Without warning. Unexpectedly. Unpredictably. Incredibly. That’s how Between The Buried And Me took the stage that drizzly Wednesday evening. Having shot for BTBAM two times prior and gotten engaged on their stage one of those times, it’s safe to assume I hold the band close to my heart and to a high standard. Their stage production and live performance has been unrivaled in the world of progressive metal, making for an incredible and nearly immaculate experience every time.
Arriving eagerly to the Old National Centre with my fiancé and mom, we make a quick stop to take a photo of the marquee outside and then head right down into the room where the show will take place: The Deluxe. The room is abuzz with chatter and excitement, and as the opening act, The Atlas Moth played their set, the room very quickly began to pack in. The 500-person capacity room was well past half full by the time the lights came back up after the well-played doom metal set.
I wandered and scanned the crowd during intermission, overhearing anticipation and enthusiasm for BTBAM to come up next. No matter what band or type of music, I love a crowd that’s vibrant and alive, ready to compliment a limited band shirt and strike up a conversation with the person next to them, all because in that moment, they are there for the exact same cause. To support and enjoy the music that they love.
Mingling and meandering was cut short for me, as all lights and background music abruptly shut off. I dashed to the stage and quickly whipped my camera out for what I knew in my heart, gut, and mind was going to be an unforgettable show. I had no idea how right my feelings were going to be.
Simultaneously nervous and excited to be shooting in a Live Nation venue again for the first time in two years, I took a stance and prepared myself to shoot along side the two other photographers with me that night. I don’t know what I expected BTBAM to begin their set with, but “Selkies: The Endless Obsession” was definitely not it. The crowd and myself were caught completely off guard in the best of ways. From the moment that its synth began and the audience went insane, my heart was aflutter. My fiancé, who was in the crowd and watching me shoot, said I had the biggest grin on my face while shooting that song.
Continuing on through their set, nobody had any idea what to expect. Starting with “Selkies” made it a free-for-all;anything was possible at that point. After playing a few fan favorites off of the Parallax II: Future Sequence album, they switched gears and played their new rock opera-esque single, “Memory Palace”, off the yet-to-be-released album Coma Ecliptic (coming out July 7th). It was safe to say that the new song and audience intertwined famously, but before they had to chance to give the hit its proper praise, the lights went dim and the projections behind the band changed to familiar graphics of an album yet to be touched on this setlist.
I did say it had the chance to be a free-for-all, didn’t I? The graphics began motion, Blake Richardson kicks in with a drum fill that any long-time fan would’ve recognized in a heartbeat, and I nearly hit the floor in disbelief. It was “Sun Of Nothing”, arguably one of the most powerful songs in the concept story to Colors. The room erupted, probably more so than when they began the show.
And the hits kept on coming when the next song was “Disease, Injury, Madness”, an 11-minute song that was dropped off most setlists long about the time Parallax II came out in 2012. It was such a rare moment, I don’t think anybody knew what do to with themselves other than try to pick their jaws up from off the floor. It was an absolutely unbelievable moment for anyone there and an experience any BTBAM fan will tell their friends for ages to come.
The band exits the stage, but we all know they aren’t done. Screaming, cheering, and chanting takes place for not long at all before they come back out to indulge us with an encore. Lead guitarist, Paul Waggoner, thanked everyone and talked for a while, exclaiming about how much larger the crowd was than they were anticipating, a remark he also made last year when they played here in Indianapolis. Then.. “This one’s called.. ‘White Walls.’”
While “White Walls” has been their go-to encore song for many years, fans will always react like they weren’t expecting it. I know I get butterflies and chills down my spine when they begin the song. People go wild; moshing, screaming, and singing their hearts out to the very last second. When it’s all finally over and the lights go up and people begin to leave, I stand there in that room, feeling the energy that was created by the band and patrons just one last time, and wishing the night didn’t have to end.
Connect with Photographer Devin Barnes:
Connect to Between the Buried and Me:
