Destroy Rebuild Until God Shows (D.R.U.G.S.) - Highline Ballroom, New York City (1.21.12)
Posted by Matt Arena on 01.24.2012
Off the strength of their self-titled debut album and live success with the AP Tour, D.R.U.G.S embarked on their own headlining tour, stopping in New York for a sensational show.
The saga between Craig Owens, current lead singer of D.R.U.G.S, and his former band Chiodos is long and well documented. Personally, I know nothing of it. All I know is that he’s in a different band now and this new band is pretty rad. This new band is Destroy Rebuild Until God Shows (or D.R.U.G.S. for short), and they put out an album just about a full year ago. The album was well received from the first week it was out and the band has been growing in popularity ever since. After playing around the country as a co-headliner on The AP Tour, it seemed the time was right for D.R.U.G.S to embark on a headlining tour of their own. That’s exactly what they were doing at Highline Ballroom this past Saturday night.
The demand for tickets was evidently high as they sold out this 700 capacity venue in New York City on their very first headlining tour as a band. And they made sure to stack the lineup, as well. A total of 5 openers, including The Action Blast, My Arcadia, Sparks the Rescue, Like Moths to Flames, and Hit the Lights, it was clear the band was going to give the fans their money’s worth. And the fans showed up. Amidst a messy snowstorm and temperatures so low that the walk from the car to the venue had me shivering, fans had been queuing hours before doors opened. The slew of openers ranged from pop punk to hardcore screamo, which isn’t really my thing, but the crowd seemed to enjoy every act.
After nearly 3 hours of music from the openers, D.R.U.G.S. finally hit the stage and immediately brought a new life into the crowd. Raucous moshing and crowd surfing started at the first song and continued even after the set ended. Craig Owens prowled across the stage, dipping his microphone into the crowd as the collective voice of the audience answered his call for a sing-along. The rowdiness wasn’t just confined to the concertgoers, Owens and his band mates made regular trips into the crowd. The former rode the crowd as he sang ‘Sex Life,’ coming back halfway through the song with a layer less as his shirt was consumed the crowd. The band tore through the heavy tracks off their self-titled debut album, mixing in surprises like having Jacqui from My Arcadia onstage to sing on ‘Laminated E.T. Animal’ and playing the newly released ‘Scream If You’re Crazy.’
After the encore break, only Craig Owens reappeared with an acoustic guitar, which many would think is the boring acoustic part of the set, but after a verse he was joined by his bandmates for a really great rendition of ‘I’m here to take the Sky.’ Before their last song, Craig Owens thanked everyone for supporting “underground, hardcore, pop-punk, whatever the fuck it is, honest, no-radio bullshit.” Closing with their hardest (and arguably best) song ‘If You Think This Song Is About You, It Probably Is,’ the crowd was encouraged to open up the pit, Owens beckoning the crowd to “spread it back to the bars.” And that’s exactly what they did. The pit took up about half the entire floor and was the biggest moshpit I’ve seen in a venue that small. The swirling mass of people exploded into a frenzy of blurs as the song kicked in, the crowd shaking the floor of Highline Ballroom. The entire hardcore/screamo/pop-punk scene isn’t really my band, which is odd being that I absolutely loved this show. D.R.U.G.S. put on such an intense and heartfelt show; it was hard not to walk away without your mind totally blown. They were loud, animated, and everything a good rock show should be.
The 411: After missing them on last year’s AP Tour, I was privy to an amazing performance by D.R.U.G.S on Saturday night at Highline Ballroom. Bringing a slew of bands with them, they made sure everyone left the show satisfied. The crowd was as intense as I’ve seen, with moshpits half the size of the entire floor and a constant wave of crowd surfers. A packed house and loud rock; what more could you want from a show?
