True to its name, Margo Price is playing ‘Til The Wheels Fall Off this tour on this ongoing run of shows behind her new album, Strays. Arriving in Dallas, TX on Saturday for a show at the Granada Theater with help from Daniel Donato’s Cosmic Country, Price arrived alongside a seven-piece band of Nashville pros. With these musical mercenaries behind her, she treated the crowd to a selection of songs from her latest release and 2020’s That’s How Rumors Get Started.
The setlist was similar to the previous night at Emo’s in Austin with the addition of a tasteful cover of Paul McCartney’s “Let Me Roll It”. Her Americana-alternative vibe was well received in Dallas and her fans sang along enthusiastically even to her less than a month-old material.
Between songs, the singer-songwriter spoke of her love for Dallas and recalled going to shows at the Kessler Theater in her younger years. She performed an acapella version of Janis Joplin’s “Mercedes Benz” featuring her beautiful country voice and delivered a well-rounded and polished performance complete with an outfit change and captivating stage presence.
That same night, Daniel Donato and his Cosmic Country crew made their return to Dallas to play for one of their biggest crowds yet at the Granada Theater. You may have come across Donato’s blistering Telecaster country licks with Kitchen Dwellers or Greensky Bluegrass, but his Nashville-based Cosmic Country band is an absolute must-see.
Donato took the stage in a Mickey Mouse shirt and signature surf green Telecaster to a nearly sold-out crowd at the 1,000-person capacity Granada. The guitarist has been an exceptional player since his teenage years and made his chicken pickin’ prowess and sense of humor known among the guitar community by building a sizable audience on social media. But with this Cosmic Country outfit, Daniel has made the leap from zany Nashville guitar whiz to the leader of a sonically unified band capable of taking a group of willing astronauts on a multi-genre rollercoaster of guitar-driven psychedelia.
The musical highlight of the night was the instrumental version of Stan Jones’ 1948 “Ghost Riders in the Sky” made famous by Johnny Cash. The Cosmic Country band had summoned the spirit of Texas, with Noah Miller‘s absolutely ferocious drumming acting as a conduit. A drum kit hadn’t taken that kind of beating in Dallas since Dogs In A Pile’s Joey Babbick was in town a few months back.
The Western frontier cowboy song built to a cacophony of sound fit for a gun duel. Daniel’s Telecaster ascended up swirling peaks that were then blasted into the cosmos with harmonies coming from Nathan Aronowitz’s organ. The crowd roared in delight as the melody was stretched further with an incredible Donato solo marking the crescendo of the set.
Be sure to catch Daniel and his cosmic gang on his wide-reaching tour beginning in March for a chance to experience the Cosmic Country live. Check out a gallery of images from Margo Price and Daniel Donato in Dallas courtesy of photographer Andrew Sherman.
