Between the Buried and Me Rocks Out with their Keyboards Out

House of Blues (Dallas, TX)

– Words by Chase Dunn / Photos by Crystal Prather –

The lights slowly began to dim in front of the closed curtain. A voice comes over the speakers as if it was Mission Control speaking directly to you as you’re about to take off on a musical odyssey. The curtains are slowly drawn back as the audience’s anticipation grows ever more apparent. We’re about to embark on a non-stop 72 minute adventure of The Parallax II: Future Sequence. No breaks; just a continuous stream of hard rock harmonics meshed together with sublime keyboard playing by frontman Tommy Giles Rodgers.

Between the Buried and Me released The Parallax II: Future Sequence on Metal Blade records in Fall of 2012. They’re a progressive metal band from North Carolina, comprised of guitarists Paul Waggoner  and Dustie Waring , drummer Blake Richardson, bassist Dan Briggs, and keyboardist Rodgers. Wait. What? Now I know what you’re thinking. ‘How does a keyboardist fit into a progressive metal band? Also, he’s the lead vocals?’ Get ready for a performance that will blow your mind. The two sounds mesh together mystically and create for a unforgettable experience.

Playing with special guests The Safety Fire, The Contortionist, and The Faceless, BTBAM created an energetic incline leading up to their headlining performance. Even when I thought the audience was exhausted, they surprised me time and time again getting more and more into the performances. Throughout the entire set there was never a decline in energy in the building. Just when you thought the melodies were about to slow to a crawl, the guitar brought the song right back like a shock from the paddles. Much to my doubt, they performed the The Parallax II: Future Sequence in full with no breaks.

As the chants, “BT BAM! BT BAM! BT BAM” echoed throughout the concert room started to get louder and louder, they reemerged back onto the stage to an uproar of cheers. Rodgers grabs the mic, looked out over the crowd, and with a smug grin announced they’re going to play one more song as an encore. ‘White Walls’ from their album Colors was the choice, and it beautifully capped off their enigmatic performance. The 14 minute tune featured a nearly two minute guitar duet by Waggoner and Waring that absolutely brought the house down. Between the Buried and Me has just the right amount of obscurity, featuring pure hard rock sound with keyboard magnificence that’s enough to surprise and blissfully entertain any fan of the genre.