Set 1: 64-18, Black Pearl*, Fire, Solutions> Wasted, Funky Train, Cause A Reaction, Fool In The Rain> Soup> Fool In The Rain
*w/ Kyle Hollingsworth
They wasted no time at all inviting Kyle Hollingsworth out who appeared in his second or possibly third costume of the evening. He would eventually don eight distinct outfits. Kyle and Euforquestra collaborated on a smoking, original instrumental, “Black Pearl.” Kyle said goodbye and the boys pressed on with the title track from their lasted album, Fire. The occasion marked the first time that Euforquestra has performed at The Fillmore. They brought along their regular cast of characters as well as Matt Grundstad on percussion, Danny Sears on trumpet, and Jonathan Stewart on saxophone. Euforquestra went into the reggae-tinged “Solutions” before they segued cleanly into “Wasted.” This was a great show for Euforquestra and garnered them a lot of new fans. They closed their set with an epic rendition of Led Zeppelin’s “Fool In The Rain” into their own “Soup” before returning to “Fool In The Rain.” Kyle Hollingsworth Band came to the stage next. KHB normally includes Dave Watts and Garrett Sayers, however The Motet had a show with Keller Williams at The El Rey Theater. Regular guitarist Dan Schwindt was in the house and Kyle invited Kim Dawson on vocals as well as Matt Grundstad on percussion to sit in throughout their show.Set 1: Let’s Go Outside> Eminence Front> Let’s Go Outside, Here We Go, Falling Through The Cracks, We Can Work It Out, You’ve Got The World*, Racer X, Way It Goes, Happening Now, Instrumental, Can’t Wait Another Day**, Crosseyed And Painless*, Rosie*
*w/ Members of Euforquestra
**w/ Andy Hall on Dobro
They started with a busted “Let’s Go Outside.” They threw us a curvball with The Who’s “Eminence Front” reminding us that The Who were still a band in the 1980’s. Schwintyrock shredded the classic before the band circled back to the opening song. “Here We Go” was the first of several tracks off of Kyle’s new album Speed Of Life. This song has an almost Cajun feel with the rolling notes of the organ dominating the mix. Kim Dawson demonstrated her star power on their version of The Beatles’ “We Can Work It Out.” Kyle invited Austin Zalatel and company from Euforquestra out for “You’ve Got The World.” Fans danced enthusiastically during the pop-infused “Happening Now.” Andy Hall from The Infamous Stringdusters lent his Dobro on a stellar “Can’t Wait Another Day.” The Talking Heads’ “Crosseyed And Painless” was the obvious highlight of the set. The song featured some powerful vocal harmonization from Kyle and Kim as well a perfect blending of the Euforquestra horns with KHB’s sound. They closed with a high speed “Rosie.” The beer continued to flow freely in the VIP section. By now the “Brew Fest” had been totally dismantled to make room for dancing. After the stage was cleared Dave Bruzza and Paul Hoffman from Greensky Bluegrass did a quick sound check before they disappeared. The Infamous Stringdusters emerged from the darkness of backstage with instruments in hand. This five headed bluegrass monstrosity fresh off of their show in Fort Collins was ready to rage. After a brief hello the Dusters opened with “ Metal Trash” into “Mountain Town.”Set 1: Metal Trash> Mountain Town, Blackrock, Get It While You Can> Fork In The Road, Angeline, Head Over Heels, Summercamp> Walking On The Moon, If I Had A Block Of Wood, Hey You, End Of The Line, Hitchhiker, All The Same, Long and Lonesome Day> Fire, Stranger, Y2K, Hillbillies (Gettin’ Down The Road), Let It Go, Colorado*, High Country Funk*> Travelin’ Tear Drop Blues*> After Midnight*> Travelin’ Tear Drop Blues
Encore: This Must Be The Place**, Atlantic City***, Boogie On Reggae Woman****
* w/Kyle Hollingsworth on keyboards and vocals
** w/Kyle Hollingsworth on keyboards and vocals, Brian McCray on drums
*** w/Paul Hoffman on mandolin/lead vocals, Dave Bruzza on guitar/vocals, Kyle Hollingsworth on keyboards and vocals, Brian McCray on drums
**** w/Kim Dawson on vocals, Paul Hoffman on mandolin/vocals, Dave Bruzza on guitar/vocals, Kyle Hollingsworth on keyboards/vocals, Brian McCray on drums, and members of Euforquestra
This set was a magical dreamscape that took fans on a truly unexpected musical journey. (I judge set lists by the number of asterisks required to fully explain the show, and this concert contains a lot of notation.) Early in the set The Stringdusters played a pair of traditional bluegrass tunes “Angeline The Baker” alongside Lester Flatt’s “Head Over Heels.” They proceeded with their whimsical homage to childhood, “Summercamp” into a perfectly bluegrass version of The Police’s “Walking On The Moon.” The twang-tastic “End Of The Line” was a highlight, while Pandolfi’s banjo blossomed during “Stranger.” By this point The Infamous Stringdusters had already put on one hell of a show, but things were about get interesting. After the title track to their latest album Let It Go, they invited the consummate host Kyle Hollingsworth to join on keys. Kyle would stay for the remainder of the show. They went into their ode to the Centennial State, “Colorado.” Kyle’s keys were the perfect compliment to the Dusters’ strings. Keeping the mountain music going they opted to play “High Country Funk.” Without missing a beat they continued into a “Travelin’ Tear Drop Blues” sandwich with JJ Cale’s “After Midnight” in the middle. The always-gracious Stringdusters thanked the audience before the encore. Kyle brought his drummer Brian McCray back out with him to aid in a version of The Talking Heads’ “This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody). This has traditionally been a Kyle song and hearing the stringed out version was an absolute treat. The friends kept coming with Dave Bruzza and Paul Hoffman finally emerging to sit in on Bruce Springsteen’s “Atlantic City.” They closed the show by inviting Kim Dawson and members of Euforquestra to join in on Stevie Wonder’s “Boogie On Reggae Woman.” The audience was absolutely electrified during the final number. This show was everything that a music fan could hope for. The night was full of collaboration, excellent beer, and three spectacular sets. My only hope is that this becomes a full-blown yearly tradition. Cheers and Hoppy Holidays. [gallery ids="21033,21034,21028,21027,21024,21025,21021,21023,21020,21026,21032,21019,21022,21031,21013,21014,21015,21016,21030,21017,21018,21029,21009,21008,21035,21006,21036,21007,21037,21038,21039,21040"]]]>
