DISTURBED
MEGADETH UTILITA ARENA, BIRMINGHAM
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“THE REPORTS OF the media have been greatly exaggerated,” declares David Draiman. “By the look of this pretty much slam-packed arena tonight, there’s still a lot of love for Disturbed in Birmingham.”
David is feeling vindicated. In July, he was booed when stepping out as a guest vocalist at Back To The Beginning in Birmingham. There was no mystery as to why. A year earlier, he’d waded into the Israel-Gaza conflict with all the restraint and nuance of an oversized toddler with a sledgehammer. On Instagram, he shared a picture of himself signing an artillery shell while visiting the Israeli Defence Forces. It’s had far-reaching consequences, including a mayor in Belgium cancelling a show over threats of “violent demonstrations”. But as an almost sold-out 16,000-capacity Utilita Arena attests, the backlash isn’t universal.