Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real at Sandy Amphitheater

 
I am a huge fan of Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real!  I have seen them at USANA (backing Neil Young), at the Commonwealth Room, at Red Butte Garden, and at Sandy Amphitheater.  Last night I went back to Sandy Amphitheater to see them again and I absolutely loved the show!  They were in town promoting their latest release Sticks and Stones (it is so good) and the majority of the songs in their main set came from this album.  They started the show with "Alcohallelujah" and continued with the title track, "Every Time I Drink," "If I Didn't Love You," "Overpass," "Icarus,""All Four Winds" (my favorite from the new album), "The View," "Lying," "Wrong House," and "Ladder of Love."  I really enjoyed hearing these new songs performed live because Nelson and the band looked like they were having such a great time playing them and they sounded really tight despite the fact that they haven't played them as much as the older songs.  However, I was thrilled to hear so many of my favorites, including "Fool Me Once," "Four Letter Word," "Just Outside of Austin" (with a really cool piano intro), "Carolina," "(Forget About) Georgia," "Die Alone," and "Find Yourself" (with lots of participation from the crowd during the chorus).  They also sang a cover of Willie Nelson's "Bloody Mary Morning" which was awesome!  I was really hoping that they would play "Set Me Down on a Cloud," which is my favorite Promise of the Real song, so I was absolutely thrilled when I heard the opening notes!  It was the perfect song to end their main set with!  For the encore, they performed a rousing rendition of "Something Real" with an extended intro featuring the drums.  I am not a big fan of country music but I absolutely love this band (they do have more of a rock-country sound) and I love Nelson's voice (he sounds like his dad Willie Nelson but a bit edgier).  Nelson wasn't as talkative as I have seen him be but he and the band gave a really energetic performance with very little down time between the songs.  They had a stripped down stage filled with lots of instruments and, since I was sitting on the fifth row (he definitely made eye contact with me), it was fascinating to watch Nelson playing the guitar.  There was a major thunderstorm near the end of the show but even the rain couldn't dampen my enthusiasm (the rain stopped just before "Set Me Down on a Cloud" which made me very happy).  I had so much fun and I hope they come back again next year!

Note:  I have loved every Promise of the Real concert but if I had to pick a favorite it would be the show at the Commonwealth Room.  This was right after the movie A Star Is Born came out (Promise of the Real portrayed Jackson Maine's band) and they played "Shallow."  It was sans Lady Gaga but it was epic!