Greensky Bluegrass and their incredible team didn’t let a deluge flooding at the Blue Ridge Falls drive-in stop them from bringing music to their fans last night. Instead, they picked up the entire production, moved to the Asheville Music Hall and streamed more than an hour of their amazing blend of bluegrass and psychedelic rock to the fans online, via HYFI, around the world. Amazingly, they managed it with perfect sound and another gorgeous visual production from their stellar lighting director Andrew Lincoln.
It would have been perfectly reasonable for Greensky to simply pull the plug and work on getting things ready for the rest of the weekend. Luckily, being reasonable isn’t how Greensky Bluegrass built themselves into one of the biggest string bands in the land. The passion and dedication they showed going from Tuesday nights in dive bars to taking over Red Rocks Amphitheatre for a three-day weekend was on full display during the last minute, Hail Mary set. As they showed earlier this summer, Greensky clearly has their live streaming game on point.
[Photo: Dylan Langille]
After giving thanks for the efforts of the venue and the surely-exhausted road crew they launched into an appropriate “Worried About The Weather”. Guitarist Dave Bruzza‘s opening lyric “Hang on, hang on, I will be there,” gained a little extra poignancy due to context and it showed Greensky was clearly happy to finally get to making music.
Over the course of the next hour plus Greensky gave long time followers a bevy of classics, including an expansive “Old Barns” that saw Anders Beck go deep into his psychedelic trance mode. Mandolin maven Paul Hoffman showed off his ability to go from lightning fast fretboard runs to heart wrenching vocals during “Wish I Didn’t Know”.
Bassist Mike Devol brought the lowest, most rumbling bass notes in the bluegrass biz to the low stakes crime thriller “Jaywalking”. To close out the abbreviated set Greensky went with a massive “Broke Mountain Breakdown” into “Wings For Wheels” sandwich that gave banjo impresario Michael Bont a chance to show off his lightning fast rolls and twirls.
[Photo: Dylan Langille]
The near 20-minute closing jam gave the show a heft that is a hallmark of Greensky Bluegrass. There are no half measures in their world. When this band commits to something, they see it through—even if they have to pick up the entire show and move it miles away. That kind of dedication, along with their incredible music, is what earned them the legion of fans who were ready to dance the night away.
Hopefully Greensky Bluegrass and their fans will get to share the magic at Friday and Saturday’s shows at the Blue Ridge Falls Drive-In. That said, whatever happens, it’s a safe bet that the band will find a way to bring the music to their fans…even if they have to go door-to door to do it. Luckily for them, if it comes to that this weekend, they might get a lil candy for the effort to go with our undying appreciation for all they do.
Tickets for the Greensky Bluegrass Halloween Drive-In Streams are available via Hyfi here
Setlist: Greensky Bluegrass | Asheville Music Hall | Asheville, NC | 10/29/2020
Set: Worried About the Weather, Old Barns, Wish I Didn’t Know >Rueben’s Train, Like Reflections, Jaywalking, Courage for the Road, Broke Mountain Breakdown >Wings for Wheels >Broke Mountain Breakdown
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