After a dismal drive in the rain to Rowlett, the storm somehow paused for the evening’s show at Que Fest. The night was at times both cool and sticky at Robertson Park. Attendance didn’t look too high when local band Black Tie Dynasty took the stage, but increased as darkness came and Joan Jett would soon appear. More pics and notes from the show after the jump.

Black Tie Dynasty

BTD had officially broken up but according to singer Cory Watson, they are officially back together. He mentioned that to me at the merchandise table after their performance. Their show was rough around the edges as if playing more by memory than from numerous rehearsals, but it was a valiant effort. Some lyrics seemed to have been forgotten, some sound levels were slightly off, but the audience was forgiving. Watson’s swarthy frontman moves slowly came back as they belted out track after track. Loyal BTD fans sang the words to every song, showing the band they hadn’t been forgotten since, um, last January. They played a healthy set of songs from each of their three releases and won over some Jett fans along the way. The applause seemed to grow after each song — or perhaps, it was from more Joan Jett fans showing up giving obligatory applause. Nonetheless, despite their lack of polish, they gave an energetic and worthwhile show.

QueFest Crowd for Joan Jett

By the time Joan Jett was to go on, the crowd had swollen to a packed patch of grass. Even the VIP seats (yes, really) were filled with people who paid $95 to sit in a wet chair to see her. When she ran onstage, the crowd thundered with applause. However, the show never felt like she was giving the love back. Her lack of personality felt like she was phoning in this performance. And perhaps a July 4 fest in a Dallas suburb wasn’t doing much for her esteem, but like I said earlier, the crowd was forgiving and cheered with every tune. Her sound was crisp and her throaty voice was at times hard on the ears, but also loud and clear. Her one-piece black satin pantsuit showed off a killer body and oozed sex appeal even for the G-rated festival.
Joan Jett, QueFest, Rowlett, Texas
It’s hard to estimate the crowd numbers but she did pull them in. The rain was killing the festival the day before according to one volunteer, but Jett proved she does have drawing power. Despite her lesbian appeal, I couldn’t say the LGBT contingent was all that high, or at least visible. And despite the rain, the sound and Jett’s lack of enthusiasm, it would still be fair to say people left that show satisfied. And loving rock ‘n’ roll.