Photos by Andy Argyrakis

All heavy and alternative-leaning ears were fixed on the Hard Rock Live Northern Indiana when Skillet and Theory Of A Deadman didn’t just stop by for a sold out tag team opened by their pals from Saint Asonia, but kicked off the entire “Rock Resurrection” Tour.

As a result, the world-class venue was filled with scorching sounds for well over three hours, courtesy of the genre’s most aggressive veteran hitters, who are operating as co-headliners.

Skillet closed out the night by unveiling the newly expanded, “Dominion: Day Of Destiny,” in addition to a multi-platinum past that’s since translated to the Pandora Billionaires Club, plus a presence within the Marvel, ESPN, NFL and WWE universes.

The arena and festival favorites brought along a bursting production on a similar scale, ensuring maximum visual impact to the crunching and chilling likes of “Feel Invincible,” “Rise,” “Surviving The Game,” “Hero,” “Psycho In My Head” and the first ever crack at “Finish Line” with Saint Asonia singer Adam Gontier.

Leader John Cooper and company unabashedly flashed their Christian faith the entire duration, but never came across as preachy and spoke of music’s unifying superpowers, though there was no denying the transcendent impact of “Rebirthing” and “The Resistance,” especially once the strings set in.

Theory Of A Deadman took the middle slot, previewing the upcoming “Dinosaur” album and recalling its own stable of chart-topping singles and several million sales that regularly landed these road warriors at equally enormous events.

The guys made their own imaginative use of the lights and smokestacks while driving home the roaring beats of “B**** Came Back,” “Not Meant To Be,” “World Keeps Spinning” and others of matching intensity.

There were also unexpected but enjoyable re-workings of Chris Isaak’s “Wicked Game” and a bit of Garth Brooks’ “Friends In Low Places,” followed by longtime leader Tyler Connolly really getting the crowd going for the gigantic likes of “Angel,” “Hate My Life,” “RX (Medicate)” and “Bad Girlfriend” as fists went flying up in the air.

Bonus points were given to those who turned up on time to catch Saint Asonia, led by the aforementioned ex-Three Days Grace front man, who dropped killer tracks from “Introvert/Extrovert,” which also features Staind’s Mike Mushok (a non-touring member at the moment), with both the hunger of a start-up act and the seasoning of having achieved elder statesmen status.

For additional information on Skillet and Theory Of A Deadman, visit Skillet.com and TheoryOfficial.com.

Upcoming concert highlights at Hard Rock Live Northern Indiana include Skillet and Theory Of A Deadman (Feb. 17); Joe (Feb. 25); Aaron Kwok (Mar. 16); Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band (Mar. 17); Fantastic Five (Mar. 25); Snarky Puppy (Apr. 1); Ginuwine and Next (Apr. 8); Maxwell (Apr. 15); Smokey Robinson (Apr. 28); Diana Ross (May 5); The Killers (May 11); Wayne Newton and Tony Orlando (May 13) and Kevin James (Jun. 18). For additional details, visit HardRockCasinoNorthernIndiana.com.

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