Music

Playing a concert originally scheduled for late winter of 2022 (but postponed due to COVID infections in the band), Son Volt finally made it to Salt Lake with a show at The Commonwealth Room on Tuesday, Aug. 2. In support was Jack Broadbent, a sub for the originally-slotted opener, Old Salt Union’s Jesse Farrar.

It’s Hip to Have a Hip Flask

It was a minute, maybe two, after 8 p.m. when opener Jack Broadbent arrived onstage in an all-black outfit, sitting down on his amp for the duration of his set. With a good portion of the audience assembled on the smoking patio, he ripped through a few chords, paused, thanked the small crowd and noted that he had merchandise for sale in the lobby. That bit of dry humor was present throughout his opening set, which involved a lot of chit-chat with the railbirds assembled just in front of him. An amiable guy, Broadbent was able to blend his good sense of humor alongside a uniquely modern yet traditionally respectful take on the blues. 

A native of Lincolnshire, England, Broadbent has six albums to his credit, including his latest Ride. Adding classic, time-tested blues cuts to his original material, Broadbent’s voice and guitar style more than satisfied those longing for a straight-ahead blues set, though he also bent into singer-songwriter territory on a couple songs. This created a diverse, compelling 40-minute appearance during his first show of a week’s worth of gigs with Son Volt. 

The charming and self-assured Broadbent had the room listening at pin-drop level, fully enchanting the early birds before heading out to the lobby for those promised merch sales. Which, of course, included a personalized hip flask, fully lining-up with his self-described “rhythm-and-booze” style. Those who arrived late surely missed out, though it’s assumed here that the talented Broadbent won’t be a stranger to touring (and winning over) the U.S. 

Giving Us a Break

As a quick compliment, I’ll note that Son Volt took the stage and played their first notes at the promised 9 p.m. start time. Too many local shows of late have seen interstitial breaks of 30 minutes, 45 minutes or even longer. With little equipment to change over, Son Volt were ready, able and willing to allow their fans a moment to stretch their legs before launching into their own 100 minutes of the evening’s entertainment. Appreciate it! 

And Speaking of Stretching Legs

Let’s note up top that Son Volt’s not a band given over to showiness or theatricality. Founder, songwriter and frontman Jay Farrar said maybe 200 words to the audience over the course of this show (including a shout-out to Red Iguana and their many moles) with half of those spoken during a brief moment of technical adjustments for drummer Mark Patterson. Reliant on the strength of the songs (which date back to the mid-‘90s) rather than straight-up, play-to-the-crowd showmanship, the group’s content to remain hyper-focused and precise in their instrumentation and stage approach. At one point during the group’s three-song encore, guitarist John Horton wandered a couple of feet from his pedal board, which was as wild and spontaneous as things got on this evening. 

This isn’t to say that the band’s not compelling in their own right.

The group—which also includes longtime Farrar collaborators Andrew DuPlantis on bass guitar and Mark Spencer on keyboards, guitar and steel guitar—has an obvious chemistry. Pulling songs from their 10-album catalog, including 2021’s Electro Melodier, the band mixed-and-matched songs from different eras, to the obvious delight of longtime fans, including known Son Volt winners such as “The 99,” “Drown” and the night’s closer “Chickamauga,” a song dating back to Farrar’s pre-Son Volt band, Uncle Tupelo. Also heard during the encore was “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door,” which was infused with enough originality to make the track feel vital. (To be fair, those of who grew up on the popular Guns N’ Roses version of the track might have different feelings about this song than contemporaries from Dylan’s day-and-age; forgive this Gen X musing!) 

Son Volt is a hard-working band of veterans playing a no-frills style of rock/Americana that’ll always have a place on the touring circuit (for as long as Farrar finds interest in sharing his songs in the live setting.)  

A few hundred Utahns were treated to a fine night of rock ’n’ roll on Tuesday, via a mid-career band playing stellar songs wed to a high, high level of professional musicianship. 

A Quick Personal Aside

Son Volt’s home base is St. Louis, where I lived until moving to Utah this year. Family needs have me moving back there shortly, so Son Volt was my last touring show to take in as a full-time resident here. Almost-impossibly, due to Son Volt playing dozens of shows in/around St. Louis for the past 28 years, I’d never seen the group live. As Farrar’s songs can direct your emotions into a degree of melancholy, this gig was special, a tad bittersweet, but also hopeful. Thanks be to Jay Farrar & Co. for keeping this rock ’n’ roll unit on the road.

When an intra-band bout of COVID-19 struck Son Volt in late winter, the critically-acclaimed group lost an entire western states tour run, including a stop in Salt Lake City. That show has reappeared on the local concert calendar with a gig at The Commonwealth Room on Tuesday, August 2. The KRCL-sponsored show will also feature opener Jesse Farrar of the well-regarded, decade-in string band Old Salt Union (who also happens to be the nephew of Son Volt songwriter/bandleader Jay Farrar.) 

Throughout Son Volt’s history, the latter Farrar has been the group’s linchpin, with an uncommonly talented group of accompanying players coming and going over the years. Guitarist John Horton’s the latest to join on, after the departure of Chris Frame last year. The dissolution of Horton’s long-standing, nationally-touring act, The Bottle Rockets, allowed Horton to sign on to play with Son Volt.

He was the band’s only target to replace Frame. Like Farrar, Horton lives in St. Louis. There, his talent’s a well-known commodity. Slotting into the group’s well-seasoned roster was relatively-smooth, he says, noting that “there’ve been a lot of really good or great guitar players in this band.” That number includes current guitarist Mark Spencer, once of the Blood Oranges, and someone Horton feels is a “stellar musician. I’m a fan of his playing.” 

In addition to that guitar duo and Farrar, the current lineup includes drummer Mark Patterson and bassist Andrew DuPlantis. The mix of new and longtime players neatly ties into the setlist being planned for this summer 2022. 

“It’s really kind of a scattershot look at the catalog, without any emphasis on time period or album,” Horton says. “And it’s a big catalog. I never really realized that before joining the band.” 

The group’s first album dates all the way back to 1995, when Trace was released. At that time, the band had a completely different lineup, including two members of the famed, recently-deceased alt-country band Uncle Tupelo—Farrar and co-founder/drummer Mike Heidorn. With ever-fluctuating lineups since, alongside several solo and collaborative albums, Son Volt’s now up to 10 full studio albums, including 2021 Electro Melodier. 

In crafting each group and album, Farrar, Horton says, has an eye on accomplished players who can hack it on the road.

“It’s a very businesslike way of doing things,” Horton says, before suggesting that “workmanlike might be a better term. I think in situations like this, it’s just assumed that you’re ‘a stepper,’ as they say. Jay’s assembled a band in which everyone has this roots rock pedigree.” 

Horton has that pedigree himself with multiple St. Louis projects, including The Bottle Rockets. That group toured the U.S. for years, releasing records on a variety of labels before calling it a day in 2021. Though acclaimed by the press over the years and possessing a hardcore fan base, they never quite broke through to the next level, though not for lack of skill or effort. The western states, Horton suggests, wasn’t home to a large fan base at any point—they did play a gig with Lucinda Williams in Salt Lake City early in the Rockets’ career, the only time that the well-traveled Horton’s played in Salt Lake. 

The Bottle Rockets, he says, “didn’t do great on the west coast. And the differences between the two bands… well, Son Volt’s got a much bigger following than The Bottle Rockets did. Exponentially so. It’s definitely a level up from what I was doing.”

For Son Volt’s deepest-cut fans, this tour should provide some fun moments. Horton says that “Drown” and “Route” will always be found at the beginnings of their sets, while Uncle Tupelo’s “Chickamauga” is there for the closer. A cover that varies from tour-to-tour will be peppered in and after that, it’s anyone’s guess, with the setlist changing subtly as the tour rolls along. And for this upcoming date at The Commonwealth, the band will have just kicked off the tour, hitting the stage only a few dates into this delayed tour. 

“Seeing different places than I’ve been,” Horton says, “is always exciting and fun.” 

• Who: Son Volt with opener Jesse Farrar
• What: Alternative country/Americana
• Where: The Commonwealth Room
  195 W. 2100 S., SLC
  800-501-2885
• When: Aug. 2
• Tickets and info: thestateroompresents.com