LIVE REVIEW: August Burns Red @ O2 Institute 2, Birmingham
US metalcore stalwarts AUGUST BURNS RED last graced our shores in 2017 to celebrate the ten-year anniversary of sophomore (and critically acclaimed) album Messengers, and the quintet subsequently laid waste to every venue they visited. Unsurprisingly, the announcement earlier this year stating that the band would return in winter – for their first full European headlining tour in five years – sent ticket outlets into overdrive with two of the five UK dates selling out well in advance. We headed down to Birmingham’s O2 Institute 2 to witness the sonic carnage on night one of the UK run.
It takes approximately one retina-scorching strobe alongside frontman Aaron Matts’ deafening bellow of “bang your fucking heads!” to convince this rabid throng that BETRAYING THE MARTYRS call-to-arms brand of deathcore is the very epitome of a pit-starter. Launching headfirst into a blistering salvo of The Resilient and Lost For Words, what follows over the next thirty minutes is a set capable of peeling the enamel from your chattering teeth. Bodies collide into one another amidst a raging sea of neck-snapping breakdowns and pitch-black atmospherics – the latter of which creeps to the forefront during brand-new track Eternal Machine. Combining charisma and caustic verve, Matts stalks the stage spitting out lyrics with vigour and vitriol inciting the hordes; the intertwining of such disparate elements – symphonic-tinged keys courtesy of clean vocalist Victor Guillet and melodic nous alongside machine-gun fire riffing – ensures that tonight’s bill opens up in nihilistic style.
Rating: 8/10
When it comes to balancing the melodic with the monstrously heavy, Floridian metalcore merchants WAGE WAR have the proverbial bases covered. Hitting the stage and mounting the nearest speaker as juggernaut opener The River reverberates around the packed room, Briton Bond’s voice is on fine form as he leads his brethren between pounding metal workouts and soaring choruses. Proving itself to be the perfect juxtaposition of grit and hopeful euphoria, Gravity stands out for its emotionally anthemic style and distantly chugging riffs, while evocative slow-burner Johnny Cash boasts haunting clean refrains and gruff roars – it makes for several hair-raising moments and conjures All Our Gods Have Abandoned Us-era ARCHITECTS during its heavier moments. Displaying an aggression that the band have merely hinted at in the past, Stitch is a delicious spotlight on the five-piece’s brutal side – it’s a legitimate bruiser that incites a frenzied mosh as flailing limbs and flying pints fill even our peripheral vision.
Rating: 8/10
Anyone who made the decision to only turn up for the headliner will find themselves grasping for a viewpoint as the venue has swelled to unfathomable proportions during the final changeover. Crowd bonhomie is cemented via a mass singalong (SYSTEM OF A DOWN’s Chop Suey never sounded so majestic), but the cacophonous din shoots even higher with the appearance of AUGUST BURNS RED. Roaring out of the blocks with the hyperactive shred of King of Sorrow and Composure, the ensuing tsunami of noise is the jump-off for the first of countless pits and so honed is the band’s sense of melodrama that just about every song sounds like it could be a set opener or closer. Focusing largely on material from current and eighth album Phantom Anthem, both The Frost and Dangerous invoke a true sense of occasion; vocalist Jake Luhrs commands the stage – he’s arguably note perfect and, at one point, gesticulating in time to the beat like a gloriously demented mime artist. Fan favourite Empire turns up the pace but it’s the unbridled aural assault of closer White Washed that ends proceedings on an overwhelming high. Simply put, if you’re looking for a band that refuse to adhere to the generic metalcore template, then this is a temple you should be worshipping at. AUGUST BURNS RED are on fire in Birmingham tonight.
Rating: 9/10
Check out our photo gallery of the night’s action in Birmingham from Serena Hill Photography here:
