While I'm sure few bands would ever admit this, I'm sure a few of them have privately felt some doubt that metalcore, as a genre, had any level of staying power. Sure, screams in rock music have always been present in some form, but when the first bands started to introduce screamed/yelled/howled/shrieked vocals as their main delivery, there was surely those who thought it would be a passing phase. Since the turning of the millennium, however, we've seen the opposite take place. Now, there's more "screamo" than ever, and we've even started to see the mainstream notice with the emo-rap boom and multiple hardcore bands performing at Coachella.
With the genre establishing its staying power, one of the more unbelievable trends that has been developing is that metalcore bands, much like the Baysides and All Time Lows of the world, are approaching--and surpassing--the two-decade mark in their careers. That's the rarified air that Pennsylvania headbangers August Burns Red have entered, and their celebration of 20 years as a band felt like it was not just a landmark in the band's history, but for the genre as a whole.
As the crowd filed into Starland Ballroom on Sunday, they were greeted by an opening act that was far from what you'd expect. Scotland's Bleed From Within have amassed a great following themselves over their 18-year career, but somehow, this was the very first time the band have trekked across the Atlantic Ocean to play a full US tour. For those who were unable to attend a date on this tour, you should be praying to whomever you believe in that it doesn't take another 18 years for them to return. Splitting their set between songs from their two most recent albums (2020's Fracture and Shrine, released last year), Bleed from Within certainly brought the energy you'd hope to see from the first act of a show. Given the band's experience, though, you could have convinced someone that they were the night's headliners. Thanks to what I can only assume to be an unlimited shampoo budget and access to Scotland's finest hairdressers, the band sported some seriously luscious locks, which only made their headbanging feel more intense. This was particularly the case for lead guitarist Craig Gowans, whose constant motion onstage has his hair bounding across the stage alongside him in perfect harmony. Despite the band's introduction being long-overdue, it was clear they'd earned a few more fans by the end of their pulse-pounding set.
The last time the tri-state are saw The Devil Wears Prada on tour, it was a celebration of the band's two-EP Zombie saga, where the band played both EPs front to back. The band was also plugging a few of their stellar singles from Color Decay, the album that would end up becoming one of the band's most well-received efforts of their near-twenty-year career. This time around, Color Decay was given the deluxe edition treatment (officially released last Friday, May 5), and the band showed their emphasis on their career-best effort with setlist that mostly consisted of Decay songs. This time around, "Noise" and "Cancer" were wonderful additions, as the latter was a great palette cleanser before the band made the correct decision to end with "Sacrifice," which is perhaps the best song to see performed live in all of metalcore right now. If you somehow still don't know what I'm talking about, I recorded the end of the song so you can have some idea of what an incredible experience that song is.
If that doesn't put TDWP on the top of your band bucket list for the next time they're around, I don't know what to tell you. Either way, the band continue to operate at the highest level possible, with Mike Hranica and Jeremy DePoyster's vocals seeming to improve with age, while lead guitarist Kyle Sipress and bassist Mason Nagy taking turns thrashing about on their side of the stage, Giuseppe Capolupo remaining an elite drummer at the kit, and Jonathen Gering providing incredible energy from behind his battlestation of keyboards and samplers. It shouldn't be as much of a surprise to me to see TDWP once again put on an otherworldly performance, but I just can't help but be blown away by this band time and time again.
After the night featured two bands with hard-earned longevity providing further evidence of their greatness, it was clear very early on in August Burns Red's set that the best was yet to come. Sporting stage drapery that featured photographs taken throughout the band's 20 years of metal madness, ABR took the crowd over by force, and an unrelenting 90 minutes of chaos ensued.
You certainly don't get this far as a band without something that helps you stand out. In August Burns Red's case the talent of their individual members, in addition to their ability to craft songs that highlight each of their strengths, has always helped them stand out from the rest of metalcore's elite. The moments where you hear cleanly-sung vocals are few and far between, but when you have a guitarist like JB Brubaker, who can churn out a jaw-dropping guitar solo at any point in a song, you're able to captivate listeners in a different way. You may not like screamed vocals, but listening to how pitch-perfect Jake Luhrs has trained his voice for even just a song or two will leave your jaw unhinged, wondering how he did it. Bassist Dustin Davidson is anything but a forgotten bassist, as his backing vocals are every bit as fine-tuned as Luhrs's leads, as he bounds across the stage. Davidson also switch out and played guitar for a few songs throughout the set, showing the versatility of both himself and Brent Rambler, who traded his guitar for a bass when Davidson switched to a six-string. Even Luhrs added to the fun, picking up a bass alongside Davidson for the band's seven-minute epic "Meridian."
While vibes were high as can be throughout the night, there was an unfortunate incident during ABR's set, as a fight seemed to break out towards the end of the set. However, the band's reaction ended up painting a perfect portrait of how they've managed to stay at the top of the scene for so long. As the band kicked into "Laniakea," an instrumental track to which Luhrs did not contribute, they noticed the flashlights of Starland Ballroom's security team flashing, and stopped almost immediately. After a few quiet, uneasy moments, chants of "Ass-hole! Ass-hole!" broke out. This was enough to summon Luhrs back to the stage, and he proceeded to take the mic and, in turn, control of the situation. After asking what was going on and making sure no one was hurt, Luhrs chided the two guilty parties, and provided a memorable reminder as to why those two agitators--and everyone else-- was in attendance. "Outside of these walls," he began, "Is a world full of people and situations that are going to drag you down. In here, we don't have that. This is our night, our show, our community. We have to take care of it." Afterwards, Luhrs commented to the crowd as a whole that the "asshole" chants were also unnecessary, as there could have been a good reason for the conflict. That sent the crowd right back into its familiar frenzy, and from there, the night reached its conclusion without a hitch.
Moments like that are inevitable at any concert. Truthfully, I'm surprised it doesn't happen more often. But in that moment, with the tide of the show potentially shifting violently, August Burns Red was able to right ship, and get everyone back on course. It's not an easy thing to be so composed and level-headed in a situation, and it's something that it takes a 20-year career of making "Angry Music for Happy People," as the band's merch puts it so eloquently. Perhaps I should expect such grace from August Burns Red, whose consistency includes solid production since their 2007 debut Thrill Seeker, and haven't had a member change since 2006. In an ever-evolving emo/metalcore/pop-punk scene, August Burns Red have been a guiding light for two decades now, and with their performances across the country this spring, it's clear that their flame is burning bright as ever.
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