Breaking Benjamin and Five Finger Death Punch brought their highly successful co-headlining tour into Camden, NJ to the nearly sold out BB&T Pavilion with special guests Nothing More and Bad Wolves on Wednesday (August 15). The tour launched in Seattle, WA on July 16th and over a month later, the tour has proved to be one of the best rock shows of the summer, becoming a force to be reckoned with; bringing along the hits, showmanship, talent, insane amounts of energy, and attention grasping productions produced by Live Nation and Frank Productions.
Launching the evening of rock’n roll was newcomers, Bad Wolves, who bursted onto the stage at 6pm with “Officer Down” off their chart topping debut album, Disobey (2018) and ending their set with a now platinum selling cover of “Zombies” by The Cranberries. Upon ending their incredibly emotion-filled performance of “Zombies,” label mates Five Finger Death Punch and Nothing More, their team (label, management, publicist) and Breaking Benjamin to present Bad Wolves with a Platinum plaque for their insane amount of success that was achieved with their The Cranberries cover, which was supposed to be recorded with The Cranberries singer, Dolores O’Riordan but unfortunately due to her tragic passing, that collaboration never happened. That however did not stop the band from taking things into their own hands and doing what they could to help releasing the track in June and presenting a $250,000 check to Dolores O’Riordan’s family. Another highlight of their set was when they were joined on stage by Diamante for their collab “Hear Me Now,” which was a pleasant surprise.
Next up, was three-time Grammy-nominated rock band, Nothing More, exploding unto the stage with the energy boosting “Do You Really Want It?” and powering through songs that topped the Billboard charts like “Jenny,” “Go To War,” “Mr. MTV,” and “This Is The Time (Ballast).” The bands performance was not only full of their hits but it was an attention grasping, electrifying rock show as frontman Jonny Hawkins commanded the crowds attention with his mesmerizing energy on stage. Hawkins later detonating off the stage on what is known as his ‘Scorpion Tail,’ in which was built by the band for their live show and Hawkins rides during “Salem (Burn The Witch),” creating a very unique piece of production addition to their set. Fans thoroughly enjoyed their 8-song set full of all kind of pandemonium.
Finally the moment the crowd was waiting for all night, which was when the first of two headliners took to the stage, the first being Eleven Seven’s own Five Finger Death Punch. 5FDP’s setlist containing 13-songs mostly of the favorite hits like “Wash It All Away,” “Jekyll And Hyde,” “Never Enough,” and of course “The Bleeding” and their critically acclaimed Bad Company cover of “Bad Company.” Their set lacking new songs off their seventh studio album, And Justice For None (2018) but including their cover of The Offspring’s “Gone Away” which frontman Ivan Moody dedicated to the late Linkin Park frontman, Chester Bennington. Not even performing their highly successful new single “Sham Pain,” which you can listen to here. The bands live stage presence was impeccable with a very elaborate production including pyro, fireworks, a massive skull with cross bats filling the stage backdrop, and a light show better than ever before seen on any tour which only further proves that this is the top rock tour of the summer.
5FDP choosing some children from the crowd that are huge knuckleheads to join them on stage during their acoustic rendition of “Remember Everything,” in which kids of all ages joined frontman Ivan Moody upon his mic stand riser as Moody serenaded the kids and gave them each a present of a guitar pick and a handshake. This was not however the only moment during their set where the band interacted with their fans who stuck by their side through thick and thin, the good and the bad times that the band had over the years. Each member of Five Finger Death Punch made the show very intimate for each and every fan in attendance including throwing guitar picks to fans, pointing fingers or guitars at fans, sticking out their tongues, or even directly talking to them over the mic. Ending their set with a sparkle of confetti and thank you’s from the band, along with Ivan Moody congratulating some fans on their long-term sobriety.
Last but definitley not least was the homestate heroes, Breaking Benjamin, were unveiled to the stage after the curtain fell to the ground and pyro fiercely lit up the bands album art backdrop as the aggressive growls of Benjamin Burnley and Aaron Bruch took over the amphitheater during “Red Cold River.” “Red Cold River” is the lead single off of the bands record breaking, No. 1 album, Ember, released earlier this year via Hollywood Records. Ember is the bands follow-up to their 2015 album, Dark Before Dawn. Breaking Benjamin’s setlist containing a lot of fan favorite hits like “Breath,” “I Will Not Bow,” “Believe,” and of course “The Diary Of Jane.” The band also including a ton of new material from Ember and Dark Before Dawn including songs like “Failure,” “Angels Fall,” “Psycho,” and the NHL’s Season Recap Theme Song, “Torn In Two.”
Breaking Benjamin are an incredible talented group of guys all of which allow their talented to shine during a live performance including vocally by Benjamin Burnley, Aaron Bruch, and Keith Wallen, but also instrumentally with Shaun Foist on drums and Jasen Rauch on lead guitars. The bands dark songs matched their show perfectly as frontman Benjamin Burnley seemingly stayed in the shadows throughout the night on stage only being illuminated when pyro lit up the stage during their set. A fan favorite portion of the set would definitely be when Ben performed on a Star Wars inspired drum kit on stage creating a medley of songs including “The Imperial March,” Tool’s “Schism,” Nirvana’s classic “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” Pantera’s “Walk,” and Metallica’s “Sad But True,” all of which are some of Burnley’s favorite artists which he has made known in the past. Following the melody of songs was an exceptional drum solo from Foist who really showcased his abilities on his Pearl drumkit. The band ending their set with their smash hit “The Diary Of Jane” in which Burnley brought some kid fans on stage to accompany their VIP’s on stage while the band flawlessly performed the song.
Fans who purchased a ticket to see this tour, which we are labeling the rock show of the summer are also supporting two separate charities. Five Finger Death Punch choosing C.O.P.S – Concerns Of Police Survivors, which is an organization whose mission is to rebuild shattered lives of the survivors and co-workers affected by line-of-duty death, through partnerships with law enforcement and the community. On Saturday, July 21st in Boise, ID, the Boise Police Department presented Five Finger Death Punch with an award for their continued financial and emotional support. Watch the video and photos of the presentation, HERE. Breaking Benjamin chose Prevent Child Abuse America to help counteract the abuse and neglect of out nation’s children by promoting services that improve a child’s well-being and developing programs that help to prevent all types of abuse and neglect. Watch the clip that Dr. Bart Klika of Prevent Child Abuse America sent to thank Breaking Benjamin, HERE. So make sure that you grab a ticket and do not miss this incredibly awesome tour and have a blast while also giving back to charities that matter to the bands you love. Pick up a ticket and see the tour, HERE.
Due to high fan-demand, Five Finger Death Punch and Breaking Benjamin have announced an expansion of their co-headlining North American Amphitheater tour with additional dates which will take both bands through fall 2018. The tour is co-produced by Live Nation and Frank Productions (see all dates below) and features special guests Nothing More and Bad Wolves on the current summer leg. On the Fall leg of the tour, rock band Bad Wolves will once again join the trek on select dates and Swedish heavy weights In Flames on other select shows. From Ashes To New will be support on all fall dates. The artists on the tour are also dominating the rock charts with their most current singles with Five Finger Death Punch at #7, Breaking Benjamin at #8, Bad Wolves at #16 and From Ashes To New at #3 this week. For tickets to the biggest rock event of the year, VIP offerings and more info, visit here and here.
Check out the exclusive photo galleries by Andrew Wendowski below:
August 18 – Boston, MA @ Xfinity Center
August 20 – Toronto, ON @ Budweiser Stage
August 22 – Syracuse, NY @ Lakeview Amphitheater **
August 24 – Bristow, VA @ Jiffy Lube Live
August 25 – Holmdel, NJ @ PNC Bank Arts Center**
August 28 – Cincinnati, OH @ Riverbend Music Center
August 29 – Chicago, IL @ Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre
August 31 – Indianapolis, IN @ Ruoff Home Mortgage Music Center **
September 1 – Detroit, MI @ DTE Energy Music Theatre
September 3 – Darien Center, NY @ Darien Lake Amphitheater
September 6 – Wantagh, NY @ Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theater **
September 7 – Hartford, CT @ XFINITY Theatre
September 9 – Cleveland, OH @ Blossom Music Center **
November 6 – Wichita, KS @ INTRUST Bank Arena ***
November 7 – Colorado Springs, CO @ Broadmoor World Arena + ***
November 10 – Phoenix, AZ @ Ak-Chin Pavilion ***
November 12 – Fresno, CA @ Save Mart Center ***
November 13 – Sacramento, CA @ Golden 1 Center ***
November 15 – Portland, OR @ Veterans Memorial Coliseum ***
November 17 – Bozeman, MT @ Brick Breedan Fieldhouse ***
November 20 – Minneapolis, MN @ Target Center ***
November 21 – Lincoln, NE @ Pinnacle Bank Arena ***
November 23 – Sioux Falls, SD @ Denny Sanford Premier Center ***
November 24 – Green Bay, WI @ Resch Center ***
November 26 – Grand Rapids, MI @ Van Andel Arena ***
November 27 – Cedar Rapids, IA @ US Cellular Center *****
November 29 – Oklahoma City, OK @ Chesapeake Energy Arena ****
December 1 – North Little Rock, AR @ Verizon Arena ****
December 3 – Biloxi, MS @ Mississippi Coast Coliseum ****
December 7 – Fayetteville, NC @ Crown Coliseum ****
December 8 – Huntington, WV @ Big Sandy Superstore Arena ****
December 10 – Albany, NY @ Times Union Center ****
December 11 – Portland, ME @ Cross Insurance Arena ****
Five Finger Death Punch + Breaking Benjamin Tour:
** 5FDP, Breaking Benjamin & Bad Wolves only
*** special guests Bad Wolves, From Ashes To New
**** special guests In Flames, From Ashes To New
***** 5FDP, Breaking Benjamin & From Ashes To New only
+ Onsale for Colorado Springs, CO starts August 10
