1983 – One of Rock’s Greatest Years Reborn in the Tuscany Copa Room!

1983 played the Copa Room at the Tuscany Hotel and Casino on Friday, February 27, 2026.

The Tuscany’s Copa Room has become a hot spot for all things rock and roll in the past several months, following the unfortunate closure of Count’s Vamp’d last June. While much of the weekly entertainment consists of local rock acts, national and international acts do occasionally stick their heads in as well. 1983, a hard rock/metal tribute band from Southern California, came to the venue on February 27, bringing their own brand of rock and roll. Their gimmick that sets them apart from other tributes? They purport to only play songs from… you guessed it. 1983.

Me being a fan of all things hard rock and metal, this sounded like an interesting experience. Especially when you consider the wide array of hard rock and metal sounds that were coming out that year. Most of the rock acts that play Tuscany are local groups with a huge local following, but I was curious to see how a tribute act from out of state would fare. Despite facing stiff competition from Slaughter at the Golden Nugget and another event at a neighboring venue, Bonfire, they still managed to attract a decent crowd.

Not long after 10:00 PM, the band took the stage for multiple sets of music. And they showed from the get-go what a diverse assortment of music there was from the year 1983… and then some! Some highlights included tunes like Saxon’s “Power and the Glory,” Y&T’s “Mean Streak,” Metallica’s “The Four Horsemen,” Dio’s “Holy Diver” and “Rainbow in the Dark,” Twisted Sister’s “You Can’t Stop Rock and Roll,” and Krokus’ “Eat the Rich,” with the band often shouting out to the audience to see if they knew what bands recorded which songs. One of the biggest surprises was the band giving the hard rock/metal treatment to songs from the era decidedly NOT a part of the rock/metal genre, including tunes by Duran Duran, Bryan Adams, Talking Heads, and even the Gap Band! The even more amazing thing? They were all GOOD.

This was a high energy show with a ton of on-stage chemistry, crowd interaction, and an all-around damn good time. I, like so many others, have been devastated by the closure of Vamp’d, but this is the closest I’ve felt to reliving those days. I love the bands the Copa Room attracts, but this is the first time in a long time I’ve been out of my seat, rocking out the whole time I was there. In fact, I’ll come right out and say it. This was my favorite show of 2026 so far. I don’t remember the last time any band has had me rocking out, smile on my face, and horns in the air like this one. If these guys return to the Copa Room, I’ll be first in line to see them!

I have only two minor criticisms of an otherwise excellent night.

One: The band’s gimmick is that they play songs from the year 1983. However, this wasn’t always the case. In fact, the set kicked off with the title cut from Black Sabbath’s 1981 Ronnie James Dio-fronted album, MOB RULES. They did give a brief disclaimer that what they played was “1983-adjacent” with some slight deviations (though I won’t deny that the version of Golden Earring’s “Twilight Zone” from that band’s 1982 CUT album kicked ass; glad to hear a band play a Golden Earring song that isn’t “Radar Love!”) I personally would stick to the gimmick, since it presents an interesting challenge. Deviations aren’t needed. In fact, in 1983, Black Sabbath’s singer was Ian Gillan (of Deep Purple fame), and they put out an underrated kick-ass album called BORN AGAIN. How about visiting that one next time? It came out in 1983, after all. Hint, hint!

Two: The band’s show was split into multiple sets. And by multiple, I mean more than two. Shows at the Tuscany start too late to be doing multiple sets. By the time the second set (again, not the last one) ended, it was already midnight! To quote what I told one of the employees at the venue, “KISS likes to rock and roll all night. I like to rock and roll until about 11:00 PM.” One long set of about 90-100 minutes works best (though this is more a criticism of the late start/ending times than anything about this specific band).

1983 is a killer tribute band, and it’s been a long time since any band had me out of my seat rocking out, like was the case at Vamp’d for so many years. These guys deliver the expected goods and some unexpected delights along the way. The next time they set foot in the Copa Room, I’m not planning on missing it. Thanks as always to Mike, Brian, Grayson, Mitch, and everyone at the Tuscany for keeping rock and roll alive in Vegas. And don’t miss 1983 the next time they roll into the City of Sin!

PHOTO CREDIT: Live photos by Dave Childers for ZRockR Magazine – © 2026 – All Rights Reserved.