Between The Buried and Me [Show Review]

This was my first time seeing Between the Buried and Me (BTBAM) live. I had the album Alaska, so I already knew that the show was going to melt my face off but I wasn’t prepared to be so... well... enthralled with the entire set. BTBAM is a progressive metal band. Why the fuck they keep getting that metalcore label is beyond me. To me... metalcore means midlevel musicians who focus on guitar-less breakdowns so that kids can become air fighting ninjas for 45 mins. Metalcore bands lack sustainability and are not impressive; they simply just exist. BTBAM is more akin to bands like Dream Theater and Pink Floyd. They are the band that MUSICIANS go to check out. They are masters of their instruments and compose music that will be just as fucking mind blowing in 20 years as it is now.

So I watch from stage side left as they open with "Mirrors" the first track from their 2009 album ‘The Great Misdirect’. I think I screamed just as loud as the crowd. This song is so very... Pink Floydish and utterly fantastic! The crowd goes apeshit as they work their way into "Obfuscation". The set continues with a mix of older and newer songs. Pausing only to say a few words to the crowd but giving them everything they are begging for. Tommy Rogers' voice is so pure and brutal. He’s a fantastic front man; even when he’s in the back banging on the keys. My favorite part of the night was watching Dan Briggs, the bass player ,rock out. That dude can fucking play. God, how I love bass players who finger pick. It just looks more raw and the sound seems more authentic.

Between the Buried and Me; they are that band that other bands talk about. I, like many metal heads, assumed they were metalcore because of their name and the types of bands they frequently toured with. Sucks when you figure out just how wrong your assumptions can be. Fucking embarrassing too. I consider myself a very knowledgeable music lover. As a chick into metal, I am often called out to prove my metal prowess. I am happy that I can now go forth and school others on the mind pleasing music that comes from this band. The Stop I saw them at was half way through their tour, so you still have a chance to catch one of the best bands I've seen live.

Be sure to go to www.metalblade.com/btbam for more info and tour dates and to hear the bad ass new album, 'The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues'

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Tags:  Between the Buried and Me, BTBAM, Metal Blade Records, show review, brandy jarrett

Brandy Jarrett    December 01, 2011