SHADOWS FALL, the veteran metal band hailing from Massachusetts, pioneers of the New Wave Of American Metal movement that defined the 2000s, commemorated the 20th anniversary of their album “The War Within” in a special event last night
The iconic LP was performed in its entirety at the Starland Ballroom in Sayreville, New Jersey, a venue steeped in the band’s rich history of memorable performances. Notably, this marked SHADOWS FALL‘s return to the Garden State after a hiatus of ten years.
When the show was first announced last November, SHADOWS FALL frontman Brian Fair said: “20 years… cannot believe it will 20 years since SHADOWS FALL dropped ‘The War Within’ on the world. This record changed my entire life and took me around the world. We had been surprised by the success of ‘The Art Of Balance’ and definitely felt a little pressure to take things to another level, but we did not allow that pressure to change our vision of the band we wanted to be. Our goal was to allow all of our influences shine through while pushing metal into a new direction, creating the music we had always wanted to hear ourselves.”
He continued: “‘The War Within’ may be the closest we have come to achieving these goals and that hard work and vision allowed us to get on our first arena tour, our first Grammy nomination, and countless other firsts along the way. Since this is an important birthday for the album, we wanted to play a special set to celebrate ‘The War Within’ in its entirety, every track, some of which has rarely been played live.”
He finished, nodding to the Garden State’s pivotal role in the band’s history, saying: “New Jersey has always had some of the craziest crowds we have ever played to so doing this show at The Starland Ballroom seemed like the perfect choice! Dirty Jersey has always felt like a home away from home to us and we have had so many full-on parties on that stage. We cannot wait to party there again! Start stretching now and get ready to come out of mosh retirement so we can give ‘The War Within’ the birthday rager it deserves. See ya soon!”
Following their statement in August 2014 citing financial challenges that hindered their ability to sustain full-time operations, Fair and his fellow SHADOWS FALL bandmates embarked on a series of reunion concerts. These included appearances at the Blue Ridge Rock Festival in Alton, Virginia, the Furnace Fest in Birmingham, Alabama, and the Milwaukee Metal Fest in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
In August 2015, SHADOWS FALL returned to the stage for a handful of reunion shows along the U.S. East Coast. This came one year after concluding what was initially billed as their “final” European tour.
Their album “Fire From The Sky“, released in May 2012 through Razor & Tie, made a notable impact by selling approximately 10,000 copies in its debut week in the United States. This achievement saw the album debut at No. 38 on The Billboard 200 chart.