Concert Review: August Burns Red (Live at the Regency Ballroom) 3-21-2016

August Burns Red Live: A Fan's Review

[Jake Luhrs, lead singer of August Burns Red in San Francisco, CA]

When I discovered that August Burns Red, one of my all-time favorite bands, was playing a show in San Francisco during my brief stay there, it was a coincidence I could not deny - and there I was happily bound.

     August Burns Red - with their blend of intricate technicality, progressive melody and punishing heaviness- create music so unique the untrained ear struggles to pin them into one genre. Something tells me that this is all part of the plan. In the past decade, their music has evolved from a sound lost in the mass of early 2000’s metalcore to a polished brutality that leaves swarms of fans stuck somewhere between banging their heads and ballroom dancing. When it comes to performing live, even the untrained listener cannot deny the spectacle that is August Burns Red in concert. I found them on tour with Between the Buried and Me at the Regency Ballroom in San Francisco, California, and I was not disappointed. In fact, I was satisfied beyond belief.

     Lead singer Jake Luhrs patrols the stage with an electrifying personality: a stage presence that blends the explosive intensity of a child on Christmas morning with the refined passion of a preacher at the pulpit. Fans truly react to this no-holds barred attitude: Luhrs does what he wishes, as he wishes, and is truly himself on stage. One of the most memorable aspects of his performance is always his unique choice of a corded microphone- which is used to its full potential. He whips his toy in gigantic, controlled circles feet in diameter, catching it just in time to make his next lyric without skipping a beat. This continuous catch and release is truly a stage spectacle, and I myself found my head following the microphone in its revolutions, mouth agape. Luhrs is so well trained at his feat that he knows just how far to move the stage guard before he begins. If this isn’t his favorite stage pastime, it is defiantly dancing.

     

     Jake’s acrobatics are only complimented and surpassed by the energy of his bandmates. Bearded bassist Dustin Davidson and barefoot lead guitarist JB Brubaker make their way around the stage during the show, each occasionally stepping onto one of three risers to deliver backing lyrics or their personal dosage of guitar madness (at one point, Davidson jumps from riser to riser to riser, covering the stage in three large bounds- all while playing.) Both are extremely talented musicians. Davidson and Brubaker have a sixth sense of who moves where and when - evidence of their near decade of collaboration together in ABR. For “Everlasting Ending,” a song written by Davidson, the two switch instruments, swapping bass for guitar, each handling the others with a dexterity that matches their own. That’s musicianship.

[Dustin Davidson gets down in San Francisco]

     
     Unlike many contemporary bands who rely on their live staples to get the crowd involved, ABR has a noticeable passion for their new music. During this show, they played five songs from their latest album “Found in Far Away Places,” including the Grammy-nominated “Identity.” FIFAP was a true resurrection of heaviness for the band. This is much thanks to guitarist Brent Rambler and drummer Matt Greiner, whose steady tempos drive the crushing breakdowns that the pit enjoys so much. As much as ABR’s music has become synonymous with JB’s sonic melodies, the head banging department is solely owned and operated by Rambler’s calculated chugging. He remains relatively silent throughout the show, but his contribution is all but unnoticed. Brent shreds effortlessly song after song, making sure that those in the crowd with their horns in the air have something to bang their heads to. Matt Greiner, one of the most accomplished drummers in the modern metal scene, is the band’s unspoken hero. I was disappointed that the lighting and my position in the crowd put Greiner in shadows for the duration of the show - he truly deserves a spotlight. Fortunately, he gets one towards the end: laying down an impressively long drum solo that runs the gamut from groovy jazz tapping to blistering blast beats. This versatility pervades ABR’s music- a ship which goes from traveling at breakneck speeds to lolling upon the waves at a second’s notice- with Greiner standing (or sitting for that matter) steadfast at the helm.

[Matt Greiner performs his drum solo]

     
     The versatility of this band is undeniable. In a second you may hear the group playing sections of music so melodious you could find them at a wedding or bar mitzvah, then rapidly switching to crowd-chanting choruses that unite the venue in song. At the end of the day, it’s energy. Energy. ABR brings energy to the stage at an unmatched level. It does not stop until the final song is over. They close out their night in San Francisco with fan (and my personal) favorite, “White Washed,” a song I have seen them open with several times. In my own personal experience, I have seen them use the same song to rip onto stage and close in memorable fashion. That’s musicianship.

[ABR in action]

   
      I was fortunate (or perhaps, just desperate) enough to meet up with Rambler, Luhrs, and Brubaker after the show near the tour bus where I waited patiently. I had the opportunity to speak at length with Brubaker and was able to delve into one of the minds behind the music I enjoy so much. We discussed what it meant to the band to be nominated for a Grammy award and why the nomination itself was perhaps more important than the win. “We were on tour in Kansas when my wife called me and told me were nominated. I called my mom, she was crying,” laughs Brubaker, “We basically found out the same way all of our fans did.” As far as the award ceremony itself goes, I gained the impression that it was somewhat of a whirlwind for five regular guys from Pennsylvania. “The Academy is a hard thing to parse through, especially for first time goers,” Brubaker said. I commented on the fact that they arrived there in style (driven by LAFD in a county firetruck) and asked about the award ceremony as a whole. “It was unbelievable to be there. It was an honor,” he noted, “but at the same time it is strange to have to pretend someone you’re not for hours on end…the suit and tie, you know?” And the closed-toed shoes, right JB?

     I was fortunate enough to meet Jake Luhrs as well and explain to him how important the music of his band is to me personally. Specifically, I mentioned the song “Beauty in Tragedy.” In early 2014, I lost my uncle (and namesake) Andrew Janz to pancreatic cancer. My father and his brother had been very close in their upbringing but had been feuding for decades, including my entire life, leading up to the decline of his health. In the final five or six months he was alive, my father stood by his brother’s side and helped him with everything from transportation to the hospital, to in-home care, to the eventual funeral arrangements. In my reality, which was very much removed from the pallor of mortality, his death was a strange and truly ethereal experience. A relative of mine was now gone, sure. But this was much different. I am named after this person, and in a way, I am this person incarnate. The only other Andrew Janz in the world has died, and for the first time in my life my own mortality was whispering in my ears. But what was it telling me? Am I meant to live up to this name, to fill these shoes? How is that possible if I have never known this person, but for stories and anecdotes? For a while I saw no direction, felt lost, and had no idea how to deal with this conflict within myself. I struggled mightily with these thoughts and for weeks they were all I could think about when my mind was idle. It was around this time that “Beauty in Tragedy,” and the lyrics written by Luhrs, began to take hold and grow true meaning within my heart. A spoken word section of the song:

“Tomorrow, the air will be a little colder. But I’ll be sure to breathe for the both of us.

And the nights may be a little darker. But I’ll be sure to carry the torch to warm the hearts that never got to feel yours.

I can’t hear your voice, I can’t hear your voice, but that’s okay. Cause I can feel you in my heart.”

     It slowly dawned on to me that there was no need, no pressure on me to fill shoes. I did not have to ‘live up’ to the name I was given and I should feel nothing but protection and admiration from the person who I know is watching me from beyond. The words in this song helped me brew coherency from confusion: I began to think with direction again. In life, the most positive thing I can possibly do is take the love and acceptance I’ve learned from others and pass it on to those closest to me. Carry the torch. Light the way for others who might be wrestling with themselves as well, because you are not alone. Though my uncle may not be here anymore his soul, spirit, and name will live on through my actions every day.

     When I explained this to Jake, he thanked me for sharing my story with him- a story about how the music of August Burns Red has helped me through an extremely difficult and perplexing time of my life. What I didn’t get the chance to say, in our brief conversation, was THANK YOU, Jake. Thank you, and your bandmates, for creating music that is positive and inspiring.

     Thank you all. Rest assured I’ll be seeing you all again soon. Catch me in the front row.

[Jake Luhrs and I on Van Ness Ave. (The Regency Ballroom in the background)]

*all photographs (unless mentioned otherwise) are property of the author and will be treated as such*