Another gang of Sumerian Records metal bands are set to deliver double-bass-kicks to fan faces in Grand Rapids.
Hailing from Chicago, Born of Osiris is headlining The Discovery Tour to celebrate the album of same name, released earlier in March. Veil of Maya (fellow Chicago and Sumerian natives), Carnifex, Structures (Sumerian), Betraying the Martyrs (Sumerian), and GR locals No Sleep for Panama will share the stage.
The last time VoM stopped in GR was merely months ago, in September, when the band co-headlined the Crush ‘Em All II Tour with fellow Sumerian metal-heads, After the Burial. Just like the kinship between VoM and AtB, BoO enjoys more than a label-mate status with VoM. The latter couple played basement shows together before Sumerian was signing artists, and once both bands were signed, neither strayed from the label, both with two full lengths Sumerian-stamped.
"It's more than just a label. It's like a family," said Lee McKinney, BoO guitarist. "They've taken the same amount of steps or more than we already have, so it's never like this is the root of what our label can do for us."
McKinney was 17 when Sumerian found BoO, not old enough to sign the contracts. Currently, all members of BoO are 22 with the exception of the most recent guitarist, Jason Richardson, 20.
The last time BoO played in GR was in 2009 when the first full-length, A Higher Place was most recent, opening for Hatebreed, Cannibal Corpse and Unearth. From opener to headliner in two years marks significant growth, which is partially attributable to all BoO members living in a house together in the Chicago suburbs, where The Discovery was created. Residing a matter of feet from one another at all times secured just the right teamwork to make The Discovery stand out from previous albums.
"We're a lot more proud of the release since we produced it ourselves and recorded it ourselves and just came together for the songwriting process on that album more than ever," McKinney said.
One can trace The Discovery's maturity in the silence the 16 total tracks leave behind. Technical metal to the brim, interspersed with keyboards, a chillingly melodious interlude and a transition with dubstep qualities melds many sounds into a gradual signature, and it occurs much more than A Higher Place's instance of vocalist Ronnie Canizaro screaming to a jangling beat on "Now Arise." Don't expect a "filthy" change in BoO's overall sound any time soon though; the band signed another two-year lease to live in Chicago, according to McKinney, who anticipates more material and possibly a new record to follow in The Discovery's steps by late summer or fall of next year.
Stage-wise, BoO is planning its longest set yet, which won't necessarily span all of The Discovery, but will cover many more songs from each album real "shuffle-like" with the addition of a seven-string guitar on The Discovery. Since each BoO album was recorded in a different tuning, the seven-string offers much more variance for BoO when playing live. Add in the enhanced light rig to be employed on the tour and it's safe to say that BoO will be on top of its game when it visits GR.
