Breaking Benjamin Sells Out Acoustic Show at BullShooter in Northeast Philadelphia
As I arrived to Bull shooters Saloon in Northeast Philadelphia on Friday, March 13th to see Benjamin Burnley’s solo acoustic show or as we thought solo as Ben surprised everyone and brought along two very special guests, two of his Breaking Benjamin bandmates, Shaun Foist on Drums & Aaron Bruch on Guitar, The line outside the venue was long and forever growing as the fans anxiously awaited to get inside and take their spot upfront to see Breaking Benjamin in Philadelphia for the first time in several years. At about 6:00pm the doors opened up and the loyal Breaking Benjamin fans sporting their BB shirts and gear began flooding into Bull Shooters for an evening of incredible music and talent!
As the crowd anxiously awaited the arrival of Benjamin Burnley, Shaun Foist & Aaron Bruch the sold-out crowd grew larger and larger and the rooms intense amount of excitement grew as it got closer to showtime. At 8:30pm the lights dimmed and the opening riffs of BB’s biggest hits “So Cold” filled within the venue the crowd screaming so loud they could be heard from a few blocks down, which was only the beginning of what was to be an extraordinary evening of great music. The fans shouted every single word to every single song back to Ben as he sang the lyrics he even pointed the mic out to the crowd several times throughout the night as they were singing louder then him at times. Showing Breaking Benjamin a very pleasant welcome back to Philadelphia with a Sold Out show of loyal Breaking Ben fans which showed them that their fans didn’t leave and are still here to support them 100%! “So Cold” which was only the beginning of what was an awesome 23 song setlist, which included a mixed collection of their biggest hits to their smaller least known hits along with some surprise covers including Queen’s 1986 hit “Who Wants To Live Forever”, Cyndi Lauper’s “Time After Time”, Nirvana’s “All Apologies” & “Smells Like Teen Spirit” along with an Alice In Chains cover “Would?”. Ben didn’t let the crowd down with the setlist which had something for everyone to love even the newly discovered fans present singing along and the crowd definitely didn't let Ben down singing louder then imagined and selling out a weekend of acoustic shows in PA. The vocal harmonies Bruch and Burnley shared were absolutely amazing and flawless; they complimented each other throughout the entire show. The last three songs of their set before their encore were “I Will Not Bow,” “Until the End,” and one of their biggest hits, “Diary of Jane,” which left fans wanting more. Burnley, Foist & Bruch thanked the crowd and particularly acknowledged a 7-year-old girl close to the stage. Answering repeated chants for “one more song,” Ben and company came back and gave them not one, but three powerful encores – “Breath,” “Sooner or Later,” and the closer, “Rain,” which he co-wrote with Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan. Not only was the 23-song setlist a crowd-pleaser, but many fans declared that they would also be attending the remaining two acoustic shows in Scranton and Wilkes-Barre the following nights. As we were leaving, we told the guys how great they sounded, and Burnley replied, “I just wanted to do something fun and different for the fans.” and he did just that and more. Breaking Benjamin never fails to put on a beyond incredible show live and we all look forward to their new album coming out June 23rd! Check them out on the WMMRBQ this May 16th at The Susquehanna Bank Center in Camden, NJ!
