Styx and Chicago Open Co-Headlining Windy Cities Tour in West Palm Beach

The tour, billed as an all-hits concert, brought out the baby-boomer-aged crowd who disregarded the hot temps and arrived primed to sit back and enjoy the tunes from these two iconic rock bands. Having seen both Styx and Chicago numerous times prior, I had a pretty good idea what to expect. Styx would be a rocking and rolling with a hard-rocking show, while Chicago would bring out the brass and polished vocals and play a more tranquil show. Both bands are classic rockers regardless of their contrasting styles. Given the frequency of a heavy touring band like Styx, who make regular stops in South Florida, it was surprising to see the turnout of the bands’ most faithful on a drenched Monday night.

Styx is comprised of two remaining founding members Chuck Panozzo and James Young along with Lawrence Gowan, Terry Gowan, Tommy Shaw, Will Evankovich, and Todd Sucherman. With these players, there is a great balance of energy and showmanship, especially Gowan, who at times works his keyboard like a Chinese acrobat spinning and balancing on it like a tightrope, and he brought his usual eccentric theatricality to “Mr. Roboto” and a soaring rendition of “Lady.” It is interesting how consistent the band’s music remains; they play a solid live rock show. On this night, the band wasted no time, opening  with classic track “Fooling Yourself.” It was Tommy Shaw who shared the spotlight with founding guitarist James “J.Y.” Young and longtime keyboardist/vocalist Lawrence Gowan. Original bassist Chuck Panozzo also made his customary guest appearance, giving the hometown-adjacent crowd an extra dose of nostalgia. With the crowd now poised and at full attention, the band’s sonic secret weapon was longtime drummer Todd Sucherman, whose precise powerhouse drumming anchored the complex arrangements of their prog-rock catalog. Newest band member bassist Terry Gowan (brother of Lawrence) fit seamlessly into the rhythm section.