Concert Review: The Vegabonds with The Stews and Supper Club

Rocking into Iron City comes Auburn favorites The Vegabonds. The alumni have been making music together since their days on the plains and continue to grow as their career keeps turning up. This show was originally set to be performed in December before having to be rescheduled. 

The band's blend of country, rock, and soul brings and electric performance. Sweet guitar licks, rolling keys, and powerful vocals tie together their performance. Certainly not ones to hesitate from jamming, the band would often break out into exciting instrumentals that got the crowd moving. You can always expect a night of singing and dancing when The Vegabonds are in town.

Now over a decade into their career, The Vegabonds have a lot of music to cram into one night of partying. Hits like "Georgia Fire" and "Shaky Hands" are musts, but new favorites like "Can't Deal" and "Heartache and a Memory" are also found throughout the set. Touring off their latest album, Sinners and Saints, has added plenty of kindling to their fire. The band's full setlist is below;

          1. Used To Go

          2. Oh My Lord

          3. Ain't Giving Up

          4. Burnout

          5. You Wreck Me (Tom Petty cover)

          6. Can't Deal

          7. Heartache and a Memory 

          8. Partyin' with Strangers

          9. Sinners and Saints

          10. American Eyes

          11. All Time Low

          12. Colorado Evergreen

          13. Traveling Man

          14. Georgia Fire

          15. Shaky Hands

          -

          16. Everything I Need

          17. Spanish Moon (Little Feat cover)

          18. End of the Line (The Traveling Wilburys cover)

Special guests The Stews took the stage ahead of The Vegabonds. The band, made up of third year Auburn students Bennet Baugus, Blake Dobbs, Wyatt Griffith, and Preston Hall, has been gaining steam in town and online since they first broke out last year. Their high energy performances have gathered the quartet a lot of praise.

The band put out their debut EP last Spring, several songs from it made the cut on their setlist. "Slip Away" and "Make It Out" and clear fan favorites. New cuts like "Fireline" also made the cut as the band is currently back in the studio. Their full setlist is below;

          1. Trials

          2. Sometimes

          3. Slip Away

          4. Fireline

          5. Notions

          6. Make It Out

          7. 9-5

          8. Chicken Fight

The Stews still have a lot of gas in the tank. They've got opening slots, headlining shows, and festival appearances lined up for the next six months. In addition, they'll also be joining The Vegabonds for many of their remaining dates.

         1/22 Charleston, SC — The Pour House 

         2/05 Nashville, TN — The End

          2/11 Sewanee, TN — Shenanigans

          2/25 Blacksburg, VA — Milk Parlor

          3/05 Denver, CO — The Black Buzzard at Oskar Blues

          3/09 Steamboat Springs, CO — Schmiggity's Live Music Dance Bar

          3/16 Gulf Shores, AL — Big Beach Brewing

          3/24 Farmville, VA — North Street Press Club

          3/31 Knoxville, TN — TBA

          4/15 Lexington, KY — The University of Kentucky

          4/21 Gulf Shores, AL — Meyer Park

          4/29 Atlanta, GA — Sweetwater 420 Fest

          5/26 Wrightsville Beach, NC — The Palm Room

          5/27 Kill Devil Hills, NC — Outer Banks Brewing Station

          5/28-29 Martinsville, VA — Roosterwalk Music Festival

          7/16 Richmond, VA — TBA

          7/22 New York, NY — TBA 

Supper Club joined the show's lineup last minute, taking the place of Transistor who had to drop from the show. These alumni have also been catching the ears of fans, their live shows have proven they can get a crowd rocking. Combining sounds from rock, Americana, and indie music, plus just a little bit of jamming (Supper Club is not a jam band), the four piece set the stage on fire to open the night.

The band came into WEGL's studio last year to perform a WEGL Session, which can be found here.

Supper Club is currently preparing to release their debut EP, The World Keeps Spinning, out next Friday. Songs from their set "Yes Ma'am" and "World Keeps Spinning" can be found on it. Their full setlist is below;

          1. Cadillac Duchess

          2. Yes Ma'am

          3. Bounce

          4. The Country

          5. Shamu

          6. Witchita

          7. World Keeps Spinning

The band's next show will be back here in Opelika at John Emerald Distillery next Friday to celebrate the release of The World Keeps Spinning. The Posers and Lakota will open.

The Vegabonds still have plenty of tour dates left in the first quarter of the year. The band returns back to Auburn in two weeks with The Stews to play at Southeastern. Their full tour schedule can be found below;

         1/22 Nashville, TN — The Basement East#

         1/27 Statesboro, GA — The Blue Moon*

         1/28 Athens, GA — The Warehouse*

         1/29 Macon, GA — Historic Grant's Lounge*

         2/03 Auburn, AL — Southeastern Bar*

         2/04 Tuscaloosa, AL — Druid City Music Hall*

         2/24 Carrboro, NC — Cat's Cradle*

         2/25 Washington D.C. — Pearl Street Warehouse^

         2/26 Washington D.C. — Pearl Street Warehouse^

         3/03 Oxford, MS — The Green at Harrison's*

         3/25 Bloomington, IL — The Piazza%

         3/26 Kimberly, WI — Tanner's

         4/01 Charlottesville, VA — The Jefferson Theatre*

         # with Grady Spencer & the Work

         * with The Stews

         ^ with Virginia Man

         % with. Sam Burchfield

The Vegabonds are a band that sure know how to party. The band knows their fans and know how to make them happy, I don't think a single one left disappointed.