Buckcherry, James Durbin Warehouse Live April 25, 2012

Check our photos from last night's Buckcherry and James Durbin concert in our slideshow.

I confessed I walked into Warehouse Live last night solely for the purpose of hearing Buckcherry play "Lit Up" and "Crazy Bitch," two of the biggest songs of a career that has now reached a decade and a half. There was a time in 2006 when you couldn't walk into a suburban bar on a weekend and hear "Crazy Bitch" at least twice an hour, accompanied by girls taking shots off each other's abs or cleavage.

Some people talk about the '60s being earthshaking, but I disagree. I hated it at the time, but now I sorta miss it.

Sure, Buckcherry has detractors, but as a friend was reminding me last night, they are one of the last of their kind, able to open for the likes of Kiss and Guns N' Roses because they are a proven and solid draw, and well, damn, the only band that sounds like them these days.

(Cue the Jurassic Park theme.)

Seeing them as the opener on the bill is kind of like a security blanket, because if Gene has a heart attack onstage, at least you got to hear "Lit Up." So, game on.

Opener James Durbin from Season 10 of American Idol acted as direct support for BC; I know he was on AI because my mother told me so.

He's got a fun backing band, with three-quarters of them looking like they are from a US Bombs photo shoot, bolstered by a guitar player, Dylan Rosenberg, who plays like a baby Zakk Wylde. I could also say Jim Dandy from Black Oak Arkansas, but he didn't play guitar and most people don't know who Jim Dandy or Black Oak Arkansas is/was.

Durbin has a sturdy stage presence, even if his recent makeover makes the North California boy seem like he's trying out for a Darby Crash Broadway show.

What he needs is steady material, because he varies from sleazy rawk and drool to heavy-metal thundering. If he can marry the two, then the 23-year-old will be around a long time.

Buckcherry live is what The Cult would look and sound like if The Cult loved cocaine as much as they loved Native American lore. Or Aerosmith circa DRUGS if Steven Tyler kicked everyone out and hooked up with Johnny Thunders.

For a group of sober guys, they sure preach the power of beer, yay and whiskey. It took three songs for lead singer Josh Todd to lose his shirt and vest, or at least until the photogs left the photo pit. Sly one, Josh.

Wednesday night's set was a good blend of all four of their albums, and not the condensed opening set most fans have seen. This far into their career, the band's oily vibe is endearing because they give a shit about what they are doing.

You can make the assertion that Buckcherry is a scumbag tribute band, in the way that Steel Panther is a tribute to the decadent and dumb hair-metal stereotype.

A few new songs from their upcoming album were mixed into the set, including a cut from the upcoming Avengers soundtrack, which also features the likes of Soundgarden, Black Veil Brides, Papa Roach, Bush and tourmates Redlight King.

During "Lit Up" I have never heard so many in a crowd cheer for cocaine, a fact that I doubt they would want their corporate HR peeps to know. Too many people left after "Crazy Bitch" -- work, kids, the sleepies -- which made them miss a quality encore. I was sober and even I liked it.

Personal Bias: Fool, I don't need no bias to like Buckcherry. What's a bias mean again?

The Crowd: Please see the supplemental slideshow. (Coming soon -- ed.)

Overseen in the Crowd: Cleavage (now you will really look at that slideshow)

Random Notebook Dump: The phrases "Oh My Lord" and "All Night Long" sound the same when you shout them aloud.