Concert Review – Disturbed (Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, ON, 05/01/2023)

Over ten thousand fists were held high in Toronto on another breathtaking (and very emotional) performance by one of the most important metal bands of the past three decades. 

OPENING ACT: Theory of a Deadman

Concerts on Mondays are always exhausting, it doesn’t matter who’s playing, the time of the year, and even if you’re on vacation or not. However, it didn’t look like a Monday last night at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, with THEORY OF A DEADMAN and DISTURBED continuing the Canadian leg of the Take Back Your Life Tour 2023 before heading to Europe for several summer festivals, and then returning for the US leg of the tour. The ingredients for the same type of awesomeness from their last appearance in the city back in 2019 were there, including thousands of avid fans (many already off from college or university, which means nothing to do the next day), an ass-kicking new album, a very decent weather and so on, turning it into another memorable night of modern metal music in the city.

The band chosen to be Disturbed’s opener, North Delta, British Columbia-based Alternative Rock/Metal act THEORY OF A DEADMAN, hit the stage precisely at 8pm armed with their fusion of classic and modern Rock N’ Roll, plus a brand new album named Dinosaur, entertaining most of the fans who were already at the venue. And I said most of the fans because I was one of several who were not entertained at all, I mean, I’m either getting too grumpy with age, or my growing taste for extreme music is now blocking me from enjoying anything that’s way too soft like the music by those Canadian rockers. They’re competent musicians, no doubt about that, and some of the songs from their setlist worked really well like Bitch Came Back and Bad Girlfriend, but overall it was a semi-snooze fest with their boring cover version for Chris Isaak’s Wicked Game being the icing on the cake (in a bad way). Not even the snippets from Guns N’ Roses’ Paradise City and Pantera’s Walk made me bang my head, perhaps because they were just snippets, but that’s fine. At least the younger kids were enjoying the show, so it’s all about our personal taste for music, right?

Setlist
Sweet Caroline (Neil Diamond song)
Dinosaur
Bitch Came Back
Two of Us (Stuck)
Angel
Wicked Game
Ambulance
Better Off
Nutshell
Santa Monica
Hate My Life
Rx (Medicate)
Paradise City (Snippet)
Walk (Snippet)
Bad Girlfriend

Band members
Tyler Connolly – vocals, guitars, piano
Dave Brenner – guitars, backing vocals
Dean Back – bass, backing vocals
Joey Dandeneau – drums, backing vocals

DISTURBED

It was close to 9:30pm when the main attraction of the night, Chicago, Illinois-based Alternative Metal titans DISTURBED began their always electrifying performance, driving everyone at the venue crazy already to the first few notes of their new song Hey You, from their 2022 album Divisive. David Draiman, Dan Donegan, John Moyer and Mike Wengren were obviously sharp and focused, and not even the fact that their stage was not as detailed or innovative as the one from 2019 took away the energy from their entire set.

Songs like Ten Thousand Fists, The Game and Indestructible sounded as awesome as usual, but their new songs Bad Man and Unstoppable, plus the ballads A Reason to Fight and The Light, were the ones that stole the show and made yesterday’s performance so captivating. Bad Man was amazing because David himself said the band was eager to play that song live to their fans, and the feedback form the crowd, with tons of headbanging, fists raised in the air and some mosh pits put a big smile on the faces of the band members. And when they played the other new song, Unstoppable, they came out all wearing Toronto Maple Leafs jerseys, talking about how the “curse” of not advancing to the second round of the playoffs has been broken after 19 years, and that it’s time for the Leafs to bring the Stanley Cup back to Canada. Well, let’s see if the Maple Leafs are as unstoppable as Disturbed in the coming weeks, right?

And although it was supposed to be a metal concert, which means speed and heaviness, it was during two of their ballads that things got serious and David took the moment to send powerful messages to everyone at the concert. As you might already know, every single time Disturbed play A Reason to Fight, David gets very emotional and dedicates it to his deceased friends Chester Bennington (Linkin Park) and Chris Cornell (Soundgarden, Audioslave), among others, always saying he’s tired of losing such close friends to suicide and talking about the importance of reaching out to your friends and family when you suffer from mental issues; however, this time David (in tears, by the way) opened up and mentioned that he also has to deal with addiction and depression (in fact, all members of the band have to do so as well), and that around eight months ago he almost joined his friends on the other side. That was a shocking moment for all of us fans, but it also showed no one is safe from mental diseases, and that we must all stay together to fight that, saying that mental issues are like an invisible cancer growing inside of us and taking over our entire body until it’s too late.

The other emotional moment of their performance connected with that message, when he called fans Sean and Charlotte (who were part of the Meet & Greet with the band earlier yesterday) to the stage, both going through tough times and suffering from mental issues, before playing the beautiful The Light. Actually, it was the second Sean who was supposed to be on stage all the time, but apparently John Moyer confused him with another guy, and there he was the “wrong Sean”, visibly drunk, enjoying his time with the band on stage. Anyway, those fans had the pleasure of enjoying the entire song sitting near the drums, while David asked everyone to raise their lighters or smartphone flashlights when he said the words “the light”, creating a stunning effect inside the arena while reminding everyone of the positive power of music in our lives.

One of the most electrifying moments of the concert was of course when they played their undisputed hit Down With the Sickness, with all fans jumping up and down, engaging in some action inside the mosh pits, or screaming the famous “Oh, ah, ah, ah ,ah!” together with David during the entire song, and after everyone got down with the sickness there was still time for another incendiary song, the excellent Inside the Fire, inspiring all fans for one last round of insanity inside the pit on a Monday night. So remember, everyone, to keep banging your heads while enjoying high quality heavy music like what Disturbed are always providing us with, and if you need any type of mental help or support in Canada you can contact the Canadian Mental Health Association, COAST Hamilton, the Suicide Prevention Middlesex-London, or the Distress Centre of Ottawa and Region, among others. We all want to see YOU at the next Disturbed concert in Toronto, raising your fists in the air together with one of the most important metal bands of the past few decades.

Setlist
Hey You
Stupify
Ten Thousand Fists
Prayer
Are You Ready
Bad Man
The Vengeful One
A Reason to Fight
Land of Confusion
The Game
The Sound of Silence
Indestructible
The Light
Stricken

Encore:
Unstoppable
Down With the Sickness
Inside the Fire

Band members
David Draiman – vocals
Dan Donegan – guitar
John Moyer – bass
Mike Wengren – drums

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Concert Review – Disturbed (Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, ON, 03/04/2019)

David Draiman and his henchmen took Toronto by storm once again, providing us all a touching and memorable night of heavy music, life and friendship.

OPENING ACTS: Three Days Grace

Monday night in Toronto was damn cold, windy and, even if it was sunny and hot, it was still Monday. However, there’s nothing better than a good rock and metal concert to warm us up on such a boring day, right? That’s exactly what over 20,000 fans got at the now named Scotiabank Arena (formerly known as Air Canada Centre) during the Disturbed: Evolution Tour, featuring Three Days Grace as the opening act and, obviously, Disturbed, spearheaded by the iconic David Draiman. I was surprised with the amount of very young people at the venue, proving that rock music is far from being done (and I’ll talk more about it later), and not even that annoying bitterly cold wind was capable of stopping us all to raise our fists in the air to one of the most important bands in the history of Alternative Metal.

I must confess I’ve never paid too much attention to THREE DAYS GRACE, mainly because their music is not my cup of tea, sounding way too radio-friendly at times. That doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy their performance, though, as those Toronto-based rockers put on a very energetic and fun concert, still promoting their 2018 album titled Outsider. Frontman Matt Walst didn’t stop running around and jumping up and down for a single second, demanding the audience to sing along with him and to ignite some circle pits. A few songs stood out from their setlist, like The Good Life, Pain, Riot and, of course, their biggest hit I Hate Everything About You, all working as a good warm-up for the main attraction of the night. In other words, if a fan of Thrash, Death and Black Metal like me enjoyed their show, I can imagine how happy they made their diehard fans playing in their hometown.

Setlist
Intro (Livin’ On a Prayer)
The Mountain
Home
The Good Life
Pain
Infra-Red
Painkiller
Break
Right Left Wrong
I Hate Everything About You
Animal I Have Become (with “Seven Nation Army” interlude)
Never Too Late
Riot

Band members
Matt Walst – lead vocals, rhythm guitar
Barry Stock – lead guitar
Brad Walst – bass, backing vocals
Neil Sanderson – drums, keyboards, backing vocals 

DISTURBED

It was around 8:50pm when the lights went off and the humongous screen at the back of the stage started showing scenes from several DISTURBED concerts through the years, also presenting some rebellious and inspiring messages to the crowd, and that video worked flawlessly to pump up every single person at the venue for the opening track Are You Ready, from their 2018 album Evolution (which is definitely not their best effort, but it still has some very good moments, I might say). And although the whole concert might not have been as electrifying as their latest performance in the city in 2016 with Breaking Benjamin while promoting their 2015 album Immortalized (partially due to the extreme cold outside, as their 2016 show was outdoors in the middle of the summer), David & Co. kicked ass with a very solid and diversified setlist, proving once again why they’re still relevant after all those years on the road.

It was indeed a feast of classic tunes from the band, with crushing hymns like Stupify (where David gave a short speech about how the media wants us to believe we’re divided, when in fact we’re all united no matter our color, race, gender or sexual orientation), Voices, Ten Thousand Fists and their cover version for Genesis’ Land of Confusion (my favorite of the night, by the way) inspiring everyone to jump, headbang, mosh and sing together with the quartet. Dan Donegan, John Moyer and Mike Wengren were on fire with their instruments, providing David everything he needed to blast his unparalleled screams. Furthermore, despite the biggest part of their setlist being comprised of heavy songs, it was when they played their ballads that they truly connected with the audience, and that happened for a very simple and delicate reason. It was visible that all four members of the band were very sad and touched by the death of their longtime friend Keith Flint, the wicked frontman for British electronic music trailblazers The Prodigy, who committed suicide at the age of 49 at his home in Essex earlier that same day, turning the concert in Toronto something very special for the entire band.

When they played Hold On to Memories on the main stage, showing photos and images of their entire career including some pictures and old footage with their friends Chester Bennington (from Linkin Park, who also committed suicide in 2017) and the unparalleled Pantera brothers Dimebag Darrell and Vinnie Paul, who died in 2004 and 2018, respectively, it was already a memorable moment for everyone at the venue, a celebration of life and friendship by Disturbed, but it was when they moved to the smaller acoustic stage at the back of the floor section to play A Reason to Fight and Watch You Burn that we could clearly see a lot of tears falling down from their eyes. David took some time to give a very meaningful speech about how depression is not something people choose to have, but a very serious disease that can consume even the most famous and richest people on the planet, dedicating that part of the show to Keith Flint just like what he had done a week before remembering the lives of Chris Cornell, Scott Weiland and Chester Benington during their concert in New York. There are (several) other people out there either suffering from depression or who had already reached the unfortunate point of suicide, like the talented Huntress frontwoman Jill Janus who passed away in 2018, and as David said we need to reach out to those in need to win this battle against such horrendous illness.

The other three unforgettable moments for me (and for most people at the venue) were first and foremost their already classic tribute to Simon & Garfunkel with their flawless version for their ballad The Sound of Silence, the insane fire on stage during Inside the Fire (for obvious reasons), and the amazing kids with their parents on stage to celebrate rock music during The Light, proving once and for all as David said that rock is not dead like the media enjoys “vomiting” in our faces every single day. And lastly, as the icing on the cake, how about two of my all-time favorite Disturbed songs, the superb Stricken and the demented Down With the Sickness, which ignited a big, fun and frantic circle pit that took over a significant part of the central area of the floor section? That’s what good rock and metal music is all about, right? Having a good time with your loved ones, enjoying a nice beer while watching a great band like Disturbed perform, and resting assured that while bands like Disturbed are alive and kicking, our beloved Rock N’ Roll will never, ever die.

Setlist
Are You Ready
Prayer
The Vengeful One
The Animal
Stupify
Voices
Land of Confusion (Genesis cover)
Hold On to Memories
Ten Thousand Fists
The Game
A Reason to Fight
Watch You Burn
The Sound of Silence (Simon & Garfunkel cover)
Indestructible
Inside the Fire

Encore:
The Light
Stricken
Down With the Sickness

Band members
David Draiman – vocals
Dan Donegan – guitar
John Moyer – bass
Mike Wengren – drums

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Concert Review – Disturbed & Breaking Benjamin (Molson Canadian Amphitheatre, Toronto, ON, 08/08/2016)

The city of Toronto got awesomely “infected” by David Draiman and his horde on a warm and beautiful night of alternative music.

OPENING ACTS: Saint Asonia and Alter Bridge

Due to my hectic working schedule yesterday and the distance from my place to the fantastic Molson Canadian Amphitheatre, I wasn’t able to see the performances by the two special guests of the night, Canadian Nu Metal/Hard Rock band SAINT ASONIA and American Rock N’ Roll/Hard Rock band ALTER BRIDGE. To be honest, I wasn’t very excited to watch Saint Asonia, despite the fact they’re portrayed as a “supergroup” based in Toronto formed by lead singer and guitarist  Adam Gontier (ex-Three Days Grace), lead guitarist Mike Mushok (ex-Staind), bassist Corey Lowery (ex-Stuck Mojo) and drummer Rich Beddoe (ex-Finger Eleven). I’m not sure how many people were actually able to watch their concert, nor if they were a good warm-up for the following bands. All I can say is that the music they play is not my cup of tea and I don’t really regret missing their performance.

What I do feel slightly sad about was missing the excellent singer Myles Kennedy and the talented guitarist Mark Tremonti (together with bassist Brian Marshall and drummer Scott Phillips) playing their straightforward and honest rock music with Alter Bridge. We all know Myles and Mark are awesome musicians, and even considering the music by this Orlando-based group a bit too soft for me I’m sure that might have been a kick-ass concert. Well, that’s the price to pay when there are too many bands in such a short period of time, fans end up missing a good chunk of what they paid for unless they arrive REALLY early to the venue, which was not the case for most fans last night.

BREAKING BENJAMIN

The Molson Canadian Amphitheatre got packed only a few minutes before American Rock N’ Roll/Hard Rock band BREAKING BENJAMIN began their show, with frontman and guitarist Benjamin Burnley leading his competent band from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania formed by Jasen Rauch on lead guitars, Keith Wallen on rhythm guitar, Aaron Bruch on bass and Shaun Foist on drums. The band got back in action a couple of years ago after Benjamin was finally able to overcome his phobias and addictions, with all members being completely new to the band (except for Benjamin, of course), and based on the warm reaction from everyone at the venue I believe fans truly missed Benjamin’s melodious mix of Alternative Metal and Hard Rock during the band’s hiatus.

As a fan of the darkest side of music who’s always listening to the most visceral forms of Thrash, Death and Black Metal, I must admit their music didn’t excite me despite being extremely well-crafted and played to perfection by all band members. Except for the brief moments when they played an excerpt of the superb Walk, by one of my favorite bands of all time, Pantera, as well as another excerpt from the classic Smells Like Teen Spirit by Nirvana, I couldn’t really connect to the band’s music. One thing I enjoyed a lot though was the vocal range by Aaron, going from clean and melodic lines to furious growls whenever he was responsible for the vocal parts, and for me that was the best ingredient of their concert. Please don’t think I hate Breaking Benjamin with all my strength or that it was a horrible concert, let’s simply say it’s hard to pay some decent attention to a band you’re not a fan of their music or style when you’re anxious for the following act.

Setlist
So Cold
Angels Fall
Sooner or Later
Blow Me Away
The Imperial March / Schism / Smells Like Teen Spirit / Walk
Polyamorous
Ashes of Eden
Believe
Breath
Failure
Until the End
I Will Not Bow
The Diary of Jane

Band members
Benjamin Burnley – lead vocals, rhythm guitar
Jasen Rauch – lead guitar, electronic strings, programming
Keith Wallen – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
Aaron Bruch – bass, backing vocals
Shaun Foist – drums, electronic percussion, programming

DISTURBED

Only one day after playing at Heavy Montréal, Mr. David Draiman and his Alternative Metal horde DISTURBED hit the stage at the Molson Canadian Amphitheatre to do what they do best, which is playing electrifying razor-edged modern metal music. Still promoting their 2015 album Immortalized (which by the way was awarded gold in Canada as well as platinum to the single The Sound of Silence, as informed by Draiman during the show), this iconic band from Chicago, Illinois not only revolutionized music with their inception back in the 90’s, but they also keep bringing different generations to their live concerts like what happened yesterday, something only traditional bands like Iron Maiden and Metallica do nowadays.

Blending classics such as the opening song Ten Thousand Fists and the classy Stricken with new songs like the kick-ass The Vengeful One, Draiman and his crew conquered all from the very first notes of their powerful performance. Draiman might not be moving around like before, but it looks like that’s a task he’s leaving for guitarist Dan Donegan, drummer Mike Wengren and especially bassist John Moyer to do, with those three guys being unstoppable on stage while Draiman focused on his unparalleled vocals (including his classic “monkey screams”) and leading gestures. They even invited the guys from Saint Asonia and Breaking Benjamin to sing the classic Who Taught You How to Hate with them, although it felt a bit weird seeing two bass players on stage at the same time.

One of the most anticipated moments of the show was their beautiful version for Simon & Garfunkel’s The Sound of Silence, and I have to say that lived up to all expectations and beyond. The drumming by Mike was incredible, as if he was pounding our hearts, and the piano notes embellished the entire ambience, but of course the main ingredient in such a unique ballad were Draiman’s vocals. He sang each and every note to perfection together with the fans, a memorable moment in a warm Torontonian night that will stay fresh in our minds and hearts for many years to come. Another great example of how Draiman flawlessly captivated and commanded the audience throughout the whole gig occurred during their new song called The Light, where he asked everyone to raise their lighters and mobiles during the chorus of the song and every single person obviously attended his demand, creating a sensational view of brilliant dots all over the venue.

My only complaint is that their setlist was way too short, with only fourteen songs being played in total. They could have played a few more tunes like the title-track “Immortalized” or even their version for “Land of Confusion”, which has been part of their recent setlists. Anyway, the icing on the cake came in the form of their biggest hit Down With the Sickness, with all fans jumping up and down and screaming the lyrics together with Draiman, especially the ones in the floor section like myself. The heat of the fire coming from the stage might have been strong, but the heat coming from their music was even stronger, leaving all fans happier than usual on a Monday night on their way back home. When introducing Down With the Sickness, Draiman said Toronto was “infected” by their music. I can’t think of a better definition to their concert than that.

Setlist
Ten Thousand Fists
The Game
The Vengeful One
Prayer
Liberate
Who Taught You How to Hate
Stupify
The Sound of Silence
Inside the Fire
The Light
Stricken
Indestructible
Voices
Down With the Sickness

Band members
David Draiman – vocals
Dan Donegan – guitar
John Moyer – bass
Mike Wengren – drums