Tim Schumann
Upon A Burning Body unleashes The Breakdown Before Christmas Tour 2023 on West Texas.
Now here comes a band that I have covered six times over the past eight years, and they are always well received here in El Paso, Texas and that was certainly the case here last Sunday night when Upon A Burning Body brought their Breakdown Before Christmas Tour to the one and only Rockhouse Dive Bar Kitchen Venue.
The band consist of Danny Leal doing vocals, Ruben Alvarez on Guitar, Thomas Alvarez on Bass and Tito Felix with percussion. Born in 05 in San Antonio, Texas, this Texas Groove/Death Metal band has 6 releases in 12 years, the latest being Fury in 22 and let’s not forget 17 singles, not to shabby. As stated, I’ve shot these guys multiple times over the years, the first time in 15 at the Texas Showdown Music Festival, couple times downtown at Tricky Falls and of course the Rockhouse. Every time, you could not ask for nicer guys, taking time with fans for autographs, photos and or just hanging out by the merch stand or bus outside, no ego trips or hiding on the bus, just some down to earth Texas boys. It’s this attitude and mindset that goes a long way with me, it’s why we get excited when a UABB show gets announced here, we know what a treat we’re in store for.
This evening’s local support couldn’t have been better, Steellake, Knowsuffer and Carriers of the Dead, what a powerhouse trio of El Paso metal, I really took notice to Carriers of the Dead, might have been my second time seeing them, but rest assured, they have my attention, just outstanding. Touring support was All Is Taken, these guys I liked a lot, hopefully they come back though. UABB hit the stage around 10pm and it was if someone had pulled both triggers on a double barreled 12, how fitting the opening song is Killshot, yeah, these guys throw themselves into their performance with reckless abandon, a show that is tight, energetic and super fun. Halfway through their set, a gentleman who was moshing in the never-ending circle pit, tripped and fell into FOH and knocked the board out for a minute and the show resumed needless to say, these fans get worked up quite a bit, just good clean fun. Danny as a front man is quite the show to watch, constantly interacting with his audience, eating from his hand if you will, this is a true showman as I have witnessed over the years. Ruben, I could watch for hours, a journeyman is putting it lightly, he makes that guitar scream and cry, not to mention he’s all over the place, energy seeping from every pore and in the end, you wonder, was there anything left to give? I doubt it. This is the norm for Ruben, pouring his heart out on that stage, every city, every night, what more could you ask for? Tito on those skins and Thomas on that bass are the backbone of this epic band, these two are the best in the business and it shows in their performance, hands down, they are a benchmark in Texas Metal, proving they are second to none. A 12-song set list was gone in a blink of an eye, but it left this El Paso crowd satisfied, for the time being, because we know UABB will be back and I for one am already looking forward to their return, everything is bigger in Texas, as they say, especially Texas Death Metal, UABB style.
Set List-
Killshot
KOD
All Pride, No Pain
A New Responsibility
Insatiable Hunger
Shape Shifter
Extermination
Scars
Middle Finger
BMF
Sin City
Texas Blood Money
James Villa
