I Prevail at the Marlin Room at Webster Hall

Eric Vanlerberghe

The original members of I Prevail met on social media networks and formed a post-hardcore band in 2013 in Rochester Hills and Southfield, Michigan. The band gained attention after posting a cover of Taylor Swift's "Blank Space" on social media in 2014, then released its debut EP in 2015 and a debut album, Lifelines, on October 21, 2016. I Prevail presently consists of vocalists Brian Burkheiser and Richard "Eric" Vanlerberghe, guitarists Steve Menoian and Dylan Bowman, bassist Tony Camposeo, and drummer Lee Runestad.

I Prevail headlined the Marlin Room at Webster Hall tonight and brought all the trademarked elements of post-hardcore, matching bombastic metal grooves with lighter vocal melodies. Burkheiser provided the clean vocals and Vanlerberghe provided the harsh vocals, and Menoian repeatedly pierced the thunder with sparkling lead guitar riffs. On the surface, the performance was solid yet perhaps a bit standard. I Prevail provided a glimmer of what will take the band from trademark to landmark, however, and that was impressively accomplished through positive lyrics and uplifting banter between songs. The band members addressed issues of abuse, depression and suicide, pausing to urge the afflicted to seek assistance. Hope-filled heavy metal is rare to come by, and I Prevail merited generous applause for its unabashed presentation.

Visit I Prevail at www.iprevailband.com.

Setlist:

1. Come and Get It
2. Love, Lust and Liars
3. Stuck in Your Head
4. Already Dead
5. Pull the Plug
6. Chaos
7. Complicated / She Hates Me / Bodies
8. Blank Space (Taylor Swift cover)
9. Alone
10. Crossroads
11. Face Your Demons
12. RISE
13. Lifelines

Encore:

1. Worst Part of Me
2. Scars