Tuesday night (August 1, 2023) was the Alpharetta, Georgia, stop of Disturbed’s “Take Back Your Life” Tour. Jinjer and Breaking Benjamin accompanied the headliner as special guests. I had never seen any of these bands until this show and I almost didn’t this time. None of my friends could make the show and coordinating it all just started to feel too much like work so I nearly stayed home. Don’t get me wrong, I like the music even if Breaking Benjamin is probably my least favorite of the three. Ultimately, I’m glad I went. But it wasn’t the (more than) ten thousand fists in the air that did it for me. Not entirely. In retrospect, I think it was the single hand on my shoulder that made all the difference.
To be sure, Jinjer put on a great show and after seeing Breaking Benjamin live, I have a new respect for them. Not that I’ve ever had anything against that latter band. I just thought they were a little basic. Seeing them live proves that while they may be more accessible to mainstream audiences, they’re outstanding musicians. “Blow Me Away” was particularly good live and that’s one that I largely ignored before. “Only the strongest will survive / Lead me to Heaven when die / I am the shadow on the wall”. I got there a little late—not because I was dragging my feet about going—and regret that I missed most of Jinjer’s set. What I did catch was great. I may seek them out again to make up for this.
But Disturbed absolutely stole the show. As they should’ve; it’s their tour. David Draiman has possibly the most commanding stage presence I’ve ever seen at a live show and really knows how to get an audience excited and on their feet. Let me tell you, it’s not simply because Draiman said, “Let me see your fists in the air!” The band had energy and that energy spilled over into all of us. His so-called “brothers and sisters.”
I remember being underwhelmed by Pearl Jam’s “Live at the Garden” show due to the low energy of the band. The apologists out there said they were just older and not as spry as they were in the early ’90s. That show was in 2003 when the band was thirteen years old. Disturbed has been touring for twice as many years and still brings the energy. This isn’t to bash Pearl Jam. I love that band and no other act perennial disappoints me like they do. I always hold out hope for an album that I can just play through without skipping any songs, but they haven’t done so since Vs. Backspacer and Lightning Bolt came close. At any rate, Draiman and team look like they love what they do and like they skip the wine until after they’ve finished the show.
They played some blood-pumping hits to get the show started. “Hey You” then “Stupify” and, of course, “Ten Thousand Fists” thereby setting the tone for the night. They included their covers of “Land of Confusion” and “The Sound of Silence” and while the former was superb, the latter wasn’t as flawless as when they were on CONAN. But that’s forgivable. “The Sound of Silence” was the eleventh song of their set.
The set was tight and, to my amateur ear, they were all in time with one another. The vocals were as good as they can get for a live show and sounded nearly as good as the studio. We were all down with the sickness with our fists in the air. The lights and pyrotechnics were also perfect. We even got a Mike Wengren drum solo and a John Moyer bass solo.
It’s no secret at this point that David Draiman suffers from depression and nearly turned to suicide last February. For this aptly named tour, he has addressed the audience in most of the band’s shows and this one was no different. He asked for a show of hands by those who’ve suffered from depression or addiction. There were more hands up than not.
Music saves lives, people. It saved his* and it saves mine every goddamn day.
—David Draiman
*Gerald, a fan, was brought on stage to share a touching story of how he nearly died by suicide.
Draiman manages to share his story without bogging us down with the details. A wise move because most of the time, less is more and people can readily identify with the general story easier than they can one that’s too specific. He mentioned that his son inspired him to live and he made no mention of his wife and their divorce this year. But I’m guessing that factored into his darkness in February. Sure, there are some who may think he does so because he’s disingenuous. That it’s a stunt to sell concert tickets and swag. Maybe. Maybe not. I tend to believe he’s being real. He’s absolutely performing when he tells his story. I don’t see a problem with that though. He’s a performer and he lifted us all up that night.
Ladies and gentelmen, whether you realize it or not, you’re attending one of the largest group therapy sessions on the planet.
—David Draiman
Sometime later in the show when assigned seating no longer mattered and everyone makes room for people to get closer I noticed some newcomers behind me. They were getting their pictures and discussing the highlights of the night. I began thinking of how I’d been waffling on whether to come out at all that night. None of my friends were available. There would be traffic. It would be hot. Of course, there would be a lot of people in attendance. Parking would be a mess. I’d get home late. Jesus, old man! Gripe and grouse a little, why don’t ya? It was all boiling down to a single common issue: I didn’t want to be there. I made myself go. Only a moment or two later a hand fell on my shoulder. I looked at its owner and a stranger told me, “I’m glad you’re here tonight, Brother.”
Thank you, kind stranger. Me too.
One of my brothers-in-law texted me that he thought it was great that I was going to this show when I told him it felt appropriate. Take back your life. “Indeed brotha. In Judaism as you probably know, the Shiva period is one year, after which Jews are encouraged to move ahead with their lives. You are on that journey my man.” Coincidentally, David Draiman was born to Jewish parents and went to several Jewish schools and even studied in the Orthodox town of Kiryat Ye’arim for a year. So it does feel appropriate that I dragged myself out to take back my life.
I believe music can save lives. I believe that, along with my friends and family, it saves mine. I’m not saying that any particular song of the evening of August 1, 2023 has ever made me put down a gun. But what I am saying is that music enriches my life. I think that enrichment keeps me from picking up a gun in the first place. Sometimes music encourages tears to flow. Other times it makes me sing aloud when I haven’t spoken to anyone in days. It often encourages me to share new songs with friends. Or to share newly found meaning in old ones.
I’m glad I was there that night.
