Through The Thorns Tour Hits Iron City With August Burns Red and We Came As Romans
As an Atlanta concertgoer, I was very excited to venture out to the next major city, Birmingham, to experience Iron City for the first time. The staff at the door were very helpful and equipped to quickly shuffle people in so that we didn’t have to wait in the hot sun for very long. The show started out with a very talented band all the way from Australia called Void of Vision. Even though this was their first US tour they drew quite a crowd! They closed out their set thanking all their fans and supporters who came to support their first US tour. With a fast set change, Hollow Front came out and continued to build momentum with a high-intensity set!
The crowd really began to fill the venue and the pit had fully taken its place in the center back of the lower level! At this point, it was really clear the production value of the venue was in full swing! As Hollow Front’s set progressed, the lighting was taking on a performance of its own, painting the stage perfectly with each instrument’s guidance.
As their set concluded, the stage was set for the next act of the night! Once the changeover was complete, the lights went dark and with a flicker of light, We Came as Romans appeared from the dark to greet the crowd. And with the voice of Dave Stephens chanting the opening lines of their first song we knew it was on!
An electrifying set of melody and incredible vocal talent ensued! Though the bar was set very high by the prior acts, the energy from WCAR was on another level and it was clear they knew it. They fed off the crowd so well and returned the favor by leaving everything on stage! At one point, Dave hopped off the stage and stood on the crowded wall in an epic attempt to join the crowd for a singalong together! At this point, we saw our first crowd surfer and the security did a great job tracking and getting them safely back to their feet! Honorable mentions for bassist Andy Glass’s interactive charisma and drummer David Puckett’s exceptional drumming! Through the band’s tragic loss of a member, it was clear they continue to fight to honor his memory. Kyle Pavone was honored and it was heartfelt as they spoke of someone they not only respected and loved but dearly miss.
Now the stage was set. We were given a display of talent and performance that was plenty enough to send us home happy. But lucky for us we were in for one more, very welcomed treat, August Burns Red! The American metalcore band, straight outta Lancaster Pennsylvania, needed no intro!
Out of nowhere the opening to the original Chop Suey started to play and the band filled the stage without much delay. They immediately picked up the song with their rendition and immediately the crowd responded with movement and almost every mouth chanting the words alongside the frontman Jake Luhrs and bassist Dustin Davidson! It was time to buckle in and get ready for the nonstop onslaught of one of the most talented groups of musicians around! With some of the fastest hands in the game, Matt Greiner drove the band with a fierce drum rhythm and punched you right in the ears with incredible footwork! JB and Brent floated around the stage giving the crowd a performance that matched the skills of their stellar guitar sounds!
One of my favorite parts was the string trio’s ability to trade instruments between songs and play without notice that anything had really changed! The talent these men possess is unreal! By the second song, Jake called for more action from the crowd and jokingly remarked there could be more crowd surfers since some of the security staff were “built like a house!” The staff responded with their arms swinging calling out to the crowd, “bring it on!” And the crowd did not disappoint! Everything was in full swing, the crowd was not holding back, ABR continued to bring on a set that pulled no punches, and they even lined up a wall of death later in their set! As their time came to a close, we had just witnessed a masterpiece performance, but the crowd wanted more! “One more song” chants broke out and at the right moment, ABR returned for an encore that was the conclusion of an amazing night with incredible talent and a lineup of bands that melded well together!
Final thoughts. Iron City is a great venue and example of what we need more of in our concert experience. Each of the bands is must see if you have the chance at a venue near you. And lastly, if you are not sure where to park the first time you go to a venue, ask a police officer, trust me!
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