The acclaimed trio brought its ‘Celebrants’ tour to Kalamazoo State Theatre on Tuesday and didn’t disappoint. The review and photo galleries at Local Spins.
A Rite of Bluegrass Jamming: Nickel Creek on stage Tuesday. (Photo/Derek Ketchum)
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Celebrants are those who lead a religious ceremony or rite.
On Tuesday night — in front of an energetic, capacity crowd at Kalamazoo State Theatre — bluegrass veterans Nickel Creek took their fans on a spiritual, virtuosic journey of sorts while touring behind their latest album, “Celebrants.”
Baptizing their fans with elite musicianship, they did not disappoint.
Piloted by charismatic frontman and mandolin virtuoso Chris Thile, bandmates and siblings Sean and Sara Watkins were not to be outdone, demonstrating their 35-plus years of experience and expertise on the guitar and fiddle.
Fiddle Fire: Sara Watkins (Photo/Jamie Geysbeek)
The trio peppered the rest of the one-hour-and-45-minute set with fan favorites, including “Destination,” “When You Come Back Down,” “The Fox” and “This Side.”
Fan Katie Kirchner of West Michigan bluegrass band Full Cord called the trio’s rendition of “The Fox” an “extended jam-heavy” affair with Thile “at the front of the stage up on his tippy toes and the crowd clapping in time the entire song.”
Fan Jamee Valdez-Welch, meanwhile, described Nickel Creek’s playing as “perfection. It’s like they have been playing together forever. Loved the old and new songs and energy in the place the whole night.”
Finger-melting mandolin solos by Thile shined through the trio’s instrumentals, such as “The Smoothie Song,” “Going Out” and “Elephant in the Corn”. The combination of the three musicians, along with bassist Jeff Picker (the “elephant” on “Elephant in the Corn”), proved magical.
Per usual, the on-stage banter and fan interaction was first-rate as well. Thile introduced “The Lighthouse’s Tale” with a humorous plea to concertgoers to place their bids, as the government is actively decommissioning and auctioning off lighthouses.
Brother Watkins told the story of his inspiration to write the satirical end-of-the-world “21st of May” after seeing a billboard claiming that the world was coming to an end. And along with the help of the audience, the band determined that the first time they played Kalamazoo came back in 2001, nearly 23 years ago.
English indie duo, The Staves, got the show started on the right foot with a generous selection of expertly crafted folk songs, leaving the crowd buzzing after their set. – By Jamie Geysbeek
PHOTO GALLERY: Nickel Creek, The Staves at Kalamazoo State Theatre
Photos by Derek Ketchum
Photos by Jamie Geysbeek
