Show Review: Breaking Benjamin w/Starset, Unplugged

February 5, 2016, proved to be a seasonably chilly night in Cleveland, Ohio. With wind gusts that went right through the clothes of those unfortunate enough to be outside, the lake effect weather patterns showed absolutely no concern for the line of fans that snaked around the building that the House of Blues calls home. Black hoodies emblazoned with the familiar logo made of four B’s provided coverage for many of the folks lined up to see Starset and Breaking Benjamin. As I walked up to enter the venue to obtain my press pass for the night’s performances, I felt a little bad for those left outside; however, I knew that within the matter of an hour, the cold would be long forgotten and the chill replaced with heat scorching off of the stage from both Starset and Breaking Benjamin. And, as it turned out, I was not wrong in my assumption.

I was not sure what to expect from either band acoustically, as I have been a big (okay, okay – massive) fan of Breaking Benjamin for over 14 years and had never experienced an acoustic show before, and I find myself on the newer (but no less deep) side of my fandom of Starset and had yet to see them perform at all. As I snaked down the stairs with the rest of the crowd, I was sucked immediately into the energy and anticipation of what was to come; it was hard not to be. I pulled up into my usual spot – as close to the stage as possible – and watched as fans of all ages packed the House of Blues for what was sure to be an amazing night of music. And, we were not disappointed!

On a stage lit only by a few battery-operated candles, Starset took control at exactly 8 p.m.. Colored lights soon kicked on, and the stage was washed in shades of blue and purple. Kicking off their set, the Columbus-based band – led by Dustin Bates on vocals, Brock Richards on guitar and backing vocals, Ron DeChant on bass and backup vocals, and Adam Gilbert on drums – played the majority of their 2014 release, Transmissions, in a manner not driven by pulsing beats of electronics, but one led by subdued instrumentals and a, dare I say, softer vocal styling than on their recordings. Coming into the show, I wasn’t sure how acoustic versions of their songs would sound, but man, Starset erased any uncertainty from my mind from the very first note.

Dustin interacted with the crowd throughout their set, joking that the fans prefer it when he screams and drinks on stage, as he took a few gulps from his bottle of cabernet sauvignon. His statement was absolutely true, as the crowd more than willingly went along on a musical journey with him and the rest of the band through their nine-song set. My personal favorites were “Down With the Fallen”, “Carnivore”, and “Halo”, with the strings, softened drums, and a surprise guest beautifully handling cello duties, leading the crowd on a melodic magic carpet ride atop Dustin’s vocal talents.

Paying ultimate tribute to the late, great David Bowie, the band played an amazingly gorgeous rendition of “Major Tom”, which I believe even Bowie himself would have approved of, if not joined in on, given the chance.

Those in the crowd who knew the songs didn’t miss a beat in providing their own lyrical stylings from the floor, and as Bates begged us to “save me if I become my demons,” it was almost as if his final words hung in the air around us. The last note rang out, and the band got ready to depart the stage. I have to admit, as much as I love Breaking Benjamin (and that’s a whole lot), I was not ready for Starset’s set to end; I yearned for the music to continue. The crowd was just getting started. Fortunately, we didn’t need to wait long.

After a few conversations with fans around me and some laughter over shared jokes from the folks who had already met each other earlier in the night at VIP meet and greets, the stage lights went down, and we knew what was coming up before us. The five guys of Breaking Benjamin – Ben Burnley on vocals and lead guitar, Aaron Bruch on bass and backing vocals, Keith Wallen on rhythm guitar and backing vocals, Jasen Rauch on lead guitar, and Shaun Foist on drums – commanded the stage to the welcoming roars and screams of the crowd.

Though a bit heavier on the drums than I anticipated (Shaun played his full kit, which is not usually expected for an acoustic show; in the end, it was a touch I appreciated as a fan of his), the band proved that they do not need electronics to provide an amazingly strong and cohesive instrumental backdrop for the powerhouse vocals of Ben Burnley. But, he was not alone in fronting the stage with a mic; Ben allowed the others in the group to showcase their vocal strengths, with Keith and Aaron taking over vocals on a few songs a piece, including covers of The Police’s “Message in a Bottle” (Keith) and Tool’s “Aenima” (Aaron). I have to say, Keith and Aaron have excellent chops behind the mic; they can belt the songs out with the best of them, and I was really impressed by what I heard! I’d seen them sing solo like that before, but that night there was something more powerful behind both of them that really set their vocal performances apart for me. It was refreshing to see Benjamin hand over the honors to his fellow bandmates, and others in crowd around me seemed to enjoy the sharing of the mic as well. When the fans speak, bands like Breaking Benjamin tend to listen! So, I hope this is something that they continue on future tours.

A highlight of the night for fans of both Starset and Breaking Benjamin came when Dustin Bates joined Ben and the guys on the stage for “Breath,” which, I have to admit, did “take the breath right out of me.” Dustin had made good on his promise to me before the show that he would sing with the band, and it was a moment the fans would not forget. The combination of the blended styles of Ben and Dustin together was a match made in House of Blues Heaven. During “Give Me a Sign,” Ben persuaded the crowd to light the stage with their cell phone flashlights, as he provided a message of hope in being the light in the darkest of times that this world often finds itself in, to be the light in the darkness that we all can overcome. I noticed a few fans (myself not excluded) wiping tears from their eyes at the conclusion of his speech, and that’s not something you normally see at a rock show; the emotional moment was touching from the band that has been through so much to be able to still be standing tall, rocking the world, and humbly appreciative for everything that they have been blessed to do for their fans. I’d seen them do that in concert twice before, but something about that intimate setting really made that moment even more powerful for me, and it appeared I was not alone in that.

Taking us all back to 2002, Breaking Benjamin rocked the crowd through “Polyamorous,” which is always a crowd-pleaser, no matter where the show takes place, as it was the first song many of us ever heard to “Saturate” ourselves in the band’s sound in the first place. The final songs, “Until the End” and, “I Will Not Bow” strengthened their message of willpower and overcoming all obstacles to stand strong in the face of adversity, and when they left the stage without turning on the house lights, we all knew what was coming.

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Perhaps drawn out by the chants of, “One more song! One more song!”, the band came back out and rocked us through their encore, and the closer of many, if not all, of their shows, “Diary of Jane.” Their eighteen-song set was interspersed with a tribute to our past and present military personnel and veterans (“Unkown Soldier”), jokes from Ben and the guys, interactions with the fans, a bit of self-deprecating humor, and a quick personal testimony from Ben about his sobriety, while they played their, apparently regular, game that Aaron jokingly referred to as “How much can Ben make us drink?” As Ben smelled a bottle of Jack Daniels, “sticking his nose right in it,” as he claimed, before passing it around to the others with a huge smile on his face, it was apparent that these five men are more than bandmates or friends – they are brothers in every sense of the word. Their interactions on the stage really serve to resonate the strength in that bond, and I heard a lot of fellow fans in the crowd commenting on how well they work together and how it is apparent they enjoy each other’s company. I was glad that message of kinship wasn’t lost on the crowd, as it certainly wasn’t lost on me.

In all, this was one of the best shows I have ever attended, and I have been to a lot of Breaking Benjamin shows, even meeting them in Cleveland last fall. My only complaint, and this is one of pure selfishness on my part, is that I would have liked to see Breaking Benjamin play more of their originals, or even some more off of their latest, Dark Before Dawn, instead of a few cover songs. I enjoyed the cover songs, and I feel they performed them well; being a music lover and frequent concert-goer, I understand the importance of playing cover songs to pay homage to those bands that have inspired artists. But again, for purely selfish reasons, I would have liked to hear some “Closer to Heaven”, “Had Enough”, or even “Rain”, which I believe would have sounded incredible in the acoustic setting. That being neither here nor there, really, I was blown away by both bands’ performances, and I look forward to catching them together again on the “plugged-in” portion of their tour (after Breaking Benjamin returns to dry land from their first-ever appearance on the Anchors and Axes Cruise, February 20-24, 2016). I feel that with both bands combining their obvious musical talents with a true camaraderie and brotherhood between their respective members both on stage and off (Ben even refers to Starset as their “brothers” as well), these two acts together truly provide an ultimate can’t-miss ticket.

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Starset Set List

Down With the Fallen
Carnivore
Antigravity
Point of No Return
Major Tom
Rise and Fall
Let It Die
Halo
My Demons

Breaking Benjamin Set List

So Cold
Follow
Sooner or Later
Unknown Soldier
Angels Fall
Simple Design
Message in a Bottle, cover – The Police
Ashes of Eden
Blow Me Away
Failure
Breath (feat. Dustin Bates)
Aenima, cover – Tool
Give Me a Sign
Polyamorous
Would?, cover – Alice in Chains
Until The End
I Will Not Bow
Diary of Jane, encore