Dedicated to the citizens of Mason County, Washington since 1886
Dedicated to the citizens of Mason County, Washington since 1886
Hell's Belles ring in New Year in Shelton
The AC/DC tribute band Hell's Belles performs Dec. 31 at the Little Creek Casino Resort in Shelton. Lead guitarist Adrian Conner is at center.
Growing up in Federal Way in South King County, Adrian Conner first heard AC/DC as a junior high student on a field trip while attending an assembly at her future high school.
When "You Shook Me All Night Long" roared through the speakers, "I immediately had goose bumps - what is this?" she recalled in a telephone interview with the Shelton-Mason County Journal.
These days, she's playing lead guitar licks on that song and other AC/DC classics such as "Highway to Hell," "Thunderstruck" and "Back in Black" as a member of the Seattle-based all-female AC/DC tribute band Hell's Belles. The quintet will ring in the New Year with a concert at 8 p.m. Dec. 31 in the Skookum Event Center at Little Creek Casino Resort in Shelton.
The doors open at 7 p.m. Tickets are $24.50.
Conner started taking guitar lessons at age 13, while she was listening to Madonna. "I didn't know about classic rock because my parents didn't play it," she said. Conner began playing in bands in her late teens.
After hearing AC/DC, she learned their songs by ear and from guitar magazines. Conner joined Hell's Belles as the rhythm guitarist, playing the chords of Malcolm Young. A year later, she moved into the role she truly wanted, Malcolm's younger brother Angus. To capture Angus' frenetic onstage persona, she practiced rolling around on the floor while she played the guitar, executing lead licks on her side and on her back.
Hell's Belles has performed in Singapore, Japan and Jordan, and is playing shows on the East Coast before ending the year in Shelton.
"The fans are fun and they know all the songs and they're ready to have fun and have a good time," Conner said.
Conner lives in San Antonio, where she's also a member of another all-female band, Fea. The punk quartet has released two albums and has toured with Against Me! and Agent Orange.
Conner attended one AC/DC concert, in 2009 in the Tacoma Dome. Why do the AC/DC songs endure?
"It's magical." she said. "It's mysteriously good and universal."
IF YOU GO
WHO: AC/DC tribute band Hell's Belles
WHEN: Dec. 31
WHERE: Skookum Event Center at Little Creek Casino and Resort, Shelton
ADMISSION: $24.50
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