The last time I had seen the Avett Brothers was when they were on tour opening up for BR-549. I had been meeting with my mechanic and had shown up late to the show only to catch the last three songs. It wasn’t nearly enough to get my fix so I met up with a friend from the ATL in Augusta GA to get my get a full fill this time around. This was the last show of a long tour that kicked off soon after the holidays.
Rumor has it that Bob (on bass) had gone to the hospital and was later on stage wearing the blue bracelet from getting admitted and that hecklers had threatened to kick their asses at some point along the tour. The Avett’s brandishing instruments of the bluegrass or old time tradition are neither bluegrass nor old time. They were booed like the first time Bob Dylan went eletric at the IBMA for falling to outside the norm and probably as misunderstood as Jimi Hendrix before he went across the pond. The Avett revel in it as lost love of their past. They’re starting to continually sell out shows and establishing a fan base across the country. Their newest album Four Thieves Gone: The Robbinsville Sessions is pushing toward the top twenty five on the college music charts and yet when you ask a fan to describe their music no one comes up with the same answer.
However all fan will agree that the Avett’s evoke two things live; energy and emotion (and none the less on the last show of this tour). The Mission show was nearly sold out and started early. My friend Mark was hooked by the third song as he watched the band head banging in unison while torturing their strings and jumping on the pedals of their bass drum and high-hat in screaming harmony. The Avett’s were happy to be closer to home and in the south. There songs lyrically are well written even if the music remains simple it is their delivery that is complex. I can’t tell you who they are like but that’s what sets them apart. They are much like a southern quilt, pieces of the past being brought together in something that is completely new and different. I love the Avett’s and look forward to catching more shows in the future.
