There’s a certain kind of early summer rock show that feels stitched directly into the DNA of amphitheaters like Jiffy Lube Live. Cool air hanging over the lawn. Tailgates still winding down while the opening band starts playing.
Beer lines moving slowly because nobody’s really in a hurry yet, even as a light rain makes things a little interesting for a while. You hear snippets of old rock radio staples floating through the parking lot before you even reach the gates.
The night of May 10 had that atmosphere from the jump.
Three generations of hard rock fans packed into Bristow, Virginia, for a lineup that honestly made perfect sense together. Dorothy brought swagger and grit. Stone Temple Pilots carried the weight of pure ‘90s nostalgia without feeling trapped by it. Then Godsmack closed the night with enough pyro, percussion, and crowd-sized choruses to shake the beer cups right out of people’s hands.
And somehow, despite the scale of it all, the night never felt overly polished. It felt lived-in. Road-tested. Like the musical equivalent of an old leather jacket that somehow looks better with wear.
Dorothy Martin has one of those voices that instantly changes the temperature of a venue. Not metaphorically either. It genuinely felt louder and hotter once Dorothy hit the stage. The band wasted no time getting into the thick of things with “Down to the Bottom” and “Raise Hell,” both of which sounded huge bouncing off the pavilion roof while early-arriving fans pushed closer toward the stage. Martin carried herself with the kind of confidence that doesn’t need theatrics. No overcomplicated stage production. No gimmicks. Just raw bluesy hard rock delivered with conviction.
Watch the official music video for “Down to the Bottom” by Dorothy on YouTube:
“After Midnight” and “BONES” leaned into the darker side of the band’s catalog, full of dirty grooves and sharp vocal phrasing that cut through the mix cleanly even out on the lawn. And honestly, Dorothy feels built for outdoor summer tours like this. Their songs breathe in open-air venues. The riffs hit differently when the sun’s still halfway hanging above the trees and people are settling into concert mode with overpriced drinks and lawn chairs tilted at dangerous angles.
“Whiskey Fever” especially landed well with the crowd. You could spot people singing along from halfway up the hill, which says a lot for an opening act in a venue this size. By the time Dorothy closed with “Dark Nights,” the audience had fully locked in.
Stone Temple Pilots still carry that strange, beautiful gravity and watching them in 2026 still feels a little surreal sometimes.
Partly because those songs remain woven into rock culture so deeply that they almost don’t belong to one era anymore. They’ve crossed over into permanent classic-rock territory now, which feels weird if you grew up hearing “Interstate Love Song” on modern rock radio between commercials for Mountain Dew and local tattoo shops.
And yet here we are.
The second the opening riff of “Wicked Garden” kicked in, the entire amphitheater reacted like somebody flipped a switch. Suddenly people who’d been casually talking near concession stands started hustling back toward their seats.
“Vasoline” sounded particularly sharp at Jiffy Lube Live. Tight rhythm section, crisp guitar tones, and enough low-end punch to make the lawn rumble slightly underfoot.
Watch the official music video for “Vasoline” by Stone Temple Pilots on YouTube:
Jeff Gutt deserves credit too. Filling Scott Weiland’s shoes was never going to be easy, and honestly still isn’t for some longtime fans, but Gutt approaches the material respectfully without trying to imitate every mannerism. That balance matters. He sounds comfortable in the songs now. Confident.
And the band itself remains fantastic.
Robert DeLeo’s bass playing continues to be one of the secret weapons in rock music. So many STP songs swing because of him. Even tracks people think of as straightforward hard rock carry this loose groove underneath.
“Big Empty” brought the first genuinely emotional moment of the night. Thousands of people singing along softly while the stage lights faded into blues and purples created one of those amphitheater scenes that feels oddly cinematic. Somebody nearby lit an actual cigarette lighter instead of using a phone flashlight, which somehow made perfect sense for a Stone Temple Pilots set.
Then came the run everybody wanted.
“Plush.”
“Interstate Love Song.”
“Crackerman.”
“Dead & Bloated.”
“Sex Type Thing.”
No filler. No slowdown. Just wall-to-wall rock radio history delivered at full volume.
By the time Godsmack took the stage, darkness had fully settled over the amphitheater and the crowd felt ready for something louder, heavier, bigger.
They got all three.
The band opened with “Surrender,” immediately sending fists shooting skyward while Sully Erna stormed across the stage like a man trying to physically outpace the storm erupting around him.
From there, Godsmack basically operated like a heavyweight fighter working the body early. “You and I.”
“Straight Out of Line.”
“Awake.”
Hit after hit. No wasted motion.
What stood out most on May 10 was how polished the band sounded without losing aggression.
Godsmack has always balanced hard rock hooks with metal muscle, but live, the songs gain extra heft. Sam Koltun’s guitar tone sounded massive throughout the set, especially during “Cryin’ Like a Bitch!!” where the riff crashed through the venue like demolition equipment tearing through concrete.
And the crowd knew every word.
Not some of the words. Every word.
That’s the funny thing about Godsmack’s catalog. You forget how many enormous rock-radio staples they built over the years until you hear thousands of people scream “KEEP AWAY!” back toward the stage in unison.
“Love-Hate-Sex-Pain” brought a brief emotional shift before the band slid into “Voodoo,” which transformed the amphitheater atmosphere completely. Green lighting flooded the stage while the tribal groove rolled outward across the venue. For a few minutes, the entire place felt hypnotized.
Watch the official music video for “Voodoo” by Godsmack on YouTube:
Then came the drum battle.
“Batalla de los tambores” remains one of those moments that absolutely should feel excessive by now.
And yet it still works.
Erna and new drummer Wade Murff traded percussion runs back and forth while the giant drum platforms they were riding rotated across the stage under flashing lights. It landed somewhere between classic arena-rock spectacle and a heavyweight boxing match played with drumsticks instead of fists.
The crowd loved every second of it.
Honestly, sometimes rock shows need moments like that. Not everything has to be subtle or deeply artistic. Sometimes you want giant drums and fire cannons while beer spills across concrete steps. There’s room for all of it.
“Whatever” detonated the place afterward, then the band closed the main set with a surprisingly strong version of The Beatles’ “Come Together,” giving the song a darker, heavier pulse without stripping away its swagger.
The encore pushed things even further.
“Under Your Scars” gave the crowd one final emotional singalong before “Bulletproof” snapped the energy right back upward. By then the lawn looked like controlled chaos. People dancing in aisles. Security guards trying unsuccessfully to stop fans from crowding walkways. The usual summer amphitheater ballet.
And finally, “I Stand Alone.”
One of the loudest crowd reactions of the night came from that opening riff alone. Phones shot upward. Fists filled the air. Fans screamed every lyric like it was still 2002 and the Scorpion King soundtrack somehow ruled the universe for a minute there.
Funny how certain songs carry entire eras inside them.
As traffic crawled out of Bristow afterward, tail lights stretched across the parking lots while exhausted fans shuffled toward their cars wearing fresh tour shirts and ringing ears like badges of honor. The whole night had that familiar summer-rock feeling: a little nostalgic, a little chaotic, extremely loud, and absolutely built for people who still believe guitars should sound dangerous under open skies.
Godsmack Setlist
1. Surrender
2. You and I
3. Straight Out of Line
4. Awake
5. When Legends Rise
6. Cryin’ Like a Bitch!!
7. Keep Away
8. Love-Hate-Sex-Pain
9. Voodoo
10. Battela de los tambores
11. Whatever
12. Come Together
Encore:
13. Under Your Scars
14. Bulletproof
15. I Stand Alone
Here are some photos of Godsmack headlining Jiffy Lube Live on May 10, 2026. All pictures copyright and courtesy of Michael Sprouse/ Odd Rocker Photography.
Stone Temple Pilots Setlist
1. Wicked Garden
2. Vasoline
3. Big Bang Baby
4. Down
5. Silvergun Superman
6. Big Empty
7. Plush
8. Interstate Love Song
9. Crackerman
10. Dead & Bloated
11. Sex Type Thing
Here are some photos of Stone Temple Pilots performing live at Jiffy Lube Live on May 10, 2026. All pictures copyright and courtesy of Michael Sprouse/ Odd Rocker Photography.
Dorothy Setlist
1. Down to the Bottom
2. Raise Hell
3. After Midnight
4. BONES
5. MUD
6. Rest in Peace
7. Whiskey Fever
8. Dark Nights
Here are some photos of Dorothy performing live at Jiffy Lube Live on May 10, 2026. All pictures copyright and courtesy of Michael Sprouse/ Odd Rocker Photography.
