Billy Strings Strings Sells Out Armory On A Tuesday

Last updated on June 25th, 2024 at 01:23 pm

The thunder crashed and rolled, and the rain came pouring down as Billy Strings prepared to play to a sold out Armory on Tuesday night. The line stretched out the door and around the block as many fans showed up fashionably late. Lucky for them, the start time got pushed back to 8 instead of the original 7:30.

I am always impressed by The Armory’s restraint in not overselling tickets. There is always room to move around towards the back, even at sold out shows. In my opinion, that’s one of the many reasons Minneapolis concert goers continue to eagerly attend shows there.

Strings took the stage by himself promptly at 8. Sitting on a stool with his acoustic guitar and microphone, he looked out at his fans with his typical expression of wonder and gratitude. This is a guy who has been known to bring out hot chocolate to fans standing in line on cold nights. It’s not hard to understand why his fans returned his look with equal awe and thankfulness.

The show began slowly and through the first few songs, Strings’ band took the stage one at a time to add a little more to each song. By the 5th song they were all on stage, but singing into one mic.

The first set consisted of many folk covers including the Jimmie Rodgers tune, “Miss the Mississippi an You,” and “Life to Go” by Stonewall Jackson. Strings and his band also played some great original tunes such as “Red Daisy” and “Hide and Seek,” both off of his latest album Renewal.

Strings always draws an interesting crowd. On one hand you have the dead heads and jam band fans, and on the other you have fans from more of a country music scene. Add drugs and alcohol and it makes for an unpredictable experience, and I have seen it turn ugly before.

However, these fans inside the Armory on Tuesday seemed to be on their best behavior. Everyone was just happy to get out of the rain and see one of the best guitar players of this generation.

The second set was packed full with Strings’ originals. Crowd pleasers such as “Taking Water,” “In The Morning Light,” and “Know It All” set things up, and a psychedelic infused “Away From The Mire” melted the face off of nearly every fan in the place.

Once again Strings and band satisfied a hungry crowd in the Twin Cities. For better or worse, Strings climbs to a higher capacity venue each year he returns. It won’t be long before he’s playing stadiums, so see him as soon as you can. Long gone are the days of seeing Strings in more intimate venues such as The Palace Theater or First Avenue.