Concert Review: Steven Adler: Anything Goes, Double Casino Shows

Long drives and green rooms and Karens— oh my!

Every show I cover is nothing short of an adventure. Some adventures, however, can be so underwhelming that they leave you hanging with the sensation of unfulfillment.

This was not the case for this past weekend. In fact, it was the extreme polar opposite of unfulfillment. As a result, this review will be a bit different and longer-winded (but what else is new).

Step onto the Nightrain with me, if you dare…

Steven Adler, former drummer of 80’s hard rock superstars Guns N’ Roses, took to the mid-Atlantic area with his legendary backing band last weekend for two casino shows: Horseshoe Casino Baltimore on September 12th, and Harrah’s Casino Philly (Chester, PA), on September 13th. Myself, along with my good friend and BiCoastal Productions booking agent Tracy Ong, had the esteemed privilege of being on the guest list both of these nights. The kindness and friendship we received from the entire Adler entourage resulted in some unforgettable, stressful, and incredible experiences.

Disclaimer: we did not know what the exact definition of “guest list” would be prior to any of this. It’s different every night and everywhere, so how could we be sure of what to expect?

At the beginning of this long pilgrimage, it was not arranged for me to cover either of these gigs. While I always try to shoot the concerts I attend, I only have so much luck on my part. The Adler show in Baltimore wasn’t one of my attempts, as I wasn’t even planning on going to it until the day before, so all my shots in this article are from the Harrah’s show in Chester, PA.

After I drove a couple hours to downtown Baltimore and reunited with Tracy, we found ourselves at Horseshoe Casino in a flash. Even faster, we got our guest tickets and wristbands with ease. We were shocked, though, when the box office said our wristbands granted us access backstage and to the green room. It came as an immense surprise, but who were we to argue?

When we arrived in the empty, catered green room, we sat in isolation and elated silence until the sound of familiar voices emerged. Steven joyfully acknowledged us when he entered with the rest of the band– and my goodness, is that man sweet. I had never met Mr. Adler prior to this interaction, but he greeted me with the tightest of hugs and treated me like an old friend straight away. I was then introduced and given respective embraces from lead singer Ari Kamin, lead guitarist Michael Thomas, rhythm guitarist Alistair “AJ” James, and bassist Christian Sturba. The band even included Tracy and myself in their pre-show ritual of compiling hands and singing “Afternoon Delight” by the Starland Vocal Band. This was also intertwined with Steven’s pep talk and gratitude that there looked to be “at least twenty people out there!”

For their performance, we made sure to stand off of stage-left where there was empty space at the barrier (and where it was easy to watch Steven play). He was right in saying there were at least twenty people, but I was shocked by the lack of crowd in a relatively small ballroom for such an incredible act. What crowd there was, however, became quickly clotted up at the center of the barrier when the show began. This is also when the 80’s came back to stay with us for a little while.

Adler & company took us aboard the “Nightrain” to kick off their set, which set the party into loco-motion. One could argue that Appetite for Destruction ranks among the greatest debut albums of all time, and for this very reason, Adler’s setlist is packed full of tracks from when GNR first hit store shelves in 1987. The first half of the setlist slung us back and forth from sleaze-filled anthems like “Mr. Brownstone” and “My Michelle”, to “Anything Goes” and “It’s So Easy”. Great way to set the mood, isn’t it?

Back in 2012, Adler and his backing band at the time released an album of original material, titled Back From the Dead. One of the most well-received singles from this record, “Good to Be Bad”, signaled the shift from the beginning of their performance to the hearty middle of it all. Singer Ari Kamin was all too excited to urge the audience into a call-and-response section of this cheeky, audacious tune, and many in the crowd were competing to be the loudest on both nights.

In the midst of the focus on Appetite for Destruction, the group took a trip a few years into GNR’s catalogue and ripped right into a couple of Use Your Illusion II tracks: "Civil War" and “You Could Be Mine”. These might have been my favorite songs of both shows I attended. Kamin’s powerful singing, energetic screaming, and intense wailing makes it downright impossible not to get into the headbanging spirit of it all. In addition, lead guitarist Michael Thomas will make your head spin as he sets fire to every note of every solo there is. Further incarnating classic GNR live staples, I and many others in attendance were thrilled to hear the classic Aerosmith groover "Mama Kin", which GNR frequently covered live back in the day. If there wasn’t common dancing ground among crowdgoers prior to this point in the set, that was definitely the song that further united them.

The midpoint of Adler's set rocked both house and audience, but they still had an Appetite to satisfy. The latter part of their performance focused back on that unforgettable debut album, this time with the anthems that shot GNR into superstardom. How much can I say about "Sweet Child o' Mine", "Rocket Queen", "Welcome to the Jungle", and "Paradise City" that won't make me sound like every single rock and roll radio station from the past 38 years? The most I can say is that watching Adler and company up close while performing these timeless pieces gave me a new-found admiration for them. That, and there's some unspoken, deep connection that develops between everyone (band and crowd) when these songs are played live. Perhaps they've got the magic power of the music in them, because I was certainly feeling it on Friday and Saturday night.

Ah, Saturday night.

If you were here just to hear about the shows themselves, this is the part where I start to get long-winded. You see, the shows in both Baltimore and Chester were back-to-back identical events with no notable differences in setlists or performances (except the crowd was bigger and rowdier the second night). However, the personal experiences I had before and during either show couldn't have been more drastically different. I'll save you the boredom of watching me repeat the same review over again, but this is where my "concert diary" from a photographer's standpoint commences.

Friday night was surrealism in overdrive; Tracy and I ended things with greeting the band backstage after the concert, followed by prolonged conversation with most of them on the stunning casino floor. It was here that I was given permission from the group’s manager to shoot the show in Chester the next night. We didn’t think things could get any better, and believed our luck had peaked for the weekend (and possibly the rest of our lives). Somehow, despite the hell of the next day, we were wrong!

I don’t like giving negative reviews of venues, but Harrah’s Casino Philly deserves at least a bit of my griping. In short, we went to hell and back trying to figure out how, who, and where our guest tickets might be acquired. Something that was, quote, “so fucking easy” the night before turned into a tornado of stress. We got passed around in a neverending circle of “go upstairs, go downstairs, go to this person, that person can’t help you, this person will meet you there (then wouldn’t show), go upstairs again”, combined with the staff just adding fuel to the confusion fire. To make things even worse, people waiting in line (who I can only describe as “Karens”) were giving us major attitude for trying to get inside early, even though we were told to. God, please just let us in before we get eaten alive!

Griping aside, this hell did eventually freeze over fast. We were given the same access as the previous night at the Baltimore show, but this time, we were with the crew and not in the audience. This time, we were actually backstage and following Steven down narrow hallways like a couple of lost ducklings. As a photographer, I’d never been backstage before. You might recall in my last review how I was treated as a professional photographer for the first time back in July. This was an insanely similar experience that I was also not prepared for.

Luckily, though, I had an opening act to practice on this time.

Whiskey Grin, a band of long-time buddies from south New Jersey, started the night off at Harrah’s with the highest of energy right away. In my humble opinion, there couldn’t have been a more fitting opener for Adler’s act. Their confidence and tough, gritty swagger truly made the beginning of the festivities feel like a “rock and roll family reunion” (as their website boasts). From the brief conversations we had with guitarist Jim Mayberry, they seem like a very humble group who are very grateful to be in the position they’re in.

If you've ever taken pictures at a concert (regardless of what you use to photograph), you know how difficult it is to snapshot the drummer. If there was ever a night I had to do this at all costs, it was Saturday night at Harrah’s. I had access to practically everywhere, including directly behind Steven’s drum kit, so I was going to get a decent picture of Popcorn Adler if it was the last thing I ever did. I must’ve gone over each potential spot at least 5 times before the show actually started.

I was able to shoot for the entire show, and I’m very glad I did. It was a hefty amount to go through in the days afterwards, but it greatly increased my odds of capturing a drummer as my main subject. Furthermore, standing behind the drummer for most of the show was an experience I never would’ve expected to have. It made for some challenging (yet interesting) shots. I just wish that the stage lights were actually on in between songs, as those were the only times Steven was striking dynamic poses. At the very least, I captured him blowing me a kiss (the highlight of my night, just saying)!

I wasn’t giving up this fight throughout the entire show. I knew the Baltimore gig was for the crowd experience, and the Chester show was for the crew experience. It was so empowering to be able to head in and out of the backstage area whenever I pleased (I made sure the “Karens” from earlier were watching this, too), and so flattering to be able to briefly talk to Steven even during the concert. Just like the Brotherhood of Rock date in Holmdel, NJ back in July, I was feeling a new sense of major accomplishment when Adler’s set came to an end again.

Back in the green room, it was the first time I was able to show multiple members of a band some of my photos directly after a concert ended. It’s surreal to experience something like that, especially when you were just some random guest the night before. During this final backstage experience, we spent more time briefly bonding with the band members like the night before, but we knew all highs must come down sooner or later. There wasn’t any time to chill Saturday night once everything was sung and done, so after many hugs and cheerful farewells, our weekend on the Nightrain was finally at the end of the line.

If you ever wanted to experience GNR in their prime, I recommend you get yourself to one of Adler's shows ASAP. Yes, 96% of what they play is GNR hits, but I still feel it would be wrong to call Adler’s group a “Guns N’ Roses cover band”. They perform these intense, classic rock pieces in a way that is something beyond a tribute and more of a grand celebration on their own terms. The great thing about this group is they don't try to be GNR. They don't get up onstage and take on the wild personas of the original lineup; they have their own tough-as-nails merit, just wanting to enjoy themselves with the music and the crowd. This is what classifies them as their own unique characters, rather than just some tribute band. The chemistry within the band is palpable both on and off the stage, and that’s something I consider myself very fortunate to witness from both sides. 

Ari Kamin, Michael Thomas, Alistair "AJ" James, and Christian Sturba do more than their fair share of transporting every attendee back to the days of hard sleaze rock in the late 80's. As for Mr. Adler himself, his passion and charm is still very much alive. Steven knows each beat he makes has the audience wrapped around his drumsticks, and he’s eager to please with his craft as much as he possibly can. I’ve been told that he, like any other musician, has his good nights and his bad nights. Seconds into the first show this weekend, I was told that it was already a very good night. It truly never stopped getting better from then on, and we couldn’t bear to watch it end.

After all— when you’re high, you never, ever want to come down…

(Shoutout to the entire Adler team for being so welcoming, and to Tracy and Ari for including me in this adventure!)

Setlist (9/12/25 & 9/13/25):

Nightrain

Mr. Brownstone

My Michelle

Anything Goes

Good to Be Bad

It’s So Easy

You Could Be Mine

Civil War

Mama Kin

Sweet Child o’ Mine

Rocket Queen

Welcome to the Jungle

Paradise City