Lighthouse may sound slightly less "Americana" than Tenderness, but it’s still brimming with that same emotional honesty. Duff's songs blend the universal with the personal, and his easy, unpretentious demeanor made the Trianon feel more like a living room than a theater. He chatted casually with the crowd, cracking jokes with fans up front like an old friend—a punk rocker at heart, charismatic and down to earth.
But of course the man isn't alone, and his band is a cracking unit: with Mike Squires on bass, Jeff Fielder on both guitar and keys, Tim DiJulio on guitar, and Michael Musburger on drums, they knew just when to let the tunes breathe and when to blow the roof off. The setlist was killer, too—just one Guns N’ Roses song (like his GN'R bandmate Slash), a few covers that were a little predictable but still fun, and a bulk of tracks from Lighthouse and Tenderness.
The turnout wasn’t massive, but what the crowd lacked in size, it more than made up for in energy. The diehard fans that filled the room were fervent, feeding off Duff’s every word and note. As the night went on, it was clear—whether in a stadium or an intimate Parisian theater, McKagan remains the coolest motherfucker in the room.
