Article + Photos by Will Oliver
Sturgill Simpson has always been an outsider to the traditional country genre and he continues a push in a new way on his genre-defying new album Sound & Fury, which was released on September 27th via Elektra Records and also paired with a accompanying Netflix anime of the same name that written and produced by Simpson with Japanese director Junpei Mizusaki.
On October 6th Simpson returned to New York to play Music Hall of Williamsburg to celebrate the release of the album. This underplay was way smaller than the sort of room you’ll see Simpson perform in these days (we last caught him last year at Outlaw Music Festival and Newport Folk Fest), but it was set up with a good cause in mind. All proceeds were donated to the Special Forces Foundation. A wounded soldier bravely took to the stage to talk about himself, the foundation, and how impactful Simpson’s involvement has been.
It was a great way to kick off the night, which saw Simpson and his bandmates Bobby Emmett (keys), Chuck Bartels (bass) and Miles Miller (drums) absolutely tear through the rock record which sees them play with elements of funk, psych, and rock all with that country-inspired howl that makes all of Simpson’s output so distinct. These songs were made to be experienced live and sounding larger than live, getting to really explore their scope in the tiny room of Music Hall of Williamsburg where the songs soared to great heights.
But Simpson and his band also found time for the songs that made him, using the latter portion of the evening to turn back to clocks and turn to some of his older material such as “Call to Arms,” “It Ain’t All Flowers,” and “Call to Arms.” It was a balanced performance, one that all fans of Simpson surely went home simply reeling in absolute awe and sheer delight.
Sturgill Simpson setlist:
1. Ronin
2. Remember to Breathe
3. Sing Along
4. A Good Look
5. Make Art Not Friends
6. Best Clockmaker on Mars
7. All Said and Done
8. Last Man Standing
9. Mercury in Retrograde
10. Fastest Horse in Town
11. The Promise (When in Rome cover)
12. Welcome to Earth (Pollywog)
13. Brace for Impact (Live a Little)
14. You Don’t Miss Your Water (William Bell cover)
15. Turtles All the Way Down
16. Some Days
17. Remember to Breathe
18. It Ain’t All Flowers
19. Breakers Roar
20. Call to Arms
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