One rarity deserves another, like a Blue Moon on Friday the 13th or the Golden State Warriors erasing a 3-1 deficit in the NBA playoffs only to give one right back the next round. On Wednesday night, that double rainbow came by way of a hootenanny on a rainy night in Los Angeles, courtesy of The Infamous Stringdusters at the Troubadour in West Hollywood.
The band kicked off their 2019 tour, in support of their upcoming album entitled Rise Sun, with two blistering sets in front of an intimate but jubilant crowd. On Wednesday, the Stringdusters had yet to officially debut their new single, “Rise Sun”, so those who attended were at once blissfully ignorant to what dropped the very next day and perfectly locked into a vintage set from the Nashville bluegrass quintet.
The Infamous Stringdusters did well to showcase their talent at every position, passing the leadership hat from one microphone to the next. Jeremy Garrett gave the spotlight a ride while fiddling through “Big River,” “Soul Searching,” “Let It Go” and a cover of U2’s “In God’s Country.” Andy Hall took his dobro for a spin while singing to “Night on the River” and “You Can’t Stop the Changes.” Travis Book took his double bass for a stroll through “Rockets,” “Get It While You Can,” “It’ll Be Alright,” “How Far I’d Fall For You,” “Thirsty in the Rain” and a cover of Sly and the Family Stone’s “I Want to Take You Higher.” And of course, Andy Falco and Chris Pandolfi had their turns at the helm—the former flashing his guitar and vocals on “Peace of Mind,” the latter banging on his banjo to “Machines,” which he wrote at a friend’s place in nearby Santa Monica.
And as a unit, they teased attendees with a “2001: A Space Odyssey” jam and joined up to close out the show with “Gravity.” In truth, that synchronicity was evident throughout the sets. As much as each member did to carry his lode in the lead, they were at their best lifting up one another by flexing their collective musical muscle. The most striking rarity of the night, then, wasn’t so much how The Infamous Stringdusters summoned the spirit of a barnyard hoedown in the middle of a sprawling metropolis. It certainly wasn’t that fans still flocked to the Troubadour, despite a (relatively) torrential downpour bringing LA traffic to even more of a standstill than usual. Rather, the greatest anomaly of all was really no anomaly at all. It was just The Infamous Stringdusters doing what they do: trotting out a lineup wherein each member has top-flight ability, both instrumentally and vocally, but from which, somehow, the whole is still greater than the sum of its parts. So, if The Infamous Stringdusters coming to your neck of the woods is a rarity, and they’re passing through on this tour, best believe you shouldn’t wait for an actual Blue Moon to check them out.
Checkout a beautiful gallery of photos below from Wednesday night’s show courtesy of photographer Brandon Weil.
For ticketing and a full list of The Infamous Stringdusters’ upcoming tour dates, head to the band’s website.
Source: “Los Angeles” – Google News