Fresh off an unforgettable performance to help kick off Dead & Company‘s GD60 celebration at Golden Gate Park and a soul-stirring sit-in with the band on “Wharf Rat”, Billy Strings headed to the Midwest to launch his summer tour with shows in Milwaukee and Minneapolis.
On Friday, the band arrived at Milwaukee’s Fiserv Forum with renewed energy and a trick or two up its sleeve, opening with the hard-charging instrumental “Malfunction Junction”. The highlight of the evening was the revival of Gordon Lightfoot‘s “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald”, played for the first time since April. But in addition to that, Strings and company treated fans to an explorative showcase rife with blazing chops, fierce instrumental showdowns, and ample psychedelia.
Billy Strings – “The Wreck Of The Edmond Fitzgerald” (Gordon Lightfoot) – 8/8/25
[Video: Jim Bauw]
Along the way, the bluegrass phenom broke out his double-neck Martin Grand J-28E while bassist Royal Masat slid over to the Nord keyboard for “Stratosphere Blues” / “I Believe in You” before capping the first set with an adventurous “Seven Weeks In County” jam. Strings was quick on the draw in a duel with fiddler Alex Hargreaves during “Fire Line”, which segued beautifully into an expansive cover of Frank Wakefield‘s “End of the Rainbow” that gave banjoist Billy Failing a moment in the spotlight. As the second set wound down, the heart-wrenching original “While I’m Waiting Here” set up a seamless three-song sequence that continued with a freewheeling “Pyramid Country” jam and concluded with the traditional “John Hardy”. Without leaving the stage, Strings sent fans off into the night with “How Mountain Girls Can Love”, playing right up until the venue’s 11 o’clock curfew.
Billy Strings – Milwaukee Recap – 8/8/25
On Saturday, Strings hit a bullseye at the Target Center in Minneapolis with a barn-burning opening triad of “Taking Water” > “Running the Route” > “Hollow Heart”. Later in the set, he paid tribute to folk icon and Minnesota native Bob Dylan with a bluegrass arrangement of “Tangled Up in Blue”, before delving deep into John Hartford‘s “All Fall Down”. The set closed with a dark and immersive “Turmoil & Tinfoil”, the longest jam of the night, clocking in at 17 minutes.
After set break, Billy returned to the stage by himself and started the second set solo with The Delmore Brothers‘ “Nashville Blues”, followed by a folky telling of his run-in with the law with Leftover Salmon‘s Vince Herman, “Catch and Release”, and an a cappella rendition of “And Am I Born to Die?”. The full band then joined in for a mix of originals and covers, including a heartfelt “Home”, the haunting “My Alice”, and a succinct version of Bad Livers‘ “Pretty Daughter”. Once again forgoing a formal encore, the band finished the night with the Gershwin classic “Summertime” and a pair of unfettered jams, a wild “Ride Me High” and “Hide and Seek”, reaching nearly 30 mins between the two.
Strings and his band will finish their Midwest run on Tuesday at Scheels Arena in Fargo, ND before heading to the Northwest. Find tickets and a full list of tour dates here. The entire tour is also available to stream live and on demand via nugs. [Editor’s note: Live For Live Music is a nugs affiliate. Ordering your subscription via the links on this page helps to support our work covering the world of live music. Thank you for reading!]
Billy Strings – “Taking Water” > “Running The Route” > “Hollow Heart” – 8/9/25
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Setlist [via BillyBase]: Billy Strings | Fiserv Forum | Milwaukee, WI | 8/8/25
Set 1: Malfunction Junction, The Fire On My Tongue, Heartbeat Of America, In The Morning Light, I’m a Natural Born Gamblin’ Man, The Old Mountaineer, Love Like Me, Ghost Train, Ole Slew Foot, Stratosphere Blues / I Believe in You [1], In the Clear, Seven Weeks in County
Set 2: Richard Petty [2], My Sweet Blue Eyed Darling [3], The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, Fire Line, End Of The Rainbow [4], While I’m Waiting Here, Pyramid Country, John Hardy, How Mountain Girls Can Love
Notes:
[1] Billy Strings on a Martin Grand J-28E, Royal Masat on a Nord Stage 3 88-Key Keyboard & Billy Failing on Masterton ML-1: Missing Link Béla Fleck Baritone Banjo
[2] Full band (minus Alex) around single mic
[3] Full band around single mic
[4] “Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time” (Amy Turk) tease
Setlist [via BillyBase]: Billy Strings | Target Center | Minneapolis, MN | 8/9/25
Set 1: Taking Water > Running The Route > Hollow Heart, Hellbender, Happy Hollow, Tangled Up In Blue > All Fall Down, Be Your Man, Long Forgotten Dream, I’m One Of Those, Turmoil & Tinfoil
Set 2: Nashville Blues [1], Catch and Release [1], And Am I Born To Die? [2], Home, My Alice, Pretty Daughter, Psycho, Red Daisy, On The Line, Train 45, Summertime, Ride Me High, Hide and Seek
Notes:
[1] Billy Strings solo
[2] Billy Strings solo a cappella