Scene Report: Zach Bryan Live 2023
My review of the Zach Bryan show on 8/21/2023 at the Oakland Arena.
How do you talk about your experience at a Zach Bryan show? What is the best way to convey the entirety of the experience. It almost warrants a minute by minute account of the experience. SubStack’s email limit won’t allow that. I am forced to find a way to summarize and synthesize everything I experienced in that singular experience. I could write an entire article about just the musical experience of it all. I could write an entire article that treats the musical experience as just one of many aspects of what is going on. Some important notes to get out of the way: I was in the distinctly small minority of folks that did not have either cowboy boots or a cowboy hat (nearly everyone with a cowboy hat or boots had a cowboy shirt…maybe that’s a given). I was wearing my typical concert attire: adjacent band tshirt (my closest was Sturgill Simpson?), a flannel tshirt (because, duh, the 90’s rock look never died), and pants by Rag and Bone (because…well, honestly because back in the day Childish Gambino name checked the brand….). Anyway, I was an outcast, I did not fit in. Sometimes, I felt like I was a tourist at a show, going to check out the scene, rather than feeling apart of it. And, I could probably write a decent essay about the notion of being a tourist at a show. And its worth noting that I feel totally connected to Zach Bryan and what he is singing about. I can sing along (and was) to almost every word of every song. So, I was not a tourist, but I was an outcast for sure. I clearly did not fit the mold. I’ll also note that I am comfortable being a bit older than the audience at a show. But, I really felt distinctly older at this show. The attendees must have been in their early 20’s and have traveled across California and possibly the country for this show. These were not the people I am typically at a show with. At one point there was a brief attempt at a USA chant. I am not sure I’ve heard that at a show since maybe college (at a country show). So, there is a lot going on here and we still haven’t gotten to the music or how the music was delivered, received, and participated in. And, talking about just my favorite aspects (which could take a whole article), will not able me to a bunch more than cover the basics of the music.
As I will note throughout. He played in a round and that greatly enhanced the experience. I am not doubting that this is hard to pull of for a number for reasons, but it seems like this is how all stadium shows should occur. Zach sang to each of us and felt close to each of us throughout the evening. The crowd sang along to nearly every word of every song. Or at least there was a part of the crowd singing along to nearly every word of every song. These words meant things to these people and that was awesome.
The reason Zach had to sing in a round was because singing along and feeling like you’re apart of it is core to the experience. It reminds me of Dashboard Confessional back in the day. Singing along is core to the experience of seeing Zach Bryan, just as a singing along was distinctly apart of seeing Dashboard. Lots of young people singing passionately along to someone spilling their guts out on stage. Zach is certainly in the lineage of Dashboard1. Zach Bryan is Emo music disguised as country music. It’s punk in lineage (Zach is totally rolling econo), full of emotion about things that are real to people in their twenties, and the community is core to the experience.
So all that is going on and I still had a deeply emotional experience at the show. It was a Pearl Jam level experience. Zach Bryan has Eddie Vedder level charisma. You just want to go along with what he is doing. The whole evening was awesome, but there were some highlights.
Open the Gate
This opener about father and son relationships and bulls and the rodeo was an awesome way to start the show. The crowd singing along immediately. I was standing essentially stage right when he came on, facing one side of the stadium. I had a great location for when Zach was positioned where he started. But, it became quickly clear that he was going to move around a lot. He began moving around the stage and hit each quadrant of the round in his first song. You can tell Zach loves it when everyone sings along. During this first song of the night, he gave it to the audience at one point and just had this grin on his face afterwards. It was awesome.
“So, open the gates, I'm here to prove. I'm better than my father was. And where he came from, too. Open the gates, I'm here to ride To-hell-I-go, with daddy by my side.”
God Speed
This is my healing song for 2023. And it delivered for me. Tears and all. And seemingly everyone else there. He started off this song again, with me standing stage left ish. The sing along here was just excellent.
“Well, I wanna send a postcard, from the edge of a place I’ve never been. And I want make love hard. Under the stars in the back of beat up old K-10. And I wanna love a girl who. Doesn't worry about the pictures when we kiss. And wake up one day and not be so hit and miss. Lay in bed all day and call that shit pure bliss.”
Dawns
Woah. The crowd on this one. Just nuts. And man I felt it. I mean, the minute, Zach begins to sing, “Wake me up…” the crowd starts going nuts and then singing. Maggie Rogers did not show up to sing her part, so we sang it. Then Zach went back to his verse (in my awesome stage right location with a great view) and let the crowd sing the second half of his verse. It was awesome.
“I'm on your front porch beggin' for my dawns back. Give my goddamn records and my clothes back.”
“And it was my mistake 'cause she never said a thing about Jesus. I miss my mother's southern drawl and her prayin' through the walls in the evenin'"
Sweet DeAnn
Zach introduced this song by talking about how he used to play it and then stopped and doesn’t know why he stopped, so he’s started adding it back in. Thank goodness. The song was excellent for me, though the crowd seemed to feel this one less than the others. I suspect that the younger crowd hasn’t dealt as much with grief or at least grieving over a parent. Still, it was great.
“I’d be calling you right about now. Tell you stories of a pretty fine gal. Remind you of the things that your boys into. How he looks and he acts and talks like you. This world's not meant for showin mercy. I’ve got pictures of us that hurt me. Cause I’m squeezin’ you and and your smilin’ through that flash upon the wall.”
Starved
Another personal one for me. I loved how he came around to my awesome location for the repeat of the last verse. Another great moment based on him making his way around the stage in each song. This song is not on any album I don’t think and I’m not sure it will stay in his set list. But, this song was a top three highlight for the night for me.
“I love when your grin grows. The corners of your lips lifting lift me when I'm low. I read in the good book. The best things in life are free and need to be let go. So take one last good look. Let's share one last cigarette. I'll be gone by the time you're ashin’ it. Stop asking things you know the answers to. There is no world in which I am good for you.
And we’re laying on the roof of my car, feeling young, feeling numb, feeling starved. All the places a moment might be. This one is best kept a memory. How the kindest parts of my mind are you and me.”
68 Fastback
What is cool about a Zach Bryan show is all the people singing along to songs that are full of deep emotion about heavy things. And you’re like, shit, there are other people that feel that way too. That’s awesome. Like people are singing these words as if they are their own.
“Take my soul, take my heart. Won’t you tear me a part. If I’m good for anything, its all of this sufferin’ so use me for parts. To you I’m just salvage. I ain’t ran right in years. So drive me, than gut me. Deceive than fuck me. Then disappear.”
Snow
This was another fun song to sing along to with thousands of other people. Zach just does such a good job of leading people through these songs. He’s more of an orchestra conductor.
“Cause you bring heaven down to me. Coursin through my blood as I breathe. I bet they angels are jealous of a girl I know. She takes my stain and makes me might as snow.”
Revival
Oh man. This closer is just an awesome way to close. And yes, Zach turns this ~3 minute song into over 10 minutes. But, it’s just an excellent way to end the night. The chorus is just so fun to sing along to. And you just get to sing it over and over again after the first couple verses. So yes to all of that. But, its worth noting again the overall heaviness of this song. It starts off with:
“gather round this table boys. bring your shame, I’ll lose my voice. Screamin at the gods bout the bad we done. Merle says momma tried but the prison still won. And your transgressions are mine as well. Anger grows in my bones if you could not tell. I’ll find comfort and company. Lord forgive us, the boys and me.”
Man, isn’t that what a Zach Bryan show is all about. You bring your shame and he loses his voice. His transgressions are yours too. He’s got all this shit and you do to. And there is connection and healing in the company of like minded souls.
“We’re having an all night revival. Someone call the women. Someone steal the Bibles. For the sake of my survival. Baptize me in a bottle of Beam. Put Johnny on the vinyl.”
Indeed.
Check out the entire setlist below.
I just never ran into 20 year old girls facing away of the stage, on the floor crying at Zach Bryan.