There is nothing quite like an intimate venue exploding at the seams from the booming sounds of music permeating from within its walls. It’s amazing how those sounds protruding from a musician’s instrument can take on the personality or persona of the artist. On this particular evening, the culprit was none other than Hurricane Nita and her signature Ibanez. Nita Strauss, one of rocks prolific shredders, brought her Winter Wasteland Tour to Orlando. Joining her on the road is guitarist Mark Rizzo and NY rockers Black Satellite.
Strauss is no stranger to the big stage as Alice Cooper’s touring guitarist since 2014, which has taken her worldwide, playing on some of the biggest stages to some of the biggest crowds. Fans are drawn to her energy and mastery of her axe onstage but it’s Strauss’ appreciation and love of her fans that have endeared her to them. Her availability to fans on social media is impressive but participating in one of Nita’s preshow meet and greets may be the best ticket in town. Her sincerity and obvious passion for what she does are unparalleled and make it easy for one to root for her success which was evident on this night.
The crowd had already been treated to two high-energy sets by Mark Rizzo and the Black Satellites and were primed for the evening’s headliner, Nita Strauss who was joined on stage by bassist Dean Christopher and drummer Josh Villata. The 11-song set kicked off with the theme song from the Power Rangers into “Mariana Trench” off Nita’s debut album Controlled Chaos. The set included a Queen cover of “The Show Must Go On” and fan-favorite “Feed My Frankenstein,” an Alice Cooper classic that saw Larissa Vale from The Black Satellite’s join Strauss onstage for a crushing rendition. The set highlighted Hurricane Nita’s fiery passion and precision along with Dean and Josh’s energy was nothing short of an instrumental orgasm.
When Strauss isn’t touring with Alice Cooper or releasing new material and touring as a solo artist she’s the in-house guitarist for the NFL’s Los Angeles Rams. Earlier this year Nita shredded the US national anthem at WWE’s NXT TakeOver that kicked off Wrestlemania week.
The current 28-show trek comes on the heels of the first song released from the rocker’s upcoming sophomore album, “Dead Inside,” which features Disturbed frontman David Draiman. Unlike Strauss’ debut solo album Controlled Chaos that was an instrumental album, her latest release will have additional guest vocalists collaborating with the guitarist in addition to her signature instrumental stylings. According to Billboard, “Dead Inside” Nita Strauss has become the first woman to reach the Top 10 as a solo artist on the Mainstream Rock Airplay chart in almost 26 years. If the initial offering is any indication of what we can expect from the album, fans should be excited.
