In late March, Billy Strings began plotting Streaming Strings, a nine-show virtual tour of some of Nashville's best-loved (and currently closed) venues. The COVID-19 pandemic cut short Strings' partially sold-out tour in support of his latest album Home, and the virtuosic young bluegrasser and rocker, who has toured relentlessly for several years now, needed an outlet for his passion for live music.
On Thursday night, Strings performed the first show of the virtual tour at the new Brooklyn Bowl Nashville. The gig was streamed via Fans, a platform that allows viewers at home to participate in shows virtually using Zoom. Brooklyn Bowl set up a number of screens throughout the venue showing fans dancing and singing along in their homes, to boot. Maybe it's not quite like having an audience in the flesh, but Strings didn't seem fazed.
He began with standout Home song "Watch It Fall," a socially conscious song about the destructive power of hubris and greed that takes on new relevance in today's news cycle. Other standouts included a barn-burning, solo-heavy take on Home's "Hollow Heart," and the deep cut "Slow Train," a lonesome, trad-bluegrass-inspired number that appeared on Strings' 2016 debut self-titled EP. Strings & Co. also included a handful of covers in the set, including a high-octane take on “I'm Going Fishing,” a version of "Fishing Blues" that Doc Watson brewed up, which Strings introduced by sharing that he'd spent much of his time during the pandemic out on the water fishing.
Strings played with his full band, who all quarantined together in the days leading up to the tour to ensure safe performances. In a recent interview with the Scene (in a segment that didn't make it into our feature story), Strings said of his band: "We’re like a V8 engine. One person is the torque converter, one person is the drive shaft, one person’s a piston, one person’s a carburetor. Together we can jam. … I couldn’t imagine playing with anybody else."
He did have a chance to play with one other person on Thursday. Fellow phenomenal young guitarist Marcus King came out for renditions of Gershwin's “Summertime” and Jimmy Reed's “Big Boss Man” near the end of the second set. The tour continues tonight with one more show at Brooklyn Bowl before moving to the Station Inn Saturday and Sunday. Next week, the tour picks up with dates at City Winery (July 22-23), Exit/In (July 24-25) and 3rd and Lindsley (July 26). Visit the special site for the tour for links to buy virtual tickets. A portion of the proceeds will be shared with three nonprofits: the ACLU, Backline and the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund.
