In May, we recognize National Trauma Awareness Month. So, how fitting was it that Detroit metalcore band I Prevail brought their Trauma tour to Portland’s Crystal Ballroom for a little May Day schindig? Touring with I Prevail are rapper Justin Stone, and Atlanta rockers Issues.
Spring sunshine was still gleaming over the heavy curtains covering the windows of the Crytal Ballroom when Justin Stone kicked things off in Portland. The Ohio rapper with the Oregon basketball jersey wasted no time delivering cuts like Midnight and Slow Down. All the while, the Portland crowd swayed and bounced along. A the end of the set, Justin crowd surfed his way from the stage to the back of the room to his merch table where he posed for pictures and met the audience.
When Issues took the stage, the whole vibe shifted. Like the mayor in Nightmare Before Christmas, it’s like everyone’s heads spun around from “happy hip-hop” to full on rage. As the crowd got juiced up, lead singer Tyler Carter saw that some younger fans were getting a little more than they signed up for. Easing things up a bit and guiding them to the front, Tyler helped get a pair of crying young ladies and their parents up to the barricade where they’d be safer for the rest of the set.
I Prevail opened their set with Bow Down from their new album and it sounded just as good live as it does on the recording. Despite having recently experienced some vocal trauma, Brian Burkeiser sounded as fresh and crisp as he always had. It was clear though that he’s still on the mend taking vocal rest on a few of the songs. Usually reserved for the encore, I Prevail played Scars as the second song in the set. All the mosh, all the crowd surfers. In fact the crowd surfers came so fast that the security team was in a panic to get to the pit in time to catch them. I guess I could have warned them? Backing Burkheiser up on clean vocals, Dylan Bowman, the rhythm guitar player really stepped it up.
It’s been well documented that deciding to forge ahead with I Prevail was not necessarily a given for Burkheiser. Having battled back after vocal cord injury, as well as ongoing bouts with depression, Brian told the crowd that he wasn’t sure if he wanted to go on, but that the fans are the reason he decided to continue. The fans in Portland certainly appreciate that you decided to keep on keepin’ on. The Trauma tour is just getting started and will be one of the hottest tickets this summer.
