Words and Photos by Geoffrey Clowes

Infamous Stringdusters

 

This is a great time to be a bluegrass fan. With bands like Keller Williams Pettygrass, Yonder Mountain String Band, and Greensky Bluegrass selling out tours across the country, live bluegrass is hotter than ever. This was on full display as the Infamous Stringdusters brought their brand of jam based bluegrass to Revolution Live in Ft. Lauderdale on March 9th. The Nashville quintet was joined by South Florida “soulgrass” band The Copper Tones on this stop of the Winter tour.

Infamous Stringdusters

 

Supporting the latest release Rise Sun, the setlist had fans both young and old singing along to old favorites culled from the catalog, new songs, and reworked covers. While this particular setlist drew heavily from 2017 ‘s Laws of Gravity the rest of the catalog was well represented as were some tasty covers.

 

The first set opened with a jamming Light and Love from the 2014 release Let It Go. The virtuosity of the band was on full display as the guys worked the fret board with a speed not usually seen in bluegrass. Following Sentenced To Life With the Blues, the pace slowed a bit for a cover of the Marvin Gaye classic, What’s Going On. The first frame wrapped up with a Gravity>Tennessee Jed jam.

The second set opened with as much jammy intensity as the first ended with as they tore into You Can’t Stop the Changes>Hobo Song. As is usually the case with the second set the band led the crowd down a musical rabbit hole filled with stretched out songs venturing further and further away from bluegrass and toward somewhere unknown. Not many can pull off a Water Wagon>Just Like Heaven cover but the band did it flawlessly while still staying true to The Cure. The set wrapped up with Fork In the Road and a Rise Sun encore.

One of the highlights of the night was the opening act, local favorites The Copper Tones.  Performing a combination of soul, bluegrass, and R&B the South Florida based band gave the crowd a taste of what was to come with some traditional bluegrass, some covers, and some trippy genre-bending jams.

Check out the entire setlist below.

Setlist:

03.09.2019

Revolution Live

Ft. Lauderdale, FL

 

Set 1: Light & Love – Sentenced To Life With the Blues>What’s Going On>Sirens –Somewhere in Between – Hard Life>Gravity – Tennessee Jed

Set 2: You Can’t Stop the Changes>Hobo Song – Mountain Town – Drank>All That I Can Take>Crystal Bay – Soul Searching – Water Wagon>Just Like Heaven – Maxwell>Fork In the Road

Encore: Rise Sun