The Infamous Stringdusters & The Last Revel 3.10.18

-

Showbox Presents
Seattle, WA

Words by Erica Garvey
Photos by Chris Davis

Often bluegrass is categorized as folksy acoustic music, safe for a quiet night with the family out on the farm. And then a group like the Infamous Stringdusters comes along and reminds you that modern bluegrass is anything but that outdated perception, and attending a live show may require earplugs, goggles and steel-toed shoes.

Minneapolis natives The Last Revel kicked off the evening with a set that was impossibly vibrant from such an unassuming trio. With minimal production (and a wardrobe that was proactively Midwestern), the group built on traditional bluegrass with every sound they could think of among the three. When violinist Vincenzio Donatelle was not on bass, the lowest sounds were filled in by lead guitar and vocalist Lee Henke nonchalantly operating a kick drum. In turn, Henke and banjo player Ryan Acker switched instrumental roles from song to song. Henke added harmonica to his stringed instrument where appropriate. And everyone sang. The Last Revel is at least a seven piece band rolled into three mortal men.

The Showbox had become pretty full of heel-stomping fans by the time The Last Revel left the stage. The Showbox, situated near Seattle’s famed Pike Place Market, is a mid-century-ish understated deco ballroom, with elevated bar areas in the back corners of the room, built for dancing. If you’re over 5’ 5”, there is not a bad view in the house.

Fresh off their Laws of Gravity GRAMMY Awards win for Best Bluegrass Album, the Infamous Stringdusters were flying high from the moment they stepped onstage. It was their last show of their tour. More than a few people positioned in the front row had been on the road for multiple Stringdusters shows, and the divide between the stage and the dance floor felt like just an administrative detail. We knew we were all going to get down together.

Stringdusters created a perfect arc of energy over the course of the evening, starting strong with “Hobo Song” and “17 Cents,” each band member happily weaving around the stage. It seems like nearly every band member sings on nearly every song, and perhaps it is this ubiquitous attention to vocals (without eclipsing the instruments) that engages so many fans. The tune “This Ol’ Building” let out a bass line that delivered a bit of a classic rock feel, and employed some beautiful violin effects. The songs of the first set built all the way to a crowd-tickling cover of Phish’s “Possum,” and I am pleased to report that the floor did not break, though it was touch-and-go for a minute.

After a well-deserved set break, Stringdusters resumed the show with a few of their standards before quickly poking the (friendly) bear of a crowd with a lengthy tease of Phish’s “Bathtub Gin.” The band members moved around the stage and around each other more than most bands, and certainly more than any comparable bluegrass band. They were enjoying each other and they were enjoying the crowd. It was hard to tell who the actual “frontman” is, which is perfectly fine and quite admirable. Stringdusters were showing off the smooth, steady feel of their musicianship over a few more songs before they unleashed another rager in the form of a surprisingly danceable “Super Mario Brothers Theme,” which was immensely appreciated by attendees aged 30 to 45 (and was moderately confusing to everyone else).

The show closed with an appropriate end-of-tour blend of originals and classic covers. This night was a perfect ending to the Stringdusters’ GRAMMY victory lap. And next time I will be prepared with protective footwear.

Chris' Photo Gallery

www.thestringdusters.com

www.thelastrevel.com

Set One: Hobo Song, 17 Cents, Sirens, Water Wagon, Echoes of Goodbye, This Ol’ Building, Get It While You Can > Gravity (with Terrapin tease), Possum

Set Two: Run To Heaven, It’ll Be Alright > Home of the Red Fox (with Bathtub Gin tease), Soul Searching, Hobo Blues > Super Mario Brothers Theme > Tennessee Jed > Back Home > Black Elk, Head Over Heels (with Psycho Killer tease), Dancing In The Street, I Run To You

Encore: Harvest Moon, Rollin’ In My Sweet Baby’s Arms

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Livetronica Sampler 3.22.11

-
Image
Words by Greg Molitor ( ReMIND Photography ) Ozric Tentacles This British group has proven innovative throughout the years offering a space-rock meets psytrance sound that remains alive to this day. Though never having a major record label, Ozric Tentacles has produced 28 albums of diverse psychedelia throughout its career. The band met at the Stonehenge Free Festival in 1983 and truly fathered livetronica music with its use of sequencers and synthesizers. Simply put, there would be no livetronica without Ozric Tentacles. www.ozrics.com Octopus Nebula Colorado’s Octopus Nebula has certainly hit its stride as of late with its constant touring and increased festival interest. The group expands on the deep sounds of highly regarded acts such as STS9 and Shpongle but also carves a path of its own with its fresh takes on synthesizer tones and sampling in the live setting. Octopus Nebula Live at Cervantes' Masterpiece Ballroom on March 26, 2010. <--- Direct Archive Link www.octopus
Read more

Buckethead: Gimmick or Guitar God?

-
Image
Words & Photos By Nicholas Stock ( phatphlogblog.blogspot.com ) At what point does the gimmick overshadow the performance? The obvious answer is Buckethead. The man is an amazing guitarist but something is not right in this world. The idea a performer who dons a KFC chicken bucket on his head for a concert has always intrigued me, and some of his side projects such as Colonel Claypool’s Bernie Bucket of Brains have been huge successes. However his performance last weekend in Fort Collins simply left me perplexed. From his robotic dancing, to his nunchuck display, to the fact the he performed with an iPod rather than a band all added to my confusion. Going into the show I was ready to be blown away, despite rumblings of disgruntled fans from the previous night’s show at The Gothic. Buckethead had had some sound issues and some missed cues in Denver but I was still trying to be positive for the show in Fort Collins. It did go off without a hitch technically but that was the least
Read more

Billy Strings 4.18.19

-
Image
Salvage Station Asheville, NC Words by Jason Mebane Photos by J. Scott Shrader Photography When asked to write a review of last week's Billy Strings show at Asheville, North Carolina's Salvage Station I almost passed on it. I just wrote a review of his last Asheville show a few months ago and I thought it may be hard to come up with another set of words to describe to the readers exactly what a Billy Strings show is all about. I am sure there are a plethora of other reviews that other people have written focusing on how well he has mastered his instrument. I suppose I could recycle those thoughts and just sit here typing out a few adjectives describing each note Billy and his superb backing band played this past Thursday night, but that wouldn't be fun for me. Additionally I'd imagine a review like that wouldn't keep your attention either. Instead I have decided to focus on a few random parts of the Billy Strings show that seemed interesting to me. One: B
Read more

Shwarma, Cloud Catcher & Kaepora 6.21.24

-
Image
Cervantes Other Side Denver, CO Words & Photos by Pavel Gábor Kaplan Two weeks ago, Denver locals Shwarma graced the stage at Cervantes’ Other Side for the second time as headliners, with support from other Denver locals Cloud Catcher (stoner metal/power metal) and Kaepora (metal/funk/fusion). Coincidentally, both this year’s Summer Solstice and the Strawberry Full Moon transpired around Shwarma’s Album Release show, with the full moon falling on the night of the show. Certainly strong energy to power up the night of dancing and raging - from appropriately cosmic occurrences for a cosmically cool bill. It’s rare to have a full moon actually fall on the same day as a solstice. However, something not very rare is an unforgettable performance from Shwarma at Cervantes! I totally enjoyed photographing their Otherside shows last February when they opened for Lespecial to perform to a sold-out Ballroom-side, as well as their performance last Halloween at ‘Oogie Boogie’ alongside Dopapod,
Read more

Yarmony Music Festival 6.28 & 6.29.24

-
Image
Rancho Del Rio Bond, CO Words by J. Picard Photos by Scott Seifert Gratitude and appreciation have been the foundation of our time at Yarmony Music Festival (formerly, YarmonyGrass). Gratitude for the beauty of the space, Rancho Del Rio, and the mighty Colorado River that flows through it. Appreciation for the experiences, friendships and memories created. Over the span of the fourteen years that we've attended, we have seen firsthand a bonding of a core group of people who have become great friends, characters in each others' stories and in some cases, life partners. Following the incredible energy of the 2019 festival it was announced that Yarmony would be put to rest, to the dismay of many pirates. Though times got strange and folks were pushed apart, there was still a low, slow, pulse beating in the background. We did what we could to keep the spirit of the memory alive until one unsuspecting day, a long five years later, promoter Andrew McConathy announced that from its re
Read more