Stone Sour at Irving Plaza

Corey Taylor of Stone Sour

A stone sour consists of one part whiskey, one part orange juice, with a splash of sour mix. Naming the band after the alcoholic drink, lead vocalist/guitarist Corey Taylor named his new band Stone Sour in 1992 in Des Moines, Iowa. Through several line-ups, the band performed and recorded for five years, then disbanded in 1997, with Taylor and guitarist Jim Root joining Slipknot. Stone Sour reunited in 2002 and finally had commercial success, but then went on hiatus again in 2004, as Taylor and Root rejoined Slipknot. Stone Sour reunited in 2006 to more commercial success. Since 2011, the core of the band has been Taylor, Root, guitarist Josh Rand and drummer Roy Mayorga. Stone Sour 's five studio albums have sold more than four million albums worldwide. The most recent album is 2013's House of Gold & Bones – Part 2.

Four nights into its 2014 tour, Stone Sour performed a hard rocking 90-minute set to a very packed house at Irving Plaza tonight. Though there was no mention, the band's line-up was modified for this tour. Root is working on a Slipknot project, so Christian Martucci substituted on guitar, and the line-up was filled out with bassist Johny Chow. Taylor was still the focal point, however, and throughout the set the spotlight rarely shone on anyone else. Taylor sang, but also commanded attention by speaking to the audience nearly between every song, again and again complimenting the audience for its loud response, encouraging the audience to shout louder or jump to the music, holding the microphone out to the audience as the audience completed the lyrics to the songs he had started, or simply repeatedly opening bottles of water and spilling them over those in the front. Musically, Stone Sour has been known as a radio staple, but the band demonstrated that there was more to be offered. Granted, Taylor's vocals for the most part remained radio friendly, and many of the songs were super polished and easily digested, but the band also played newer songs that featured more edge. Taylor also sang a few songs accompanied solely on his guitar, including a cover of Alice in Chain's "Nutshell." In all, the band held its own, crossing between softer radio rock and harder metal while cheerleading the audience, ending with a rousing cover of Judas Priest's "Heading out to the Highway."

Visit Stone Sour at www.stonesour.com.