We’re at the bar stocking up on beers for the evening when a cheer erupts from the main stage. Zach Bryan has started. We’ve lost track of time and we’re running. Double parked. Hot. ‘Overtime’ is blasting out.
We finally find our spot, just in time for ‘Open The Gate’ and the two hour two step begins. Arms in the air for the rest of the night. Switching between left and right to give each one a rest. Trying not to spill beer over the people in front of us. He’s 4 songs in and it’s perfect. It’s pure. It’s emotional. It’s feral. I am screaming every single word. I have lost control of myself. It’s bloody beautiful.
On stage is a host of people. A full rock band, a string section, a brass section and pedal steel and banjo. And the show doesn’t stop. It’s a play out of Springsteen’s book and it works. Zach Bryan proves he can play to a field of 65,000 people, his biggest ever show, and suggests he can fill stadiums across the world in the future.
At about 9.30, there’s a brief pause following ‘Quittin’ Time’. One show has ended and the band take a brief break before the second show begins. Because ‘Revival’ is its own entity. An experiment that has gotten out of hand. A 3 minute album track has become a 20 minute extravaganza and everybody is on board. There’s people on shoulders. There’s hands in the air. There’s fireworks. It’s a celebration and it’s special. It’s really fucking special.
