Why Alter Bridge's Setlist Almost NEVER Changes

[@matheusvmoraes]

After watching this video, I feel totally fine with their current setlists. The guys are terrific musicians, and watching the Live at Amsterdam concert I became instantly a fan.

[@JTMoney489]

Favorite live album is at Royal Albert Hall with the Parallax Orchestra. Can’t wait to see them play Pawns and Kings tracks with the orchestra.

[@count3rcultured]

Man, I'd love to see that!

[@Itz_Artix]

Im so happy your channel exist alter bridge is my favorite band and I love how much I learned from your videos!

[@count3rcultured]

Glad you're enjoying it!

[@4dwyn]

I love how AB is SO good that us fans get mad when we don't hear our favorite songs live as if they're classic hits. They have almost 0 mainstream radio hits (which is a damn shame) but we love and connect with most of their albums. I'll just be happy to listen to them live. I could listen to Myles sing anything- like a eulogy- all day.

[@Coempi73]

Live at the Royal Albert Hall without question!!!

[@MasterOfPunpets]

Keep it up my dude!

[@count3rcultured]

Thanks!

[@tgrules565]

A lot of Alter Bridge songs are in alternative guitar tunings. If you know the tunings you'll notice they tend to group them together so they're not constantly swapping guitars every song.

[@TCt83067695]

There are rnb artists who have hundreds of songs. They're just able to remix them to make a mash-up to keep -everyone- most ppl happy 😊

[@simonepal45]

They played shed my skin when I saw them in Milan a week ago ;) it was a blaaaaast ! Best live album : Royal Albert Hall ( I was there too :D)

[@Thomz1987]

I saw them the 10th time last week in Zurich. It was great as always, and I totally understand why they are playing the same songs over and over again. But it was the first time I realized that I was a little tired of Rise Today, Isolation, Ghost Of Days Gone By etc. I think for die hard fans who has seen them as much or more as myself, a little "rarities-tour" would be absolutely amazing. But again, I do understand why they play these songs every time.

[@count3rcultured]

I think a rarities tour would be awesome! There are more than enough deep cuts for them to create a banger setlist for something like that. Maybe for their 20th anniversary...

[@simonepal45]

I saw them 8 times and yes I agree with you

[@Blackbirddd]

I'm alright with them leaving Rise today off the setlist, but they can't throw Adicted to Pain and Open Your Eyes

[@kjocle2025]

I don't think they ever will throw those out

[@Dave_Wight_The_Rock_Oracle]

those remain...but fans should not mind what songs they play live, it is about the experience

[@kjocle2025]

@@Dave_Wight_The_Rock_Oracle I agree

[@michaelradu4313]

LOVE THE BAND but OPEN THE PLAYBOOK!

[@calebstrong4038]

I saw them on their second Spokane show this year. They played Coeur D Alene for the first time in like 6 years, and I also got Stay and a partial version of Wonderful Life. They also skipped Open Your Eyes. I looked at the setlist from the night before and there was at least 5 differences. They definitely change it up a bit at every show

[@count3rcultured]

Man, that would've been great hearing Coeur D'Alene! I think they mixed it up for Spokane especially since it's Myles' home area

[@mikeweber1302]

I never knew Scott played in another band! Thank you for that info! Also! Stop putting the emphasis on the "bridge" in Alter Bridge!! It's killing me 😂😂

[@count3rcultured]

Lol, I don't think that's a habit I'll ever be able to break. It's one of those things where there's not really a "wrong" pronunciation, but it certainly feels wrong. I think even the band varies, because I know I've heard Myles put the emphasis on "bridge" and Mark put the emphasis on "Alter"

[@jetcity18]

I’ve been a fan since 2004 and was fortunate enough to see them on December 3rd at the now, sadly demolished, London Mean Fiddler. I’ve also been lucky enough to have seen them on every tour since then. Since 2013 my personally opinion is that when it comes to setlists, they like to play it safe and songs like Before Tomorrow Comes and Rise Today are safe. My main gripe on this tour in particular is that only three songs from P&K are being played per night. I get the fixed setlists, and the shortened set, but at least trust your audience to actually want to hear material from the album the tour is promoting.

[@R3scueM3]

Yea no, the less newer stuff the better. Its not what made them famous, and its not what die hard fans want to hear, its fine to play few new singles but for example what Halestorm is doing is not what the most fans want. AB have huge play catalog by now, and quite a few hits that people want to hear. ODR and Blackbird are their best albums and i personally want most of the show to be songs from these albums, and watching their concerts judging from crowd reactions and sing alongs, thats what majority of people want. And i dont thing AB is playing "same songs every night" either, even on this current tour, i think they already played like 30 different songs, which is totally fine and probably better than most bands do in the first place. Lets be honest, Myles voice also declined a lot over last few years, they have plenty of songs they dont think they can perform to highest level we expect them to. I think this video is stupid, using clickbait title that is wrong in the first place, very much thumbs down worthy.

[@Dave_Wight_The_Rock_Oracle]

they do not do a 2 hour plus show.....that is why you are getting only 3 new songs

[@Jamvol12]

@@R3scueM3 Except the newer stuff is what the 'die hard fans' want to hear. I've seen AB nine times and I'm totally bored of seeing them play tracks like Rise Today and Isolation by now. Musically the band has outgrown all those older radio friendly singles. The setlists for their last 3 tours have been really stale.

[@R3scueM3]

@@Jamvol12 Correction, its what YOU want them to play, not a die hard fans. I know plenty of them and most of them want few less played songs from AB 1-3. Three new album songs is totally fine. If they dont play Metalingus/Open Your Eyes fans will be disappointed, i heard some were upset they didnt play Broken Wings last night in London. But at the end of the day bands try to mix up things and give fan favorites while throwing a new bone here and there, which is perfect combo overall.

[@reidsweeney2618]

@@R3scueM3 That is not what diehard fans want. Diehard fans want to hear songs they have never played live. lmao wtf

[@rubenmedina9156]

I have always had the impression that words darker than their wings have been left on the side, because of the vocal difficulty on myles side, he seems very conservative on the singing side, in order to mantain quality and avoid injury

[@count3rcultured]

That's true, WDTTW is an absolute beast on vocals, and since Myles needs to keep his voice in good shape night after night, they can only break out those songs for special occasions.

[@maxzubic]

I must be a real exception in the world of musicians, because I can remember how to sing and play about 300 songs, no problem. Also, what boggles me is when they start ignoring their biggest hits. They dropped Ties That Bind during the Walk The Sky tour, Come To Life for this tour, and also they haven't played Watch Over You since opening night. The last two are songs that I would especially miss if they didn't play them when I see them live.

[@DzoniMakaroni]

I saw them in Zagreb a few days ago. I was disappointed because they didn't play Come to life and Ties that bind. Great show, but why leave those two out...

[@maxzubic]

They just played Come To Life!

[@DzoniMakaroni]

@@maxzubic You're screwing with me??? I'm very unlucky then haha.

[@thyop89]

Remembering and playing a lot of songs is one thing. Rembering and playing them to AB standard is another thing entirely.

[@maxzubic]

@@Dave_Wight_The_Rock_Oracle I don't think these are imaginary.... kzbin.info/aero/PL6WLRXar9CuqUrNK35poczaL6ROJ-6QUN

[@WilsonsWorlds]

Set list in OKC was great. No complaints.

[@guilhermebotelho8691]

I'm so happy they are playing fable of the silent son live now

[@caelmcleish1212]

Gotta be honest, every change they’ve made on this tour has made it progressively worse. Dropping Slip to the Void, keeping it to only 3 songs off of P&K, dropping two song slots completely. All of this has made the setlist look like something I’m not sure I’d be keen to go see.

[@Jamvol12]

I agree, saw them yesterday in Glasgow and was very underwhelmed by the setlist. Only playing Rise Today in the encore was a bit of a gutter as I was hoping to hear the title track of the new album at least.

[@Skydawg55]

There will always be their biggest hits and staples. But what you have to realize is that their Europe tour will be a little different than their US tour. Different fans bases and different tastes in music. Some songs that were big in EU were not big in the States and vice versa. But they do seem to have a few slots that they are using to rotate different songs as per Setlists website. But when you get to 7 albums and many additional bonus track over the course of 18 years, you can't play them all and you're going to disappoint some people some of the time.

[@GriefHammer]

Personally, I feel once a band has made it to their third album, there's no reason to have a touring setlist. The arguments of "professionalism", "perfectionists" and "side projects" don't hold much water when you look at bands who not only are all of those things, but have been doing it longer, but still change their setlists on a nightly basis. Bands like Metallica and Red Hot Chili Peppers average 4-5 rotated songs per show, whereas artists like Pearl Jam and Bruce Springsteen change up the entire setlist, rotating and swapping songs out for every show. Touring setlists are good for making sure every fan on a tour gets the same experience, but like you said in the video; AB fans will likely be happy with anything, so sticking to a strict setlist is a wasted opportunity. I don't understand why a band would go to all that effort of writing and recording songs, which costs time and money, release them to the public, who then grow to enjoy them for years to come, only for the band to then never play them.

[@marksawyer7361]

🎯

[@GethStar]

As bands progress, it becomes less of a gig and more of a show. Shows require planning and setting up. Changing songs every night becomes difficult as it requires much more time and money spent on the show so time and money become limiting factors.

[@dzonyyya]

There's another underlaying issue that many tend to overlook. I am also not happy with their current setlists, but keep in mind that their catalogue spans over 15 different guitar tunings, if not even 20. Imagine being their tech and having to restring 10 of Mark's and 10 of Myles' guitars after every night. It pains me to restring my own instruments once every few weeks. I think Mark and Myles carry around 25-30 guitars combined together for the tour, based on the amount of instruments visible in their racks during the rig rundowns shown in videos. Mark's touring cabinet is literally $100k worth of guitars only.

[@count3rcultured]

This is another good point. I know for some songs, they even have different tunings midsong, so it's impossible for them to play those tracks live without a guitar switch mid-song, and that's just not happening

[@dzonyyya]

@@count3rcultured Yes, exactly. That's why they most likely won't play Fable of the Silent Son. That track has like 5 different tunings that rotate throughout the song, plus a 7 string which I know Mark doesn't like playing live. That's why they don't play Show Me a Leader anymore either. Although, if fans keep insisting, they will most likely transpose Fable to fit one tuning, or have Mark in one tuning and Myles in a different one to cover as much as they can with two guitars, just like they did for Fortress, Words Darker Than Their Wings and Ghost.

[@count3rcultured]

I could also see them playing part of the song and then transitioning into a different one, kinda like what Myles has done with Wonderful Life/Watch Over You

[@Dave_Wight_The_Rock_Oracle]

why is this even a conversation, they do the same thing every band does, new album put in new songs....keep in some staple songs. Their setlist is perfectly fine, and they will play the same songs on the same tour so fans get a similar experience Alter Bridge are A leaguers, but rock fans failed their band, Pawn and Kings is awesome. By the way the best song not on this current setlist is Native Son.

[@decogoldani]

royal albert hall is absolutely insane

[@jaketheripper7385]

It really is not uncommon for a band to assemble and rehearse a core setlist to perform for a single tour, if not for just one stretch of a particularly lengthy two or even four leg continental run. Many bands will anticipate the potential for minor changes to be made based on crowd energy from gig to gig and fan response, as well as certain logistical circumstances such as evolving time constraints or considerations specific to a local area or particular venue. They'll even make setlist revisions accordingly based on their own personal preferences should they get sick of playing/hearing a particular track or they wish to do something special for a particular show or whatever. There's always room for some versatility and dynamic adaptation with a setlist, although some bands definitely play a bit more 'fast and loose' with this concept than others lol. For some setlists are more like suggestive guidelines than any actual firmly outlined plan, although mostly just in amateur hour acts. Still, it's always prudent to maintain a healthy degree of flexibility with the setlist and possess a capacity to communicate and a adapt whenever necessary, especially within the context and chaos of a live performance while still maintaining logistical operations, sense of professionalism, and "theatrical mystique" required to put on a good show (if possible you don't wanna like "break kayfabe" or anything, ya know?). Things can change suddenly on the fly like that, or perhaps you're forced to work with a wildly charismatic frontman who one night decides to cut the final set piece down to an improvised segue before changing up the encore track to something you haven't rehearsed or performed in months/years; furthermore insisting that you all perform a SECOND encore as well (all of this is communicated through brief glances, hand gestures, and leading audience banter since your in-ears disappeared after the second show of the tour, because *of course* they did). I've seen hands thrown on-stage for less haha. However naturally you've become accustomed to his behavior and tend to expect some manner of diva shit from him during a performance, so professional adaptability and versatility in this context can be invaluable skills that make or break the show. Whether or not a setlist is replaced or otherwise drastically altered on the road may depend on whether or not there are any breaks between tour legs, although ultimately it can come down to how much the artist(s) care about fan opinion and just how motivated they are to offer the variety in their performances. Doing so will require the inclusion of additional rehearsal time in the tour schedule and can easily lead to psychological/emotional burnout, clinical exhaustion, and/or friction between band members. The same is certainly 100% true for the techs and road crew as well. It can all fly off the rails pretty quickly if someone isn't pulling their weight or begins slacking off due to being overworked or overindulgence in the vice and temptation of the road... I've seen it all too many times myself. The points made here regarding static setlists being a result of growing discographies is absolutely accurate as well, and I feel that this particular concept is overlooked or forgotten far too often by fans and critics these days. Good on ya for actually making a point to discuss it and explain it a bit more thoroughly... It's unfortunate that so many people require such information to be more or less "spoon-fed" to them these days, but at least they might be willing to hear it haha.

[@michaelradu4313]

It's called REHEARSAL!

[@silverprincej]

Your question can apply to any other tour. They always play the same because they're lazy, they play it safe, like a lot of other bands do. If you look at past tours they always play the same songs and barely play the new ones (they never play more than 6). And the fans get lazy too, as they don't mind hearing the same songs over and over again, whether casual or die hard fans.

[@CriticalNuance]

Alterbridge is one of my favorite bands all time. However a problem I consistently have with their live performance is that they push the pace too much. It seems like they consistently play much faster live than the studio versions. I know that many bands do this and playing a song too slow can kill the vibe, but it often seems like Alterbridge is pedaling the bike as fast as possible. A separate problem I have is that as bad ass as Mark is, he writes too many wet blanket ballads. This goes back to Creed too. I love slow songs as much as ripping metal jams but for some reason Mark's slow jams always seem super cheesy to me.

[@sethseiden9604]

How r they not huge in America?????

[@count3rcultured]

I know, they should be way bigger than they are

[@matyaskrahulik1101]

I have to admit I am not satisfied with their setlist choices. I have seen them twice on the Pawns and Kings tour and even though I really enjoyed the concerts, I would be much happier if they cut some of the older songs from the set and replaced them with songs from the last 3 records. I really expected them to play more songs from the new album and I am also disappointed with how little The Last Hero and Walk the Sky are represented. I would much rather hear something like Show Me a Leader or Take the Crown than Before Tomorrow Comes or Shed My Skin.

[@Dave_Wight_The_Rock_Oracle]

but they are seeing the sales of the last few albums and assuming less people are aware of those songs, I mean the anemic support for pawns and kings is sad, where is Alter Bridge fan.

[@trainofthough0242]

I think at a certain point, every band becomes a greatest hits band and the setlists start reflecting that. The general fan buys tickets expecting to hear all the staples and when you've had a 20 year career, you end up having a lot of staples and that doesn't allow much experimenting with the setlist when you feel inclined to leave all these same songs in because people just expect to hear them and complain when they don't. I have the same complaint with Sevendust, they've essentially had the same setlist for the past 15 years. They pump out all these amazing records but only end up playing 2 or maybe 3 live off each and the rest never get played live ever. And once the next album comes out, the previous album gets completely forgotten, not a song on those albums will ever be played live again. Their encore has been Face To Face for way too long, it's gotten boring. Their staples are great and all, but I don't need to hear Black or Denial or Praise every time I see them, they just clog up too much of the setlist. And Pieces too, I don't understand why that song is always in the setlist. It's frustrating as a real fan because eventually you get tired of spending all this money for tickets just to hear the same songs you heard last time and the time before that and the time before that until inevitably you stop going.

[@ahmedElsallam]

I don't care what their setlist is and I don't understand why people are complaining about it...watching a band live is about the experience, I can always listen to my favourite songs on my own but watching them live is different even if I heard Rise Today billions of time. my favourite live is at the Royal Albert Hall

[@Dave_Wight_The_Rock_Oracle]

I had no idea were complaining, maybe instead of complaining they should pony up and buy the new album which a lot of fans turned their backs on.

[@trainofthough0242]

@@Dave_Wight_The_Rock_Oracle Because it's not that great. This band has become stale so fans are turning their backs on them. They're still good, don't get me wrong, but they're not the same quality band they were when they had something to prove. Now that they're established, they're just another legacy act now. Those first 3 records, eh maybe Fortress too, that was Alter Bridge at their peak. That was the Alter Bridge I grew to love and they're not that band anymore and just from the general consensus from the internet is that many others feel the same about their post-Fortress material. It's missing that special something they used to have.

[@RippleTKO]

Blue white scratchy background

[@djmelo91]

To everyone complaining...go start a band and do it yourself. I understand that it can be boring if you have watched them live a few times. Butttt.....go do it at their level.

[@DameTremonti]

Seen them since 2005 in the UK, multiple times, saw them a few weeks back in Manchester. Set list disappointed me, Rise Today, Open Their Eyes, Addicted to Pain, Shed My Skin - these should be binned off in favour of newer material. I left the show with about 45 minutes to go, it was like a long repeat of the past.

[@marksawyer7361]

Completely agree, it's boring as shit...

[@acph3nv894]

They seem to change them with more often recently.

[@Jamvol12]

Alter Bridge is a top 3 band for me and I've recently seen them for my 9th time on the P&K tour. Have to admit I was bored throughout most of the show and found the setlist very stale. The only song that caught me off guard was bringing back Shed My Skin - I'd love if they surprised us devoted fans like this more often. I'm genuinely interested if any AB fans consider Rise Today to be amongst their favourite songs from the band? I feel like AB have evolved beyond all those older radio friendly singles. I understand why OYE will always be played due to the nostalgia and the crowd sing along part, but at this point Rise Today just seems like 3 minutes which could be better spent playing newer material/rarity.

[@count3rcultured]

I get where you're coming from. Personally, Rise Today is still one of my favorite AB songs, but I'd understand other fans who've been around longer getting tired of it.

[@johnnyjohnson6815]

The real problem with live shows is that crowds are dead - obesity and camera phones crushed the live crowd energy of rock and roll concerts. It must suck for amazing musicians to play night after night in front of zombies.

[@DameTremonti]

Try coming to England dude.

[@marksawyer7361]

Variation in the setlist would definitely get the crowd going. I've seen them 6 times and this current, same every night setlist could bore anybody to death. They have sooo many good songs they could play...how many times do we have to hear rise today and open their eyes 😒

[@johnnyjohnson6815]

@@marksawyer7361 no doubt, I stopped going because I’ve heard the same songs for a decade and have the DVDs. I would love to hear some material from Walk the Sky and whatever this new album is I never even listened to front-to-back. Not every album needs a “blackbird”

[@kjocle2025]

Pretty much hit the nail on the head... the guys are workaholics, and I can totally understand Myles feeling like songs blend together after a certain point. I think another minor reason is due to the stage/lighting production. I'd assume it takes time to program lights for a song; though once it's initially programmed, it's done and doesn't need to be done again. They will always play the Open Your Eyes and Addicted to Pains of their catalogue. But there are certainly some songs that deserve more attention in the live set.

[@count3rcultured]

You make a good point with the lighting! With a band of this scale, there's more to the concert than just the performers. The tech crew plays a vital role in the show, and they need to be prepared for whatever the band wants to do

[@scottanderson4175]

Alter Bridge is my favorite band and I own every record from them and I can honestly only think of 1 song I don’t actually like from them it’s the one that sounds like the Irish Spring commercial but I have seen them live 6 times and never once have they sounded as good as I expected not even close to sounding as good as I expected so perhaps I will pass the next time they come around 😐

[@AndreasVerleysen]

Summarized: too many side-projects, too little rehearsal time. Unfortunately, you present this as facts while you are in fact speculating. Also, band members having side-projects is not at all unique to Alter Bridge (dream theater, steve lukather, deep purple, you name it).

[@michaelradu4313]

LAZY SETS constantly!

[@mrtiesthatbind]

Open Your Eyes and Rise Today should be axed from the setlist for good but not Addicted to Pain. The song never fails to bring energy to the crowd

[@mrtiesthatbind]

@@mauriciovas i didn't say anything about 'Find the Real'

[@mauriciovas]

@@mrtiesthatbind my bad...