Sultry. Steamy. Steady. Sexy.
All hallmarks of an intense relationship.
"This is the perfect thing in my life," Melissa Etheridge told her screaming, adoring fans at American Music Theatre on Monday night. "You are the longest relationship I've ever had in my life. And it's been a good one."
Given the passion, the life, the intensity Etheridge puts into her live performances, that's not at all surprising.
Monday night's sold-out show illustrated perfectly the pairing of Etheridge's smoking-hot stage presence and her wildly enthusiastic fans. Etheridge fed off their energy all night long, and the charged atmosphere reflected it.
Of course, it also helped that "Fearless Love," the new disc her current tour supports, is a sink-your-teeth-into-it return to the artist's hard-rocking roots.
Etheridge went to that well three times to open the show, starting big and getting bigger with "We Are the Ones," the title track and "Miss California." All three songs are classic Etheridge, with driving beats and lyrics filled with lust and longing.
Delivered in her distinctively smoldering vocal style, Etheridge's songs quickly identify her as a stylistic sister to Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan. But there are other influences at work in her music. Sometimes you can pick out a little ZZ Top here, a little Who there, maybe some U2 somewhere else.
Fully half the show was tracks from "Fearless Love." Featured prominently in the middle of the show was "Indiana" -- arguably the new album's finest offering. Part soulful ballad, part flat-out rocker, it tells the tale of a small-town girl who makes tough choices to overcome her start in life. She also rolled out the breathlessly sexy "The Wanting of You" and hard-charging "Nervous" to great effect.
That's not to say Etheridge ignored her older catalog. Well-supported by a new touring band -- guitarist Peter Thorn, bassist Sean Hurley, keyboardist Chris Fowke and drummer Blair Sinta -- Etheridge turned her raw energy onto the likes of "If I Wanted To," "Come to My Window," the cancer anthem "I Run for Life," "I'm the Only One" and "Bring Me Some Water."
From the time she entered the theater, walking onto the stage through the heart of the raucous crowd, pressing as much flesh as she could, Etheridge delivered on her mission to entertain and enthrall.
She ended her evening with another introspective turn on "Gently We Row," all about searching for the answers in life and finding your way home.
"It's just my simple philosophy of life, love and family," she told the crowd.
For Etheridge, who played for nearly 2 hours and 45 minutes, touching innumerable hands and bantering with the fans, that home is on the stage, surrounded by the fans who love her.