I was late to Underoath but it was one of my favorite sets in years...
I worked a decent amount at the day job but by the time I got home, it was like the wind got taken out of me. I had planned on getting to The Fillmore Detroit early enough to catch Stray From The Path as I am a fan. I at the very least wanted to get there to see Bad Omens as their new material is really something I think everyone should check out. Instead of coming home, knocking out a few pre-show things, you know a shower, camera bag check, smoke an absolute shit ton of weed, maybe slam a beer or make a mixed drink, maybe throw-up from the anxiety who knows. I came home and took a fucking nap like an old man that I am slowly becoming.
I walked past Mom’s Spaghetti and thought “I’m getting you tomorrow when I’m back here for my 2nd show in a row at the Fillmore.” Now I was let through GA and was treated just fine. The next night with Mom’s Spag on my mind, I would get treated a lot differently at the VIP entrance. Wild times we’re living in. I know people have an issue with the media, but I’m a fucking music photographer and writer. Like, I’m not breaking news here. I’m getting higher than Mt Everest on legal cannabis and documenting some of the best bands in the world and I’m doing it my way. It’s been a blast. So I was under the impression that we were done with masks completely but I guess not. I thought this because the venues dropped needing to see vaccination cards and negative tests for the unvaxxed. Nothing was told to me about wearing a mask in the photo pit. I walked by several security guards and stood in the pit for like 5 minutes before someone came and said anything to me about it. They were cool with it since I had one. But yeah, there’s a miscommunication there.
Underoath has been taking chances this entire time. They were trying to submerge themselves in a world that was completely secular until all of a sudden these really grimey heavy raw bands started coming out of the Christian Hardcore scene. They started sounding more like Metallic Hardcore in the late 90s and all of a sudden these dudes who are my age were popping up on fliers for tours in clubs throughout Detroit. The first time I saw them was with Zao and Unearth and this is one of the most memorable shows of my life. During Unearth it seemed like every guy 300lbs and up got down to their underwear and took over the pit. How truly fucking sweaty. How truly fucking Detroit. Scantless. Yeah I spelled that right.
Amidst this is a bunch of weird Christian kids and for whatever reason, I gravitated immediately towards Aaron. I was a drummer in a band and I loved songwriting but was never the guy the bands I was in looked to for that shit. I could give them ideas and they would run with it. This gave way to me finding production and doing dozen-plus side projects and aliases as a producer and DJ. So imagine a few blocks over in a basement that just recently had a video showing the venue above almost caving in, that’s where I cut my teeth. That’s where the lyrics to “When The Sun Sleeps” and “Alone In December” first were on my teeth, ha. I think The Underwater and Dead Poetic were the other bands on that tour. Pretty sure it was the Solid State Tour. I saw them again later that year at the same venue but that show is a massive blur. Throwdown… Eighteen Visions… and Terror. Yeah, dude. What the fuck were they doing on this bill? lol.
The venue is jammed and I feel pretty old I’m not gonna lie but I also feel very comfortable. A single LED masked human comes to the front of the stage and an ominous text-to-speech voice comes through the PA. Then the lights went out and the band came out to rip through the first song… “Damn Excuses” is the opener for the new record Voyeurist. Unbelievable energy right out the gate and well, Chris is already losing his shit behind the electronics. Grant has almost slammed his bass into my face like 3 times and James is going off. On this one side of the stage, I have these three guys just slaying. This band is one that gets me to stop and enjoy it with my own eyes and not through the viewfinder or the screen of a camera or phone.
By the time I get to shoot the other side of the stage and a little in the middle, they’re about ready to start with the next song. The photo pit has a lot of photographers in it, and I’m glad so many have gotten access but there’s a lot. Like, a little too many maybe? I dunno. I’m just here to do my thing and not get in anyone’s way or be shitty to anyone. I try to duck and go around without even touching people. I try to be mindful of everything going on behind me by using the reflection off the screen of my camera. I have earplugs in not only to protect my hearing but to also be able to really hear what’s going on around me. I just try to be decent and professional. That’s all I can do.
The next tune up is also an album starter. This being “Breathing In A New Mentality” off of 2008’s Lost In The Sound Of Separation. This of course was the era that led to Aaron leaving Underoath for 5 years and the band to go on and record Disambiguation the only record of Underoath’s entire career to not have AG on there. Wild.
I’m not going to lie, I was expecting another first song from a different album to be the third track of the set but instead, it was “On My Teeth” which I still to this day think should’ve been the album opener for Erase Me. It fucking hits so hard. I am screaming while shooting and dodging photographers and crowd surfers, security pushing me out of the way, and a dude screaming about too many photographers while being 6’5 in the front row. Tsk tsk. As the song would end, all the lights would go out. I turned around and grabbed my gear and bolted out of the photo pit and directly upstairs to the mezzanine to get a few crowd shots but skipped the upper balcony deck. I sat in the corner and enjoyed the rest of the set which included the next song being off the fan-favorite They’re Only Chasing Safety followed by the first song off of Define the Great Line “In Regards to Myself” which woke me the fuck up. I am so proud of this band. They’ve gotten to a point where their discography is so deep that they can have a headline set that only has 3 songs off their biggest record. If they would’ve played a song off of Disambiguation I probably would’ve shit myself. They’re just so mature and they’ve perfected their sound and style that they can play music from all their different records with THIS lineup and still slap the crowd with the best Underoath performance I’ve at least ever seen. They nailed it. Thank you. It’s been a very long 20+ years and I’m stoked to have been there to experience it but also document it. No Mom’s Spaghetti! Still! FFS, Chris, get your shit together. There is no doubt this is only the first leg of this album cycle. I can only expect them to be back at least one more time in the next year or two. If you missed it, I’m sorry. And if you’re wondering why I am just now mentioning Spiritbox it’s because they tested positive for Covid the night before and we didn’t get to have them here. They will be in Grand Rapids playing the Upheaval Festival After Show and that’s their only headliner for 2022 in the US. So we got screwed double. We can make the drive but we will see what happens with Upheaval in the future. Maybe we end up there! Regardless what a massive bummer that I know we’re all just happy the band and crew are all doing well!
Here are the Underoath photos and collage!
SETLIST
Damn Excuses Breathing in a New Mentality On My Teeth It's Dangerous Business Walking Out Your Front Door In Regards to Myself Hallelujah No Frame Reinventing Your Exit A Fault Line, a Fault of Mine There Could Be Nothing After This Too Bright to See, Too Loud to Hear A Boy Brushed Red Living in Black and White Pneumonia Thorn Writing on the Walls
