It’s safe to say that Between The Buried And Me takes you on a journey at their shows. The progressive metal gods arrived at Club Infinity in Buffalo, NY on Wednesday bringing an atmospheric theme to the already celestial name of the venue. The band stopped in Buffalo on an off date from their current tour with Coheed and Cambria. Buffalonians were ecstatic for Between The Buried And Me’s return to Buffalo and it definitely showed. The crowd moshed, screamed, and sang their hearts out to every song that was played- giving Between The Buried And Me even more energy on stage.
While the band’s main focus was on their outer space themed EP The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues and the continuation of that theme on their album The Parallax II: Future Sequence, they pleased fans with some older tracks. “All Bodies” and “Selkies: The Endless Obsession” from 2005’s Alaska accompanied “Mordecai” from The Silent Circus to excite veteran fans. The band opened up with “Astral Body” to an obvious positive response from their audience.
While the live music was phenomenal with the band’s fusion of jazz and progressive metal, the lighting contributed to their performance even more. Throughout their set, a black backdrop was illuminated with different colored pulsing lights and patterns which made the show a whole new experience. Triangles, spirals, and falling “stars” were only some of the patterns showcased during the performance.
Front man Tommy Giles Roger and company received a roaring chant for one more song and came back on stage by kicking into “Telos” from The Parallax II.
Between The Buried And Me is a unique band in the age of predictable breakdowns and guitar riffs. They’ve been a force to be reckoned with for six albums now and honestly, they’re willing to work even harder with each new release to keep their fans guessing. Seeing them is well worth the money.
Opening for Between The Buried And Me were local Buffalo bands Idle Satellites (who also kept the astral theme alive), and The Donner Party. While it was one of The Donner Party’s last shows, they gave one of their best performances and newcomers Idle Satellites have a promising future in the Buffalo music scene. Plus, the drummer and one of the guitarists are also in The Donner Party. That’s pretty metal playing two sets in a row if you ask me.
– Felicia Hunt
