REVIEW BY DAVID TAYLOR AND PHOTOS BY PAM WHISENHUNT | Go Venue Magazine
Baxter Arena was the place to be on Tuesday, April 23. Breaking Benjamin returned to the venue for the first time in almost eight years. Omaha packed the arena, a well-warmed welcome for the band.
Catch Your Breath from Austin, TX was the bill’s opening band. These guys have been on the upswing, having been on tour with Falling in Reverse & Ice Nine Kills last year and now opening up for these legends. These young guys know how to open up a big rock show. With their breakdowns and catchy lyrical choruses, they are starting to become a fan favorite in the new hard rock/metal scene. They kept the energy up from start to finish and could tell they made some new fans by the end of their set. Check out their recently released album, Shame On Me.
Daughtry was the direct support of the bill. This was my second time covering them, the last time being when they opened up for Nickelback in 2017. Chris Daughtry continues to sound (and look) incredible. The man is probably in the best shape in his life. The band sounded better than ever, playing older material as well as newer material, including “Artificial”, their first single to reach the number-one spot on the Mainstream Rock chart. They even threw in some covers in the mix including Journey’s “Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)”, a solo acoustic rendition of Deftones’ “Change (In the House of Flies)” and even busted some “Kashmir” by Led Zeppelin during the middle of “Crashed”. But the highlight of their set was Chris inviting his 13-year-old son, Noah, onstage to play the keyboard on “It’s Not Over”. Incredible moment to share between father and son. Be on the lookout for a new album from Daughtry coming soon, as they are currently working on it.
Finally, it was time for Breaking Benjamin to return to the Baxter Arena stage. For nine years straight, Breaking Benjamin has been running at full force, with their full might of musicianship. They are truly one of the best live bands to tour the planet. And tonight was another one of those incredible performances by them. It might be recency bias, but Ben Burnley sounded the best I ever heard him sing. They did something I’ve never seen a band do, and that is stop a performance to throw out free merchandise to the crowd, including at least one t-shirt cannon. This was all set to a recording of “The Power of Love” by Huey Lewis and the News. How can you not have a fun time while merch is flying out in every direction while Huey Lewis plays? Burnley sounded so grateful to continue performing these songs on stage, very appreciative of the crowd that night. They ended their set with their signature song, “The Diary of Jane”, with the whole crowd singing along. I’m hoping we get to hear their seventh studio album sooner rather than later because just watching them live for the seventh time made me more excited about some new material. I couldn’t ask for a better Tuesday night in Omaha.
Breaking Benjamin
Daughtry
Catch Your Breath
All images © Pam Whisenhunt
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