The Wood Brothers deliver a dance filled good time @ the Westcott, A-

What: Concert Review
Who: The Wood Brothers
When: Friday, April 10th, 2015
Where: Westcott Theater, Syracuse NY

Photo Credit by Upstate Shows

Last night, Americana folk rock group the Wood Brothers performed their unusual style of music to an impressive sold out concert at the Westcott. The place was packed and filled with people from wall to wall eager to see the two Brothers and multi-instrumentalist Jano Rix give them a swinging good time.
Before the Wood Brothers graced the stage, former Old Crow Medicine show member Willie Watson warmed up the crowd with his acoustic guitar and banjo. Armed by himself, Willie entertained the mass at the Westcott with his constant grin and humorous swing songs. He proved to be a good opener for the Wood Brothers, one the crowd accepted well and cheered for. Despite not playing any Old Crow songs, Willie performed songs off his new first self title album and several covers. He even got the crowd clapping on their own during his last tune before leaving the stage.
The crowd at the Westcott began to dance, cheer and sing even more when the Wood Brothers began to play. There were surprisingly hardly any hippies but average dressed and looking folk, with a split between both male and females in the audience. There were also a good mixture of both young and older people in the crowd as well, making it a great atmosphere for the concert.
The highlight of the night was Chris Wood, who currently is taking a break from his other band, Mediski Martin & Wood, to perform with his brother and Jano. The stand up base player dominated throughout the night, making it look easy to play the large instrument that was in front of him. The sound coming from him was awesome, but it was mixed well guitarist and singer Chris Wood and the various instruments Jano played, including the drums and Melodica.
The Wood Brothers performed a near two hour set that included almost all the songs fans wanted to hear. The crowd happily sang along to hits 'Luckiest Man' and 'The Muse'.
The highlight of the night came later during the Wood Brothers set when they told the crowd to hush so everyone could hear them through a special microphone that cut the sound clearer and crisper, providing excellent sounding harmonies. They invited Willie and another musician to play a few songs of them, making the moment more emotional.
Overall, the Wood Brothers was an excellent time at the Westcott. While their music might be extremely different than what is circulating right now, it is catchy and very dance friendly and provides an excellent time live.

Grade: A-