Last night I finally got to see The Avett Brothers live. They have been on my radar since the release of the last studio album I and Love and You back in late 2009. For various reasons I never got to see them perform live, most recently it’s been the fact that they seem to refuse to play in Cincinnati. Fortunately they added a date to their current tour outside of Dayton at Fraze Pavilion.

Top Of The Lawn

It had been ten years since my last visit to Fraze, and I truly forgot just how intimate the venue is. You can see just how small the space is in the photo above that was taken from the top of the grass lawn. I don’t think there is a bad seat in the house, especially not when you get to enjoy the show from the front row of the Orchestra sections.

Early In The Show

The show itself was great! It started off a little slow for me with a handful of songs that I’m not very familiar with before they launched into “Head Full of Doubt/Road Full of Promise” followed by “January Wedding.” I also enjoyed an early set “Paranoia in B Flat Major” before they played a five song tribute to Doc Watson who passed away last week. After finishing the 23 song set, including hits such as “The Ballad of Love and Hate,” “Kick Drum Heart,” “Laundry Room,” and the set closing “I and Love and You,” the band was quickly back on stage for a four song encore with “Talk on Indolence” and “Slight Figure of Speech” ending the show.

After Sunset

The show was easily over two hours long and I was still left wanting more. I hope that three more years don’t pass before I see them perform again. After the show was over I had the pleasure of meeting touring bassist Paul Defiglia, who happens to be friends with a good chunk of the group I went to the show with. They are playing Bonnaroo in about an hour from now, and you can watch it online, along with tons of other performances throughout the weekend.