Line-up

Venue

Mid America Center

1 Arena Way, 51501, Council Bluffs, IA, US

www.midamericacenter.com/cc_event_calendar.aspx

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Additional details

Doors open: 18:00

Concert in your area for Rock, Metal, and Indie & Alt.

Find out more about Rock and Metal.

Breaking Benjamin biography

The American metal rock band, Breaking Benjamin formed back in 1998, and after a short hiatus in 2010, later reformed. The band is fronted by vocalist and lead guitarist Benjamin Burnley, and since their reformation, are seeing continued success.

Breaking Benjamin currently consists of Benjamin Burnley on guitar and lead vocals, Shaun Foist as the drummer, Keith Wallen on guitar and backing vocals, Jasen Rauch as the lead guitarist, and Aaron Bruch on bass and backing vocals. Although the line up of the band has altered considerably over the years, the refreshing alterations of band members appears to have, if anything, strengthened the sound and dynamics of the band. After the band entered their hiatus in 2010, Mark Klepaski and Aaron Fink were dismissed from the band, parting under sour circumstances.

With their earlier albums such as "We Are Not Alone" ranking so high on the charts and producing the single "So Cold" which reached number 2, apprehensions surrounded the idea of rekindling the band, in fear that their talent and drive may have dwindled. Since they reformed however, their career is looking fresh and exciting. With four previous studio albums under their belt, the alternative metal band have an exciting back catalogue to play from, that every single member knows inside out, regardless of their length of time in the band. Anticipation for new material is high, and the talented musicians are sure to create some exciting new material.

Chevelle biography

Chevelle are an alternative metal band from Grayslake, Illinois, US, currently signed to Epic Records, having formed in 1995, selling over four million albums in their long career.

Originally composed of three brothers, Pete Loeffer (lead vicars and guitar), Sam Loeffer (drums and percussion) and Joe Loeffer (bass and backing vocals), Chevelle have had a successful career creating radio-friendly metal heavily indebted to Tool's melodic vocals and Helmet's aggressive, driven riffs. They have sold over four million albums in the United States, achieving moderate chart success.

In 1999, Chevelle released their Steve Albini produced debut album "Point #1," receiving moderate reviews, including a Dove Award for 'Best Hard Music Album.' Following several high-profile support slots on tours with Sevendust, Machine Head and Filter, Chevelle grew in popularity, eventually signing to Epic Records to release their second album, "Wonder What's Next" in 2002. The album was a commercial success, with the single "The Red" reaching number three on the Mainstream Rock Charts, with the album peaking at number 14 on the Billboard Charts.

Their third album, "This Type of Thinking" (2004) achieved more commercial success, reaching number eight on the Bilboard Charts. However, following this release, Joe Loeffer left the band, a split was not entirely amicable, with Dean Bernardini becoming their full-time replacement bassist.

Chevelle have embarked on many high profile tours, supporting Nickleback on an arena tour as well as main stage slots on Ozzfest's bill. Their success continued through a further four albums, all achieving moderate commercial success. 2007's "Vena Sera" debuted at number 12 on the Billboard Charts, selling 62,000 copies within its first week of release. For their sixth album, "Hats of the Bull" (2011) they attempted to incorporate new sounds and ideas, gaining praise as being a positive progression, debuting at number 20 on the Billboard charts.

Having signed with a supposedly Christian rock label, Squint Entertainment, the band created controversy due to their appearance at the Ozzfest tours, playing alongside bands such as Cradle of Filth, who were known to have satanic themes in their music. Chevelle did not denounce their faith but they insisted their music was not an avenue for the expression of it, instead it was a purely musical pursuit and not a "pedestal for preaching."

Live reviews

They may not personally tour here due to singer Benjamin Burley’s profound fear of flying, but the U.K might be the best place to see the kind of bands that Breaking Benjamin inspired and were inspired by. Their brand of Nu-Metal inflected post grunge has a very real and devoted following over hear, enough to make those kind of bands make the trip over the Atlantic pretty frequently and make them love doing so every single time. However, while they have an extensive following it’s nowhere near the size of their following in the states, meaning that the venues they play are significantly smaller than the arenas and amphitheatres they’re used to on their home turf. It would make for the perfect atmosphere for a Breaking Benjamin concert, as out of all of those bands; there might be no finer live act than the Pennsylvania natives. A show of theirs may look like any other polished, arena rock spectacular on the surface but as with anything, scratch the surface and you get something much more interesting. Recent shows have seen not just raucous airings of classics like Evil Angel, The Diary of Jane and Dance with the Devil but also a powerful cover of Aerosmith’s Dream On whilst a video of dearly departed Rock stars plays behind them. It’s surprisingly emotional stuff but surprising is the key word here, Breaking Benjamin have a lot more to offer than the average early 2000’s rock band, even as they surged past their 15th year as a band last year, and the best way of realizing just how much they’ve got to give? Grab a ticket to see them live as soon as possible.

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william-howard-2

It’s an unspoken rule among power trios to sound bigger than every other band in existence. From Rush, to Muse, from Motorhead through to Biffy Clyro it’s almost a pressure on them to make up for their lack of members by sounding monstrously huge in every other respect. A lot of the time this means that when playing live their sound has to be bolstered by a couple of other musicians. Understandably so of course, in Muse’s case it’s very impressive that they have just the one, but in the case of Grayslake Illinois natives Chevelle, three is all they need to rock with the intensity of a natural disaster with none of the devastation afterwards.
Fronted by the Loeffler brothers Pete and Sam on guitar and drums respectively, Chevelle do a fine job of bringing their undeniable heaviness to the forefront of their live shows. However, what puts them above and beyond their post-grunge peers is how well they incorporate their subtler, alternative rock and post-hardcore influences into their bludgeoning alt.metal. While they might bring the righteous mosh with them wherever they go, their music is by no means stupid, giving their audiences something for the head as well as the heart. Chevelle may not be as revered over on this side of the pond as the power trios listed above, but they do deserve to be, so next time they’re over take a chance on them. You will not regret it!

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william-howard-2

A for effort, anyway. They donned costumes and had a couple of LCD screens with spacey stuff going during the show.

However, the singing was really off, choreography seemed unpracticed, they didn't seem to look at the crowd when singing (maybe the fault of the lights), and overall it was a weak performance. Like a bad cover band of Starset.

The good news is that their music really is, imo, amazing and they're a new band, so their live shows will only get better and I feel like they have the potential for some truly incredible live performances once they get the experience and the budget to make it happen. Starset is a band to keep and eye on and I hope that I can look back in 5 years to say, "I saw them back when they were a struggling opener for Breaking Benjamin."

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