Greta Van Fleet triumphantly returns to Raleigh, NC to deliver their long-awaited Dreams in Gold Tour to adoring members of the Peaceful Army.
The wait was over. After two years of COVID and one postponement due to a ruptured eardrum, Greta Van Fleet finally brought their Dreams in Gold Tour to Raleigh, NC. Some concertgoers traveled far distances from neighboring states to experience the band, filling the PNC Arena with intense love for the four young men they came to see.
Opening the evening was Robert Finley, a 69-year-old American blues and soul singer-songwriter from Louisiana. The audience made up primarily of 20 – 30-year-olds probably knew Robert from his appearance on America’s Got Talent but his perfect cowboy hat and gleaming smile were perhaps more instrumental in instantly warming up the crowd and receiving genuine applause and cheering for him throughout his short set.
Legally blind, Robert was assisted to his microphone on stage but once in plac,e he didn’t stop moving, dancing, and hip-thrusting his way through a fantastic set. Playing several songs from his album, Sharecropper’s Son, including the title track and “Souled Out On You,” Robert Finley showed that a powerful voice knows no age limit.
Following Robert Finley, Houndmouth entered the stage with smiles and a visible sense of sadness over their heads. After greeting the audience, vocalist Matt Myers expressed the band’s bittersweet happiness that this evening would be their last show supporting Greta Van Fleet. Allocated only a very small amount of space on the stage for their setup, Houndmouth offered a little bit of boyish charm, a little bit of grubby aspiring rock star vibe, and a laid-back slacker-esque indy rock setlist that was warmly appreciated by the audience. Performing songs primarily from Little Neon Limelight and Good for You, Houndmouth collected the PNC Arena together into a chill communal vibe as if to preserve the audience’s energy for the headliner about to take the stage. The last time Greta Van Fleet performed in Raleigh was back in 2017 at the Pour House, a small under-300-person venue downtown. Tonight, to rapturous screaming and applause, the brothers Jake, Josh, and Sam Kiszka and Danny Wagner were welcomed by over 10,000 adoring fans overjoyed the show was finally going to happen after being postponed due to Josh’s eardrum injury in late 2022.Spread across a brightly lit white stage, the band opened strong and hard with “Built by Nations,” “Black Smoke Rising,” and “Safari Song” before setting into a mid-tempo but hard-played ten-song set. Backed up with regular blazes of fire cannons across the back of the stage and dressed in well-styled 1960s-meets-Dancing With The Stars attire, the band was dialed in and sounded tight and strong. Josh showed no indication his hearing was creating any issues for him as his voice cut through Jake’s dominating guitar with ease. Danny and Sam complimented each other with Sam’s smooth perfection to Danny’s caged animal looking to escape intensity.
Every member of the Raleigh-based Peaceful Army showed up this evening and offered Greta Van Fleet their love and devotion without limitations. Joyful and powerful, Raleigh was blessed with a powerful and emotional evening of music that hopefully will be repeated again in the very near future.
GRETA VAN FLEET
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HOUNDMOUTH
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