August 5th @ First Bank Amphitheater

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All Photos By Brandy Beverung/Shot Of Brandy Photography

GRETA VAN FLEET’s kickoff show for their “Strange Horizons” short-tour was the first of the tour and the second ever for the brand new venue, First Bank Amphitheater. First Bank opened its doors the night before for the very first time. This venue, situated twenty minutes outside of Nashville, is unique in that it is built inside of a rock quarry and is reminiscent of a slightly smaller Red Rocks in Colorado.

Driving into the venue, it was obvious that this was a sold-out show. It hit me how much the band has grown in their short tenure, starting out playing small clubs and theaters, to now two back-to-back sold-out shows at this 7,500 person capacity amphitheater.

CEDRIC BURNSIDE warmed up the crowd with some great blues guitar. Following Burnside was SHOVELS AND ROPE, a folk duo (and married couple), Michael Trent and Cary Ann Hearst. Talent abounds in this duo and between the two of them, they managed to include vocals (Trent and Hearst), guitar (Trent), foot pedal synth (Trent), and drums (Hearst) in their act. Their harmonies were on point and the distorted synths gave their folk music a very modern edge. There were some sound issues with what sounded like a bad cable or microphone to the PA, making a very loud crackling noise ringing through the crowd. The duo responded by simply saying “Spinal Tap” and continuing on (pro move). They bowed and it was time for the main act!

Once the curtain fell (pun intended), you could not help but notice the attention to detail of this completely white stage. White floor, white backdrops, white piano, drum kit, mic stands, mic cables. It wouldn’t be a rock show without Marshall Cabs, and the band chose white for those as well. The stage was filled with backlights that flashed red and blue absolutely filling the stage with color throughout the night.

GRETA VAN FLEET is made up of brothers Josh (vocals), Jake (guitar), and Sam (bass and keys) Kiszka, and Danny Wagner on drums. This tour is supporting their latest album, The Battle of the Garden Gate (released April 16th of this year). While several of the songs on the set were the first time they have ever been played live, one of the encore songs ("Highway Tune") was introduced by Josh saying, “How about the first song we ever wrote?! “. The crowd went wild and the pit was full of fans in tears. The band did a great job keeping the crowd engaged and Josh’s vocals sounded just like the album!

Despite the anticipated traffic on the way out of the new venue, the crowd stayed until the very last song, a testament to the quality of this show.

If you want to experience this show, you better hurry! It’s a short tour and tickets are selling out quickly!

Short-Tour Dates:

• 8.27 — Hartford HealthCare Amphitheater—Bridgeport, CT
• 9.3 — Huntington Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island—Chicago, IL
• 10.26 — Greek Theatre—Los Angeles, CA