For many yesterday was a travel day, and slowly fans and artists will be arriving in Maryland for the M3 Rock Festival, which traditionally takes place the first weekend in May each year. There was no shortage of options to get acquainted with new music and classic ‘Spirit of 1989’ era artists like Steve Brown (Trixter) and Pete Evick (Bret Michaels Band), who performed at the event’s official pre-party at The Collective Encore.
Earlier in the day a pre-gathering took place at noon at Fish Head Cantina, and the M Pre-Party took place at The Reckless Shepherd Brewery as well. Definitely hard to choose which party (or parties to hit this year).
This is now Pete Evick’s third pre-event performance at the intimate venue, which houses events like comedy show’s and great drinks and dining just steps from Merriweather Post Pavilion and its host hotel, the Lakehouse where you can typically find a good afterparty like the one planned for Saturday night with Steve Brown (Trixter) and hosts Tommy London and Mark Strigl (Sirius XM).
Last night’s show began with Steve Brown taking on the role of master of ceremonies while Pete Evick soon joined on guitar and vocals and Chris McCoy added some keys behind the duo. While the guys traded off on guitar and vocals throughout the evening, they were joined by Dean Cramer (Bret Michaels Band) on guitar and vocals, Greg Reigle (Magical Mystery Doors, Red Dragon Cartel) on bass, Devon Marie (Debbie Gibson, Rubix Kube) on lead vocals, Ted Merrill (Stone Horses) on guitar, and Gavin Evick (Gavin Evick Band) on vocals.
Bringing together the mix of Trixter classics along with classic rock favorites and power ballads made for a very fun evening, and despite the acoustic approach, there was still plenty of soloing and shredding happening on that stage. Highlights included a medley of power ballads in the ‘key of G’, which was certainly entertaining for anyone who picked up a guitar during the late eighties. The audience was taken on a journey that began with Poison’s “Every Rose Has Its Thorn” before exploring a bit of Skid Row’s “I Remember You,” and Warrant’s “Heaven.” It was also great hearing some Bon Jovi with that strong keyboard sound to back it up, and to hear Devon Marie taking the lead on songs like Lita Ford’s “Kiss Me Deadly.”
We look forward to bringing you more coverage from the festival at Merriweather Post Pavilion as it kicks off tonight with performances from Snake Oil and Sebastian Bach. Check back here at TPRS.com and on our social media channels at @ThePureRockShop!
Photos and Review posted by Kara Uhrlen for The Pure Rock Shop 5/2/2025