Avett Brothers – GO SEE ‘EM!
When I got out of grad school in 1993, I had a brief stint with American Home Products in Richmond, Virginia. During this time, I had a good friend, John, who called me nearly every Wednesday night to say, “Come on Mel, let’s go see Dave!”
Who was Dave, you might be asking? Dave Matthews, who at the time, was playing at dives like the Flood Zone.
John tried to convince me that Dave “was gonna make it big;” but despite his sales efforts, I only joined him a time or two. After all, I’d just gotten a baby lab, and I couldn’t bear the thought of leaving her alone at night after being at work all day!
I was reminded of this story when I saw a band this week called the Avett Brothers. I almost didn’t see them, in fact. I’d been trying to buy tickets to this sold-out show at the Sun Valley Pavilion for a couple of weeks unsuccessfully. Then at 2:30 PM on the day of the show – BINGO! I got 2 tickets on Craig’s List, packed a bag, picked up my little guy Luke from camp and made the 3-hour trek over to Sun Valley! (The Pavillion, by the way, is an amazing place to see a show!).
If I could pick a few words to describe this band playing live, I think I’d just say “WOW!” I’ve never written a music review and couldn’t possibly do justice to how much I enjoyed the two hours of bliss during which they performed.
Now admittedly, I have Southern roots and like bluegrass and folk. But the sound of the Avett Brothers is more unique – in fact, they have been dubbed as “punkgrass.” As described in numerous places, “The Avett Brothers combine bluegrass, country, punk, pop melodies, folk, rock and roll, honky tonk, and ragtime to produce a sound described by the San Francisco Chronicle as having the ‘heavy sadness of Townes Van Zandt, the light pop concision of Buddy Holly, the tuneful jangle of the Beatles, the raw energy of the Ramones.’”
On their own website, their shows are described as: “Over the years, the Avett Brothers built up a sizable following based on their rowdy, infectious stage shows. In concert, the high-flying ensemble tears through tunes with unbridled energy, popping banjo and guitar strings right and left while inciting stomping singalongs among audiences that appear to know every word.”
By the end of the show, it’s near impossible not to stand up and dance along. My date for the evening, Luke, was up for the task and performed quite well himself.
Since I simply can’t do justice to Avett Brothers’ brilliance – I think I’ll just steal a line from John, “They’re gonna make it big.” Mark my words.
Pavilion photo courtesy of SunValley.com.
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