I’ve been a fan of rock music since I was 14 years old. The first rock CD I ever listened to was Linkin Park’s, Hybrid Theory. My friend, who had file sharing software and good internet burned me a copy of their album. At the time it was completely unlike anything I ever heard of. I’ve been hooked ever since.

After Linkin Park I discovered so many more great bands like My Chemical Romance, HIM, Evanescence, The White Stripes, Avenged Sevenfold, the list just goes on and on. The two particularly I want to mention today is Breaking Benjamin and Disturbed.

Last night, with my best friend Daniel and his sister, I was lucky enough to go to the Disturbed 2023 Take Back Your Life Tour concert in Charlotte, North Carolina at the PNC Music Pavilion where they played with Breaking Benjamin and JINJER. It was a unforgettable time capsule of nostalgia and pure rock that will always hold a special place for me.

Why I Fucking Love These Bands

Disturbed, with lead vocals by David Draiman, is completely unmatched when it comes to his unique style and the bands overall sound. The heavy themes and imagery in the songs all have a core value of overcoming odds and adversities. Especially last nights show with the theme of overcoming depression, addiction, and suicide.

There was a game called Left 4 Dead that my friend Daniel and I played a lot. It had a survival mode where you just fought waves of zombies until you eventually died. The goal was to last as long as possible. Disturbed’s thrashy metal sound, and amazing hardcore vocals turned that tiny TV with a split screen sitting next to my friend, into a theatrical movie like experience that we still think about to this day.

Breaking Benjamin for me was multiple eras of my life. I was hooked on the album We Are Not Alone. The song Follow Me was a treat to the ears. It was the first time I gave a crap about surround sound because I loved to hear the alternating guitar riffs in each ear separately then coming together in the intro.

Another time Breaking Benjamin became a big deal to me was when my dad was still alive and sick with cancer. The songs Dear Agony and Without You became cathartic releases for me to let some emotions go when things got to be overwhelming. At points they were a crutch when I listened to Without You on repeat for several days.

Night Of The Show

The Venue

First and foremost, I am not a concertgoer. So take this as someone whose been to maybe three concerts in my entire life, and is the truest example of an introvert you can get.

Daniel’s sister, Ashley, drove us to the show. She actually IS a concert goer type of person. She even attends them alone sometimes. We were in good hands to say the least. We dropped the car off and actually UBER’d from a nearby Wal-Mart to the PNC Music Pavilion. Being able to totally avoid parking was a huge plus (until the end.)

We got seats underneath the roof area of the amphitheater which put us front and center of the stage, just a few rows behind the cameras.

Getting from area to area of the venue was annoying as hell. You had to show a ticket on your phone at two different locations just to get a drink or use the bathroom. And since everyone there is trying to load data off the same tower it was naturally pretty slow. Some people had screenshots saved (smart) that made it easier.

Unfortunately in my case my ticket was in the hands of Daniel’s sister and we ran into issues a few times. Again, not a concertgoer, so I can’t judge much as this might be normal etiquette. I just didn’t understand it. Maybe some wrist bands next time? The ticketing was run by Live Nation, so I blame them for that.

I have to mention the price for a tall boy alcoholic beverage. At the concessions it was $14 USD , if you wanted to get one slightly closer to your seat without having to funnel through the long line of people trying to get past the ticket checkers it cost $16 USD. WOW. That’s all I can say there.

The Show

JINJER was the headliner, and was in the middle of their first song as we were getting seated. Before this concert, I had never heard of the band, so I had no clue what to expect. Tatiana Shmayluk, lead vocals, has awesome stage presence. The band is a lot more what I’d call metal than Breaking Benjamin or Disturbed, and I definitely enjoyed it.

I noticed a lot of people wearing JINJER merchandise before the show started. My friend Daniel after the show ended up buying two of the their shirts. They had a lot of hardcore fans.

At this point in the show it was pretty hot with the sun beaming down on the back of everyone’s head. The weather that day was cooler than previous days and there was a slight breeze which was nice.

Breaking Benjamin

Breaking Benjamin followed JINJER, and before the curtain dropped most of the audience was out the seats standing up and waiting. They cheered at the slightest sign the show was fixing to start. I was personally excited also, just too awkward to show it.

I don’t even remember what song they played first, but it was just fucking amazing to see them actually there in the flesh singing. And, they sounded spectacular! I felt like they played all the favorites.

It felt cool knowing the words to nearly every song. I did feel bad for them during this part of the show. The sun was beaming down right in their face and I could tell Benjamin Burnley during certain points had to just cover his face or move his mic to another part of the stage.

They still put on a great show and ended their set with So Cold and Diary of Jane. I honestly thought in the back of my head in that moment that I’d love to come back to see them.

At the end, Burnley thanked the audience and all that . He said he was grateful to be able to do this for 20 years. 20 years!? I felt so much older in that moment. I mean, right now I am only 33. It just blew my mind to think I had been listening to them for such a long ass time. Life goes by really fast.

Disturbed

I have to say one thing for sure. Disturbed knows how to put on a good show. David Draiman starts out in what looks like a sleeveless trench coat that I’m not sure made it past the second or third song.

The lighting effects, pyrotechnics, and video work, was amazing. I am a simple guy who likes fire. What can I say? During one point guitarist Dan Donegan was even playing a piano on fire. How cool is that!?

There was a pause in the show to address the main message of the tour, suicide. Between songs a video popped up of Draiman speaking about the devastating effects of addiction and depression and their lead to suicide. A moment of silence is observed and Draiman comes to the stage to talk about some of the other artists that have died, like Chester Bennington from Linkin Park, and others.

He then announces that he was close to committing suicide himself after singing a heartfelt A Reason To Fight.

The show picked back up and continued to rock on. They pulled a false ending on the crowd and came out preformed 3 or 4 more songs including the famous Down With The Sickness.

I went most excited to see Breaking Benjamin and was extremely happy with it, then Disturbed came and just got me pumped up and finally starting to feel less awkward and like a real concertgoer. I actually fist pumped everybody else a couple times.

The Crash And Feeling Older

Now here is where I am going to be honest, I enjoyed every minute of the show for the experience and what it was. But, there was some points where my social battery was on empty and I was ready go home and get in my pajamas away from people.

I was surprised there was a lot of people older than me there. Again me being 33, I saw people in there 40’s and 50’s a plenty. These guys and gals were still kicking it and pumped up on the alcohol. Not me!

I was exhausted. I feel like I don’t want to see people for about a week now haha.

Even though concerts aren’t really my thing. I enjoy putting myself into what I build up as uncomfortable situations in order to have experiences and not close myself off to things. This show is definitely a highlighted experience of my life that I’ll never forget.

This concert experience reminded me of the timeless power of music and connection it has to our emotions, stories, and time periods of our lives.

Also, I have to take a moment to show off the tour shirt I bought.