Las Vegas Mixtape v34: Poolside With Train, New Chinatown Gem, and Boardwalk to Paradise

Track #1: Train @M Resort Spa Casino

Train frontman Pat Monahan easily hits those high notes onstage. (Image: courtesy of The M Resort)

The pool at the M Resort is a massive 100,000 square foot venue, and American rock band Train impressively packed it out on a recent Saturday night. The group tossed beach balls into the crowd, and some folks watched the show while wading in water. Welcome, then,  to another “pool season” in Vegas.

A poolside concert is the perfect setting for a feel-good band like Train who came fully loaded with sing-along breezy, melodic rock hits like the hope-fueled show opener “Calling All Angels” (2003) and the lyrically freewheeling closer “Drops of Jupiter” (2001).

Train’s devotees came out in full force. (Image: courtesy of Jerry Watson)

Frontman Pat Monahan is the sole original member of Grammy-winning, multi-million selling San Francisco-originated band. He has a voice that impeccably soars, not to mention a full head of hair (check, check), plus a star guitarist, Taylor Locke, whose runs provide plenty of muscle and sizzle.

Train were confident enough to weave many cover songs into their set, including the Eagles’ “Hotel California” and Led Zeppelin’s “Going To California,” at the risk of overshadowing their own material. (They even released a Zeppelin tribute album, “Train Does Led Zeppelin II,” in 2016.)

It doesn’t seem to bother Monahan that Train has never been invited to the “cool kids club.” They’re comfortable in their own skin. Like, say, REO Speedwagon, this is a band whose aim is to fully please their adoring audience and not outwardly seek endorsements from the music intelligentsia.