has sold more than 2 million albums in the United States and has toured the world.
Senior Zippo Brand Manager Lucas Johnson said, “Being on tour and at huge rock festivals with Stone Sour over the past few months has been amazing, but bringing the band here to Zippo’s home town and sharing Zippo Sessions with the whole Zippo & Case family and community has been the icing on the cake.
Johnson added that Stone Sour and Mangin spent Friday morning touring the Zippo plant and its design center to learn how their custom lighters are made.
“We’re so glad they were able to spend time with some of the people who help bring these products to life,” Johnson said.
As seen on Friday, music definitely hits the spot with locals, as many local musicians perform with aspirations of striking it big. Mayorga gave some key advice for musicians looking to play on big stages.
“My advice is to think about where you want to go in your life with your music and your career and just put it out there,” he said. “Keep thinking about that everyday and it will manifest. Believe in yourself and don’t hold back. Always look forward and always move forward.”
According to Amanda DePrins, Zippo’s marketing manager, the show was made possible through the partnership of Stone Sour and Zippo’s global music program “Zippo Encore.” The program involves taking a booth of Zippo lighters and memorabilia along with Zippo’s partners to their shows and on their tours. DePrins added that each band member designed their own custom lighter.
Also performing at the event were Tiny Music, a Stone Temple Pilots tribute band, and Afraid of Human.
When asked about how his experience in Bradford was, Mayorga said, “I can’t say anything else about how great (Bradford) is. To be able to play in front of people in the town, it was really cool. I didn’t expect there to be that many people. We were like, ‘Wow, this is great!’”
After Corey Taylor made this ambitious closing remark: “We’ll see you again, Bradford,” Mayorga echoed Taylor’s words by saying the band would be “happy to play in Bradford again.”
