Our final concert for August at the Big Sky Brewing Company occurred on August 25, and included solo performer Rayland Baxter, and bands José González & the Brite Lights and Shakey Graves. It was a remarkably chill evening that coincided with the return of the students for the fall semester at the University of Montana and the 13th annual River City Roots Festival. Once again, it was produced by Knitting Factory Presents, and they did another wonderful job, as did the amazing catering staff of Riversong Gourmet Catering.
Nashville native Rayland Baxter kicked off the evening with a short 20-minute solo set, playing songs from his recently released album Wide Awake. He also made a tongue-in-cheek attempt at shredding, much to the delight of the crowd. After his set, we got to spend some time together, as he hung out with me at the pass gate, watching portions of the rest of the artists performing. He was an extremely nice guy who had a few friends and fans in the audience, and took the time to talk to each and every one of them.
Next on the stage was Swedish artist José González, who brought his band, The Brite Lights, with him. The harmonies were exquisite, as was the amazing sound of their music. The audience got into them rather quickly, and were soon in sync with the performance. The band also had the amazing sound of The Gipsy Kings, and the audience roared with approval at not just the vocal harmonies but the musical harmonies and percussion as well. Check out their most recent Spotify upload for a taste of the magic.
Finally, it was time for the headliner, and the crowd was restless with anticipation. This was the third recent performance by Shakey Graves in Missoula. The last time he was here, he was the opening act for The Decemberists’ Traveler’s Rest Festival last year. He and his other guitarist snuck into the crowd and began their set from just in front of the sound booth while his drummer and bass player joined in from the stage. The crowd went crazy, and it became quickly clear that we were in for a wonderful show. Graves played with his band for approximately 30 minutes before sending them off on a break while he performed alone as a one-man band, reminiscent of the great Rocco DeLuca. As this was his first local performance with a full band, the audience was most familiar with his solo material. This portion also lasted about 30 minutes before he was joined on stage for a stirring duet with Baxter. After the song, Graves invited Baxter to join in with the band, and he continued on acoustic guitar, providing a welcome addition to the overall amazing sound of Graves’ band. He sent the band away again and performed his final songs by himself, honestly telling the crowd that it was his true “last song”, as he wasn’t going to do a fake encore. The concert ended before curfew, and the crowd quickly departed the venue. Afterwards, I had the opportunity to take a co-worker and his date backstage. She was a huge Shakey Graves fan, and was dying to meet him. I had already cleared it with management, and Graves was the perfect gentleman as he took the time to talk with them and take pictures. It was the perfect ending to a wonderful night of music.