21st Century Live

by Greg PratoAlthough they're not on par with Pearl Jam just yet for the largest amount of live albums released in the shortest amount of time, Styx surely lead the pack of veteran classic rock bands in the live album department. During the space of six years, from 1997 through 2003 (which saw Styx reunite with Dennis DeYoung, then hand the singer his walking papers, before replacing him with Lawrence Gowan), the Chicago arena rockers issued a staggering five live albums. 2003's 21st Century Live features much of the same material as its predecessors, but differs in the fact that it's a double disc, comprised of a CD and DVD. Despite the fact that many fans will scream "Sacrilege!" at the mere thought of Styx carrying on without DeYoung (and they do have a valid point), the versions of such classics as "Snowblind" and "Renegade" still retain the original's grandiose power, and hardcore fans will be interested in sampling such Cyclorama era tracks as "Yes I Can" and "These Are the Times" in a live setting. With such an overabundance of modern day Styx concert albums now on the market, hopefully next time, the chaps will dig deeper into the vaults and issue an archival release.