August Burns Red is generally credited as a melodic metalcore band, and have also been said to share traits of other genres such as progressive metal, and thrash metal but blending it with hardcore, extreme metal and post hardcore August Burns Red songs have technical or odd time signatures and heavy breakdowns, growled vocals, melodic guitar riffs, and complex instrumentation with a variety of influences including Meshuggah, Between the Buried and Me, Poison the Well, Symphony in Peril and Misery Signals.
While the group has stated that they don't mind being classified as melodic metalcore, Brubaker has grown to a distaste in the genre's usual bands: "I feel like anyone who can pick up and play a guitar and learn to play a metalcore riff and any drummer who can learn to play a thrash beat over a breakdown is doing it. It's almost become very formulaic, and metal to me was never a formulaic genre."
August Burns Red was founded in March 2003 when all the members were attending high school. The original practice sessions of the band began in drummer, Matt Greiner's old egg house and basement on the Greiner family's farmland. After playing many local shows within Lancaster, they recorded their first EP, titled Looks Fragile After All with label CI Records in 2004.
Vocalist Jon Hershey eventually quit the band during the same year, which led to Josh McManness to take on the position as lead singer, and after several months of playing with McManness, August Burns Red signed to Solid State Records in 2005. Hershey would later go on to form instrumental post-rock band Bells. August Burns Red released Thrill Seeker, their first full-length album, on November 8, 2005. In 2006, drummer Matt Greiner was endorsed by Truth Custom Drums following the release of the album.
McManness departed from the band in 2006, exhausted by the band's constant touring. He was replaced with Columbia, SC resident, Jake Luhrs during the same year. Bassist Jordan Tuscan also left the band in 2006 for similar reasons as McManness. He was replaced by bassist Dustin Davidson, a friend of the band. The band's second album, Messengers, was released on June 19, 2007. Marking the debut for Luhrs fronting the group, it managed to become the band's breakthrough album, reaching number 81 on the Billboard 200. The album has sold a total of 108,000 copies as of May 2011.
Throughout 2008, August Burns Red toured with several acts across North America and Europe to promote Messengers. From April to May they toured with As I Lay Dying and Misery Signals across the United States and Canada. In September and October of that same year, they headlined a tour with A Skylit Drive, Sky Eats Airplane, Greeley Estates, and This or the Apocalypse in the United States. The band also visited Europe for a month-long headlining tour in November, playing in Germany, Finland, Norway, Sweden, The United Kingdom, Republic Of Ireland, Northern Ireland, Italy, Belgium, The Netherlands, Czech Republic, Slovakia, and France.
After this series of tours, the band recorded two covers of popular songs. They recorded an instrumental version of the classic song, “Carol of the Bells” for the X Christmas compilation album, which was featured in trailers for the film, The Spirit, released Christmas Day 2008. They also recorded a cover of “…Baby One More Time” by pop singer Britney Spears for the Punk Goes Pop, Vol. 2 compilation album, released in March 2009.
On February 24, 2009, the band released an EP, entitled Lost Messengers: The Outtakes. It contains material that is related or was decided not to be included in the final, mastered version of Messengers. August Burns Reds' first trip to the Middle East took place on March 6, 2009 with the band playing at the Dubai Desert Rock Festival. The band's last tour before their next album release took place in the United States, where they toured with metalcore band All That Remains throughout April and May.
To promote their upcoming album, August Burns Red released several new tracks and a music video during June 2009. The tracks Thirty and Seven, Existence, and Ocean of Apathy were all released on the 15th, 21st, and 29th, respectively. A music video for the song Meddler was also released during this month. On July 7, a week before the album's release, August Burns Red began streaming the full album on their Myspace profile for a limited time.
August Burns Red released their third full-length album, Constellations, on July 14, 2009. During the week of August 1, 2009, the album charted at spot 24 on the Billboard 200. Another United States tour was organized with August Burns Red headlining and support from Blessthefall, Enter Shikari, All Shall Perish, and iwrestledabearonce. After this tour, the band joined a short tour in Australia with Architects in support of Australian band Parkway Drive. August Burns Red toured alongside Underoath and Emery in November and December 2009 as well.
The band released their first live CD/DVD, Home, on September 28, 2010. The group co-headlined an Alternative Press tour throughout November. On February 23, 2010, Constellations was nominated for the Dove Award for "Best Rock Album".
August Burns Red toured Australia and New Zealand in December 2010 on the No Sleep Til Festival. The band played alongside Parkway Drive, A Day to Remember, NOFX, Dropkick Murphys, Suicide Silence, Megadeth, Descendents, Gwar and many others.
On July 27, 2010, lead guitarist, Brubaker stated that the band would be taking time off tour to write their next record, On February 12, 2011, the band announced via their official Facebook page that they had completely finished writing their new record and that they would be entering the studio on Valentine's Day which, following into March of the next year, the band announced that the record was finished, and that it was (at that point) time for mixing. On the April 5, August Burns Red revealed the name of this upcoming record as Leveler. On May 16, 2011, the band released the song “Empire” as a preview before its release. They also later premiered three other songs: "Internal Cannon", "Divisions", and "Poor Millionaire", on May 31, June 6, and June 14, respectively.
Leveler was released on June 21, 2011 in two forms; standard and deluxe. The deluxe version of Leveler contains four extra songs, including an acoustic version of the song "Internal Cannon". The album sold particularly well compared to their other releases, with 29,000 of its opening first week-copies being sold in the United States alone. These sales had the record land at position 11 on The Billboard 200 chart. After the release, August Burns Red took part on the main stage of the 2011 Vans Warped Tour.
August Burns Red headlined their own "Leveler" tour on the first quarter of 2012 with Silverstein, Texas In July, I The Breather and Letlive. Later in 2012, August Burns Red embarked on a European tour with The Devil Wears Prada and Veil of Maya, and an American tour with Of Mice & Men and The Color Morale. August Burns Red released their first Holiday album, entitled August Burns Red Presents: Sleddin' Hill on October 9, 2012. On February 8, 2013 the band was officially announced as part of Warped Tour 2013 alongside Bring Me the Horizon, NeverShoutNever, Black Veil Brides, 3OH!3, Crizzly and Bowling for Soup.
On May 5, they announced that the album, Rescue & Restore was set to release June 25, 2013. The album debuted at No. 9 on the Billboard 200. On August 30, they announced that they would release a documentary DVD titled Foreign & Familiar before the end of the year.
On August 5, 2014, it was announced the band had signed to Fearless Records and Found in Far Away Places would be available for pre-order on April 13, 2015 along with their new single "The Wake".
The band embarked on the Frozen Flame Tour from January 22 to March 8, 2015 along with Miss May I, Northlane, Fit for a King and ERRA, for 39 shows in Canada and the United States, sponsored by Rockstar Energy.
On December 7, 2015 August Burns Red was nominated for a Grammy Award in the Best Metal Performance Category for their song "Identity".
The Messengers 10th Anniversary Tour in Europe and the United States started on January 4, 2017 with supporting artists, Protest the Hero, In Hearts Wake and '68. On July 26, 2017, August Burns Red announced their new album, Phantom Anthem, released on October 6, 2017. The first single from the album, "Invisible Enemy," premiered on the SiriusXM Liquid Metal show the same day as the album announcement.
Existence
August Burns Red Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Amidst your insecurities, cover up only to coward out
And never shutting up only to never speak aloud
Have you dried up entirely?
The walls of a church don't make it holy
It's what's authentic that completes the sum of it's parts
Don't excuse yourself from life today on the pretense of your past
You're hurt, you're broken, that's alright
This might be what it takes to wake you up
This might be what it takes to wake you up
Are you at your wits end yet?
Are you at your wits end yet?
Are you at your wits end?
Are you at your wits end yet?
The walls of a church don't make it holy
Security isn't glitzy or glamorous, concrete or cohesive
Therein lies the truth, lift your head up high
It's what we know we aren't that makes us who we are
It's what we know we aren't that makes us who we are
You're hurt, you're broken, that's alright
That makes us who we are
You're hurt, you're broken, that's alright
That makes us who we are
The lyrics of August Burns Red's song Existence delve into the struggles of a person dealing with the truth of their existence. The opening line of the song, "This hollow feeling, the knowledge that you exist," refers to the emptiness that one can feel when grappling with the reality of their existence. The following lines talk about how this feeling can lead to insecurity, causing one to cover up their true feelings and never speak their mind. The question of "Have you dried up entirely?" touches on the possibility of losing all emotional capacity after experiencing such intense emotions.
The chorus of the song talks about how the physical walls of a church do not make it holy. This refers to the idea that to truly be authentic and genuine, one must look beyond appearances and focus on what is real and honest. This is further emphasized in the line, "It's what we know we aren't that makes us who we are." The song also touches on the idea of not using one's past as an excuse to avoid living in the present.
The lyrics in the bridge of the song state that "Security isn't glitzy or glamorous, concrete or cohesive" and that the truth lies in lifting one's head up high. This is a powerful statement that reminds the listener that true security comes from within, not from external factors. The final line of the song, "You're hurt, you're broken, that's alright, that makes us who we are," summarizes the entire message of the song, which is that embracing our flaws and imperfections is what ultimately defines us and makes us who we are.
Line by Line Meaning
This hollow feeling, the knowledge that you exist
The feeling of emptiness and the realization that you exist
Amidst your insecurities, cover up only to coward out
You hide your flaws and back away because of your insecurities
And never shutting up only to never speak aloud
You stay quiet and never express your thoughts and opinions
Have you dried up entirely?
Have you lost all your strength and motivation?
The walls of a church don't make it holy
The building alone doesn't make the place holy
It's what's authentic that completes the sum of it's parts
It's the genuine believers and their actions that make the church holy
Don't excuse yourself from life today on the pretense of your past
Don't let your past hold you back from living your life
You're hurt, you're broken, that's alright
It's okay to feel hurt and broken
This might be what it takes to wake you up
This could be the experience that helps you realize the truth
Are you at your wits end yet?
Have you reached a point where you can't take it anymore?
The walls of a church don't make it holy
Repeating the importance of genuine faith instead of just a building
Security isn't glitzy or glamorous, concrete or cohesive
True security and safety aren't always showy and put together
Therein lies the truth, lift your head up high
The truth is that you need to keep going and not give up
It's what we know we aren't that makes us who we are
Our flaws and imperfections help shape our identity
You're hurt, you're broken, that's alright
Emphasizing that it's okay to be flawed and nobody is perfect
That makes us who we are
Our struggles and hardships mold us into our unique selves
Lyrics © CAPITOL CHRISTIAN MUSIC GROUP, Capitol CMG Publishing
Written by: BRENT RAMBLER, DUSTIN DAVIDSON, JAKE LUHRS, JOHN BRUBAKER, MATT GREINER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@helle_iii
Their lyrics aren't very poetic when read alone, but I think the way they are performed is where the lyrics shine. They fit the feel of the music and are quite interpretable. I think that's what matters the most.
@cxrevolution3769
No matter how many times I listen to this song, it always gives me chills by the end. Those lyrics are probably my favorite out of all ABR songs.
@fireflow726
Chris Right?? Chills, dude. That end growl is brutal.
@KevHxC
their lyrics are nothing but pure inspiration and enlightening. if you can understand them ofcourse, if you cant, just listen to the amazing riffs and drumming haha
@LostSinsCelebration
Matt's drumming on Constellations is absolutely insane.
@wessteyrn7746
+Lost Sins Celebration His drumming on any album is insane. My favourite has definitely got to be Rescue And Restore though. the drums were a lot more diverse there. I remember hating this album cause of the drums at first since I found them a bit repetitive but then it grew on me haha
@madeline5138
Holy crap, I know right? I was listening to this album on full blast the other day while I was cleaning my house, and I just had to stop since he just went ape crazy with his drums.
@rogerrabbit2902
Pure insane, son. Jesus.
@DustinBusa914
3:26 where everything starts building up after the breakdown gets me every time. real music. real words. metal.
@rogerrabbit2902
Pure American Metalcore.