On dobro player Anders Beck’s pedal-board was a simple sticker that read “Twang > Womp.” There was going to be no EDM tonight, no womp; only the twang of string instruments that form the music of Greensky Bluegrass. They brought that twang to the Pabst Theater in Milwaukee last weekend, on February 27th.
The first set began with a straightforward bluegrass number: “White Freightliner Blues.” It was fast and furious, and coming out of the gate with such a blazer, everyone in the crowd knew the show was going to be a treat. They stuck true to their genre and played a standard “Light Up or Leave Me Alone,” blending bluegrass elements into the classic Traffic tune.
One of the highlights in the first set was the rendition of “Windshield.” A slower tune that is less bluegrass and more acoustic rock, the crowd quieted slightly in order to take in every note. The banjo part is really salient and catchy, and the same could be said of the vocals. Certainly a moving moment.
Greensky finished off the set strong, venturing through strong harmony vocals, more fast-paced bluegrass, and some improvisational playing that boded well for the second set. After a quick setbreak to regroup, the band came out even more amped than before.
Just like the first set, the band took the stage to the opening dialogue of Star Trek blaring out of the speakers; to boldly go where no man has gone before. The band may not look like nerds, but they each held up one hand and gave the Vulcan Salute. Audience members responded in kind, giving the same salute back toward the band. It was a touching tribute to Leonard Nimoy, who passed away earlier that day.
Fittingly, they opened the second set with Bruce Springsteen’s “Atlantic City.” With the chorus of “everything dies baby that’s a fact… but maybe everything that dies someday comes back,” the loss of Nimoy was heavily felt.
The next tune delved into some bluegrass psychedelia, a genre that might sound paradoxical but was so easy and fun on the ears. I asked a girl next to me what the name of this spaced-out bluegrass song was and she only responded, “The greatest fucking song in this moment.” I should have known.
The entire second set only expanded on their unique style of bluegrass. During the encore even one of the bands roadies came out on stage and joined the band, He walked onto the stage, parked right at one of the microphones, gave two shakes of a tambourine, and promptly walked off. Fun moment.
Playing the Pabst Theater for the first time in their career, Greensky made sure to give special shout out to Pabst- both the theater and the beer. Between songs they provided some banter in which they recounted times in their hometown of Kalamazoo where they would sit around, drink Pabst beer, and make bluegrass music together. You could tell they were excited to play this show.
Hopefully Greensky Bluegrass can come back very soon, because they put on an excellent bluegrass concert- great string work, excellent vocals filled with harmony, and improvisational musicianship.
