Simple Plan, Stone Temple Pilots and several other music legends take the Fremont stage this year
If you’re a lover of live music, you really have no reason to ever leave Las Vegas. Eventually, your favorite artist will come here for a tour stop, residency, or to play a free show during Fremont Street’s Downtown Rocks concert series.
The downtown Fremont concerts are back for 2022 with a lineup that leans heavily on nostalgia. From Skid Row frontman Sebastian Bach to Hoobastank, the concert series features artists spanning multiple decades and genres. So, there’s something for everyone.
May 28 – X Ambassadors
The band once known simply as “Ambassadors” was an annual staple in the pre-pandemic era, so fans that last saw them here in 2019 must still be going through serious withdrawal. Since then, the Ithaca natives have dropped their third album, The Beautiful Liar. So, expect at least a couple new ones sprinkled in there before or after “Renegades.” 9 p.m., 3rd St. Stage
Fun fact: X Ambassadors credits much of their exposure to Las Vegas’ own Imagine Dragons.
May 29 – Starship featuring Mickey Thomas
Let’s make something explicitly clear: Mannequin is one of the best movies ever made, and one reason is because Starship’s “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now” is one of the best songs ever made. That’s just the cherry on top, however, when it comes to a Starship setlist. We’re talkin “We Built This City,” “Sara,” and those all-time Jefferson Starship hits like “Jane” and “Layin It On the Line.” Plus, Mickey Thomas played the teacher in the underrated teen romance Dream A Little Dream. What’s not to love here? 9 p.m., 1st St. Stage
June 25 – 10,000 Maniacs, Dishwalla, and The Calling
Next year marks the 30th anniversary of the 10,000 Maniacs MTV Unplugged show, which, fans will recall, is a highlight of the band’s career. It hasn’t felt the same since Natalie Merchant left, but maybe, for old time’s sake, they’ll do a little acoustic set for the Fremont crowd. The Maniacs will get an assist from fellow 90s hall-of-famers Dishwalla (“Counting Blue Cars”) and The Calling—the latter still fronted by Alex Band but with a different lineup behind him. You can almost hear “Wherever You Will Go” in your head right now, can’t you? 1st St. Stage, 7 p.m.
July 4 – Molly Hatchet, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band and Mackenzie Porter
A bunch of guys—none of them named Molly—play Fremont Street on the Fourth of July. The southern rock group has undergone a few lineup changes since they arrived on the scene in 1971, but surely you’ll get the same satisfaction when the current members drop hits like “Flirtin’ With Disaster” and “Lady Luck” on the crowd.
Speaking of lineup changes, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band has had more than a few, and they’ll make an appearance as the opener, alongside Canadian country star (that’s right, Canadians love country music) MacKenzie Porter. 3rd St. Stage, Start Time TBD
July 23 – Sebastian Bach
This one’s interesting, because longtime Skid Row frontman Sebastian Bach is set to perform on Fremont Street on the same night his former band will play a show at Sunset Station in Henderson. So, on one hand, you’ve got the band coming through town, but you’ve also got the singer, playing a free show, with a setlist that likely includes more than a few Skid Row songs. This almost happened before when the Doobie Brothers and Michael McDonald both swung through Vegas, but it wasn’t the same night. 1st St. Stage, 9 p.m.
July 30 – Hoobastank, Alien Ant Farm, and Soul Asylum
This one’s for all those kids who came of age in the 90s and early aughts. Sure, Hoobastank, Alien Ant Farm, and Soul Asylum have put out new stuff over the last decade (the latter as recently as 2020), but so many memories were forged back in the day. If the crowd doesn’t hear “The Reason” first, last, and maybe sprinkled in the middle a couple of times, they might revolt. 1st St. Stage, Start Time TBD
August 13 – Theory of a Deadman and Saliva
Canada has given us so many incredible gifts over the years—Paul Anka, Pamela Anderson, Seth Rogen, all those Hallmark holiday movies—that it’s easy to overlook Theory of a Deadman. But the FON (Friends of Nickelback) are still riding the wave of buzz from their 2020 release, Say Nothing, and they’ll make a triumphant return to Fremont Street, where they were once an annual staple, on August 13. Joining them for the ride: early aughts favorite Saliva, whose “Click Click Boom” was a staple in action movie trailers back in the day. 3rd St. Stage, 8 p.m.
August 20 – Simple Plan
While we’re celebrating great Canadian musicians, let’s not leave out Simple Plan. The Montreal natives are still doing it, with their sixth studio album, Harder Than It Looks, set to drop on May 6. If you want to relive some of your Warped Tour memories, you’ll want to get down to Fremont Street early and elbow your way to the front so Pierre Bouvier can get a good look at you. 3rd St. Stage, 9 p.m.
September 3 – Rick Springfield, Men at Work, and John Waite
The Downtown Rocks theme goes back to the 80s in early September when these three icons play Third Street. Yes, we want “Missing You” and “Overkill,” but the loudest you’ll hear Fremont Street—perhaps all year—is when that whole crowd sings the chorus to “Jessie’s Girl” in unison. It’ll be a sight, though it won’t be nearly as memorable as when Alfred Molina took a hit from a crack pipe and started shouting “I’m so jealous… she should be with me!” 3rd St. Stage, Start Time TBD
September 10 – The Pretty Reckless
You wouldn’t call The Pretty Reckless a nostalgia act, and that makes them a rarity on the concert calendar. The NYC-based quartet returns to Las Vegas on September 10 with their fourth studio album, Death By Rock and Roll, under their belt. Fun fact: remember Cindy Lou from How the Grinch Stole Christmas? That’s The Pretty Reckless singer Taylor Momsen. Having written that, please don’t go to the show expecting to hear “Christmas, Why Can’t I Find You?”
October 15 – Jelly Roll
Nashville native Jelly Roll has been rapping for more than a decade now, but his October 15 show will be his Las Vegas debut, according to setlist.fm. If you’ve been desperately waiting, drowning your pain with a bottle and Mary Jane, this is your chance. Show the man some love. 3rd St. Stage, 9 p.m.
October 22 – Slaughter, Vixen, and The Sweet
It’s going to be loud, and maybe a little messy, when this trifecta of hard and glam rock takes the stage in late October. Slaughter and Vixen will bring that heavy late 80s sound, that’s certain, but more than a few of us will be at the front of the stage for The Sweet. Whatever ails you, it can be cured by a combination of “Ballroom Blitz” and “Fox on the Run.” 3rd St. Stage, Start Time TBD
November 19 – Stone Temple Pilots
Like that time your stepfather moved in, the adjustment period from Scott Weiland to Jeff Gutt has been a little difficult. Fortunately, Gutt has the energy and the confidence needed to command the spotlight as the lead singer of Stone Temple Pilots.
The reformed lineup has put out new stuff over the last few years, but dammit we want to hear “Plush” just like we did when MTV played the video incessantly during the summer of 1993. 3rd St. Stage, 9 p.m.
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