Before a blizzard shut down NYC, Jason Isbell pulled into town to play two sold-out shows at Radio City Music Hall. Friday night was a solo acoustic affair, while Saturday, February 21st, found him delivering a louder set of tunes with his full backing band, the 400 Unit.
The Saturday night show was opened by Alejandro Escevado, whose minimalist rock sound started on the acoustic front as he played the droning “Baby’s Got New Plans”. Escevado kept the toned-down, repetitive style for a few songs, including his dramatic emigrant tale of departure, “Wave”. The rock action kicked up when Britt Daniel joined the band for two songs, the new “Candy Colored” and the hip swinging “Castanets”, which was the clear highlight of the set.
After a break Isbell and the 400 Unit (Sadler Vaden, guitar, backup vocals, Anna Butterss, bass guitar, upright bass, Derry deBorja, keyboard, accordion, backup vocals, Chad Gamble, drums, backup vocals, Will Johnson, guitar, backing vocals, drums/percussion, gong) started their long set with a quick combo of “Crimson and Clay” backed by the upbeat “Hope the High Road” as the sold out crowd sang along.
Isbell mentioned that he had worked up some songs from his recent solo acoustic album, Foxes In The Snow, for the full band to take to the big stage, and that his love songs mean different things today. New tunes like “Bury Me”, the almost glam rock sounding “Gravelweed,” and the pulsing “True Believer” all felt more dynamic with full band arrangements. While the new songs had palpable energy, the older efforts like both “Decoration Day” and “Outfit”, dating back to his Drive-By Trucker years, were still show stoppers, featuring multiple soaring guitar solos.
“Dress Blues” upped the twang quotient with some sweet mandolin from Vaden, while “Children of Children” contained big drum hits and bigger guitar solos. Never one to shy away from larger issues in his songwriting, “Yvette” was an emotional gut-wrenching number about sexual abuse before “Alabama Pines” dealt directly with Isbell’s struggles with alcoholism and received one of the loudest cheers of the whole night.
“Miles” took a clear jamming influence from Neil Young’s “Down By The River” while two of his best songs, “If We Were Vampires” and “Cover Me,” started small before increasing the theatrical dynamics, bringing big crescendos to the famous hall. While the guitar playing was excellent all night, the most impressive six-string fireworks arrived towards the end, via a dynamic cover of The Rolling Stones’ “Can’t You Hear Me Knockin’”. The live gem found both Isbell and Vaden showing off their playing with a nod to the original, before moving beyond with grace and power.
The three-song encore began with “Maybe It’s Time”, which has taken on greater meaning in recent years, while the classic “Danko/Manuel” was introspective, weeping, and emotional. The band revved it up for one more go at it on the show closing rock fest, “King of Oklahoma,” which burned bright as Isbell and company wrapped up a successful weekend in the Big Apple.
