Billy Strings 2025

Forums:

Caught the first show of 2025 on Nugs.net and Billy and his boys are off to a strong start.  Big arena rock n roll style production and the band is sounding good.   Show opened with a rocking Wargasim and it was off to the races.  

Before the show, Nugs played a recent World Cafe podcast interview in which Billy explained that his playing has got looser and more freewheeling since having a kid.  Said that one bad note used to bug him out for days but now he knows there are more important things to worry about, which has freed up his playing.    

They replaced the LED wall they had been using over the past year with more traditional light rigs and screens.  Looking forward to the St. Augustine shows in April, which next to the Ryman, is the smallest venue on the tour by far.    

Saw some video, glad I didn't go, venue was too large for my liking.

Denver friends were there and somehow scored spots in a suite via a friend!

IMG_0391.jpeg

Billy has hit the big time.  Good for him.  He was gushing last night about how it was the most people he had played to "inside a building" and how it felt so good that so many people were listening to bluegrass.   

Then he melting everyone's face off . . .

https://archive.org/details/EnergyCurfewMusicHour2025-01-11

 

Punch Brothers w/Billy

Stealth, w/more than a little throat clearing by the taper.

But DAYUM!

IMG_1428.jpeg
 

Billy and the boys will need to work up some AC/DC songs for their winter tour down under.

We should just transform this into the Billzone 

Maybe The Grahame Belt?

this kid's got me wantin to quite my job

>>>this kid's got me wantin to quite my job

 

NO SHIT!

 

https://relisten.net/billy-strings/2025

Crazy

He and his band will have to look into the Medical MJ laws in Australia - quite liberal...i went last June for a gig and was able to bring in enough for two weeks , with no worries. The limit you can bring is 90 days worth. 

Just need a med card...

>>>>The limit you can bring is 90 days worth. 

For Billy, that is like two days worth.

for the record, i was there 17 days and brought:

2.5 OZ flower

4 @ 2g carts

3K mg edibles ( i only get bags of 10 x 100 = 1K mg )

Amazing how far we've come in some respects and how we can still be on the cusp of a hundred year setback 

Another Grammy for Live Vol. 1.  Dude is unstoppable.

Billy Base is back up

 

IMG_0751.jpeg
IMG_0752.jpeg

> Billy Base is back up

Accompanied by a smack down.

Dude who runs bb is the hank harrison of billy fans. I'm not surprised he pulled that shit 

>>>Dude who runs bb is the hank harrison of billy fans

He's no Scalcione...

Billy Dates with Outlaw posted too including a rare birthday show for Dylan

It's the problem with becoming hugely successful at anything.  It attracts a lot of hanger-ons with suspicious motives that can end up crippling your muse and creativity.

I was thinking about this yesterday while listening to a solo album by King Buzzo of The Melvins.  That guy has never gotten massively famous, but has carved a long and productive career, while his protege Kurt Cobain was dead at 27.  It's like the fable of the tortoise and the hare.  

Billy throwing haymakers here

noice 

Way to go Billy! My friends don't want to travel to an arena show, so I'm missing Spring tour. I hope I can catch Willie, Bob and Billy at an Outlaw outdoor show, my friends will travel for that. I do miss Leper Van Atom, he would have traveled far for Billy, at least we have Nugs. Loved Rocky Racoon, Alex really added to it.

3.5

>Dude who runs bb is the hank harrison of billy fans. <

gold !!! Thanks for the laugh - I needed it today.

You bet, Alan! The tell all book is on it's way I'm sure. Hope your day continues to get better. 

Screenshot_20250203_104313_3.png

 

^^^^Funny, but it's parody (not far off) on the real shit show going on at the Billy subreddit.

Just pulled the trigger, Flight Lyon France to Raleigh Durham 4/16 ,Hotel, and Tickets are Secured.. 3 nights avec des GOATS.. whoooo hooo! 

THIS STILL ISN'T EVEN THE COOL PART YET,      Fly back 4/20..it's somewhere

Billy Strings band is great...The fan base has grown & devoled IMO

Ill pick & choose where I see him these daze.

If you love Billy, I suggest catching the Kitchen Dwellers when you have a chance.

Yes Kitchen Dwellers are great. Although my jam grass interest is a lot less than my traditional bluegrass interest anymore, I just grabbed tickets for a Herb Pedersen show coming up here later in the month with John Jorgenson

^^^The only bluegrass I listened to for about 20+ years was the Old & In The Way release.  One day I succumbed to trying the free intro to SiriusXM.  I  came upon the Bluegrass station in my driveway, playing a cut from Jesse McReynold’s Tribute to Jerry Garcia and Robert Hunter. Inside I immediately started looking to see if he was playing nearby.  Closest show was at this camping fest called “Delfest”

I turned to my youngest and asked if was interested in going camping at a bluegrass festival. He did not hesitate. A half dozen Delfests later….

BTW: Also Delfest is where I first caught Billy in 2015. A couple months later, he opened for Della Mae, just minutes down the road from me.        DEL YEAH!!

 

Have an absolute blast, Tommy! 

Good job on getting the sold out Koka Booth tix.  At a capacity of only 7,000, they were the hardest tix to get on this tour next to St. Augustine and the Ryman and sold out in minutes.   

Should be a blast!  

yeah Ken I don't know how I got those tix, right time right place they went on sale, and without consulting my wife, who wont fly to the states for 4 days, nor my boss, april starts getting busy, I am trying too get Merriweather, a NC local to join me , And I do have 1 Extra for Each shoe.. we'll see, wife was like um "Tom whats this charge on your visa card 670.00 ? " Ohhh that I responded.. just some BMFS tickets in North Carolina! yeah I'm fuckin crazy but what the fuck only live once..so far!

Watched the first three nights of Asheville, with three more nights to go next weekend.  Pretty apparent from what was not played that he is set for a six-night run with no repeats.

Here Comes the Sun was fantastic and so appropriate. First time played since Feb. 2020 and crowd went absolutely wild.

I watched a bit of each night but went to bed and tried to read up in the AM... It's difficult to get a real breakdown of the music from Billy fans on social media anymore , they just type things online like "that was fire" or "that (insert song)....." like the reader should just "know"

Maybe a happy medium between this and the note by note breakdown of every time Trey has ever held a guitar like Phish fans do would be best

Fishcane where are you looking? I've found people to be really nice and helpful if I ask "what song is this" etc. on facebook. Ironically I've only encountered snobbery from the dude who ran billybase, apparently he's very important or something lol. Zuck made it a PITA to follow real time threads on FB, with AI deciding which posts are most relevant and hiding other posts. Fortunately the band always posts set lists with a few details like FTP shortly after the shows. 

That's not what I mean, just reading general post show follow ups, no one seems to care much about offering post show analysis other than to proclaim how great it was.  "That Psycho> Thunder was total fire" does not tell me much other than they played those songs and enjoyed them. I know the songs, I'm just referring to looking for something beyond the setlists...I'm on a few facebook groups etc.... the usual spots people gather online

Yeah I don't see a lot of reviews but there's definitely folks out there who love analysis. I'm one of those "that Psycho>Thunder was total fire" people lol. I just figure no one gaf about my personal interpretation of a show, but that's on me, no one's stopping me from sharing. Maybe I should work on that! 

Haha, yeah I get it, Dise..... I must just be spoiled by the nerdy play by play we get from Phish and GD fans. Probably just a me problem and I get my answers eventually when I get around to listening

A lot of the post show reviews on the Billy Strings subreddit will have detailed reviews of things like Alex's new shirt or the creeper in section 104 hitting on people's girlfriends.

Yea exactly we get the shaving status of band members before we find out there was a Norwegian Wood jam between songs. 

I think most folks are kidding around with the fashion posts, but I never go to subreddit. IDK. Search around fb and you'll find your geeks who go deeper, but not on the "fans" pages. Try searching billy strings set list and good luck!


For educationamuhl porpoises only. A. Jepson credit for show notes posted at Billy Strings Set List page

 

Winter Tour 2025

Billy Strings

2/8/25

Exploreasheville.com Arena

Asheville, NC

7:30 PM EST

Set 1 (8:01pm EST)

Leaning On A Travelin’ Song

Tipper

There Is A Time

Seney Stretch

Cold, Cold World

Nobody’s Love Is Like Mine (1)

Fire Line

Reuben’s Train

Freedom (2)

Katy Daley (2)

Harbor Of Love (2)

My Sweet Blue Eyed Darling (2)

(9:11pm EST)

Set 2 (9:30pm EST)

Leadfoot (3)

Freeborn Man

Ready For The Times To Get Better

California Sober >

Run Down

It Ain’t Before

Here Comes The Sun

These Old Blues

Leaders > (4)

Lumpy, Beanpole, & Dirt

Wargasm

Señor (Tales Of Yankee Power) >

Pretty Daughter

(10:48pm EST)

E: Footprints In The Snow, Roll On Buddy, Roll On (10:58pm EST)

Walkoff song: God Only Knows (Beach Boys)

(1) JW on lead vocals

(2) Full band on single mic, Billy switches to Martin D-45 Custom

(3) Billy on Gold Tone ML-1 Missing Link Béla Fleck Baritone Banjo & BF on guitar

(4) West LA Fadeaway tease

SHOW NOTES

Venue Capacity: 7,674

The night starts off nice and slow (who doesn’t love a little foreplay), but things really start to heat up with a raging Fire Line leading into a rippin’ Reuben’s Train. Not to be missed.

A monster bust-out of the Beatles’ “Here Comes The Sun” (LTP 2/28/20, 406 shown gap). Can’t help but notice the inclusion of a couple of sunshine songs on this Asheville run. A thoughtful expression given the recovery efforts Asheville has faced since the devastating damage caused by Hurricane Helene.

This show is full of bustouts and has a little something for everyone. Nothing was too heady or particularly jammed out, but it stands as a beautiful time capsule reflecting upon the past, paying homage to lost loved ones, commentary on today’s political climate and offering up some hope for the future.

 

 

>>>>I think most folks are kidding around with the fashion posts, 

Uh.  Don't be surprised if Royal Masat ends up on the cover of GQ (Billy already did an in depth interview thinking it was Guitar Quarterly).  The boys (and their respective girlfriends/wives) are obviously having fun with it.  And don't get me started on Mike Gordon's shoelaces.  It's a thing.

I would be surprised if Royal was on the cover of GQ. That said, there's definitely a large number of fans who loooove his moves. If the band has a heartthrob, it's Royal. He's had fun with it and has even fund raised two years in a row with a calendar. It's all in good silly fun. Everyone's in it for the music at the end of the day. lol @ Mike Gordon

LOL

> show reviews on the Billy Strings subreddit will have detailed reviews of things like Alex's new shirt

And then there's the fly-check crew. It's stuff like this that convinces me dead internet theory is a crock.

share_9002691964140427789.png

154 songs.   Maybe someday a band will try that with a thirteen night run?  wink

Billy Banner.jpg

Last night's show was great, and John Stickley's 4 song sit-in with the band was superlative. I also love it anytime Anh Phung sits in with this band (2/15/25). Next level stuff of dreams there! Last night was the teasefest of the run, heard strains of Planet Caravan, Foxey Lady, and Use Me. PS I am ready for my Two Tickets :D 

id love to see billy bring up stash wyslouch more often. there is some wild stuff on youtube from a sit in he did with billy. some of stash's solo music is a bit to far out into the obscure music theory-verse for me, but he can really tear it up in some really unexpected ways when there is a band there, anchoring him to the earth.