Band will whet your Appetite for Guns N' Roses

“You know where you are? You’re in Pensacola, baby!”

For nearly 25 years, I’ve imagined Axl Rose screaming those words, followed by Slash and the rest of Guns N’ Roses kicking into “Welcome to the Jungle” before a sold-out Pensacola Civic Center crowd.

It hasn’t happened yet, and it probably never will. But that won’t stop Pensacola from rocking out to the next best thing tonight as Appetite For Destruction: The Ultimate Tribute to Guns N’ Roses returns for a free concert at Vinyl Music Hall, 2 Palafox Place.

Having traveled the world since its start in 2001, the group describes itself as “the only full-time touring Guns N’ Roses tribute band.”

I used to think of “tribute bands” as the black sheep of the rock universe, but as Appetite frontman Chad Atkins said, a dedicated band can make up for the misconceptions.

“It can be a real fun thing, but it got so watered down for a few years,” Atkins, also known as “NotQuiteAxl,” said. “There was a tribute for almost every band and a lot of them were really not even that good. They just jumped on the wagon. People go out and they see those bands and they’re like, ‘Oh, that band kind of sucks,’ so they get to thinking that tribute bands in general suck. And that’s not the case at all. There’s a lot of us that really work hard at giving as good a show as we possibly can.”

Atkins promises a true rock show as well as a few surprises for tonight’s crowd.

“I think a lot of people are going to really be shocked,” he said. “We might rejuvenate some old love of it for some people. We’re doing the old classic style of Guns N’ Roses. It might bring some nostalgia back.”

Doors open at 5 p.m. The concert starts at 9 p.m. For details, visit www.vinylmusichall.com.

Favored Sons

Tallahassee rock group Favored Sons returns today to Pensacola and Hopjacks Pizza Kitchen and Taproom, 10 Palafox Place.

“By the end of the night, I’m usually in the crowd,” said vocalist Mitch Patti about the band’s live shows, which mix hard rock and punk originals with covers that include the new jack swing classic “No Diggity” by Blackstreet.

“It’s always a crowd favorite,” Patti said. “It’s the most ridiculous song to watch four white dudes play.”

The group also has local ties through bass player Harlen Lawrence.

“I played in a bunch of rock bands in Pensacola and some cover bands,” said Lawrence, who studied jazz in high school.

The show starts at 9 p.m. For details, visit www.hopjacks.com.

Scream Out Loud

Local post-hardcore group Scream Out Loud headlines the show Tuesday at The Handlebar, 319 N. Tarragona St. Last year, the group signed to Indianola Records for the release of its debut album, “Live It Up.”

Doors open at 8 p.m. for this all-ages show. For details, visit www.facebook.com/handlebarpensacola.