Last Friday, November 17, I saw Tanner Usrey at Growlers in Memphis, Tennessee. This show was my third time seeing Tanner live. In this week's blog, I would like to share my experience at this concert with you.
I arrived at the venue a little over an hour before doors opened for this show. More people arrived and started lining up about 30 minutes before doors. The line that formed was quite long compared to the lines I had seen at Growlers for other shows. Throughout this year, I've been to a few shows at this venue and this crowd was one of the biggest I have seen there as of yet.
Carson Wallace opened up the night. Prior to this concert, I wasn’t very familiar with his music but I really enjoyed his set. He played mostly original songs with a couple of covers in between. His original songs were catchy; even though I hadn’t heard them before, I could sing along to the following choruses after only hearing the first chorus.
Throughout his set, Carson did an excellent job of engaging and talking to the crowd. He definitely helped to bring the energy levels up before Tanner came out.
The day of this show was actually the same day that Tanner Usrey released his debut album, “Crossing Lines”. At this show, Tanner actually played every song off this new album with a few of his older songs sprinkled in as well.
Tanner and his band put on a great show. They all played well together and each of them are incredibly talented. One of my favorite parts of the show was when Tanner introduced each band member and had each one play a brief solo. This part of the show truly showcased each of their talents.
Tanner did play a couple of songs without his bandmates: Make You Weep and Josephine. I remember my jaw dropping when he started playing the opening notes to Make You Weep. That song is one of my favorite J.R. Carroll songs and I had not realized until that night that J.R. and Tanner had actually written the song together. Tanner’s version of the song is actually on his new album!
I wasn’t able to score a setlist at this show but I did manage to walk away with two drumsticks. Near the end of the show, the drummer and one of the guitarists played the drums together and after, threw one pair of drumsticks into the crowd. I caught one of them and excitedly turned around to show my boyfriend just to realize that he was also holding a drumstick. The other one had landed on the floor near his feet and he had quickly picked it up before anyone else could.
My only complaint about this show was that I found it very hard to hear Tanner’s voice over the music. Though, this was probably due to the fact that I was at the front of the stage, standing right next to two of the guitarists (and all the speakers). If I had been further from the stage, I think that the sound mix would’ve been better and Tanner’s vocals would have been more audible.
Other than that, this show was amazing. It was so great to see Tanner again live, especially after the release of his debut album. There was a great turnout for this show, which was definitely well-deserved. Tanner, his band, and Carson didn't disappoint in any way!
If you’re interested in discovering more about the artists discussed in this article you can check them out on Instagram: Tanner Usrey / Carson Wallace.
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