Live Review
Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit
Rupp Arena, Lexington, KY
September 6, 2024
The seven years since I last saw Jason Isbell live have been transformative for the singer-songwriter. He’s become a father, released another three acclaimed albums, divorced from Amanda Shires, weathered the death of Justin Townes Earle, made his acting debut in Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon, and performed at the Democratic National Convention. The totality of those experiences was brought to bear in his performance at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky, earlier this week, where he stopped in support of his latest record, Weathervanes. His command of the stage and his confidence as a bandleader for The 400 Unit have grown exponentially, resulting in a show in which his and The 400 Unit’s performances fully matched the power and emotional heft of his songwriting.
Before taking the stage, Silas House, the acclaimed novelist and music journalist who is currently serving as Kentucky’s Poet Laureate, introduced Isbell to the crowd, remarking that he thinks of Isbell as, “The Poet Laureate of The New South,” and citing Isbell’s unique skill in subverting stereotypes of the region while using first-person details that always ring true. House’s assessment is apt in the way it balances the praise that has been justly lauded upon Isbell’s songwriting since his days with Drive-By Truckers with the empathetic politics that are inherent in that songwriting.
Going into the show, I wasn’t sure whether to expect a setlist and banter that focused on Isbell’s recent divorce or his high-visibility gig at the DNC. His most vocal detractors insist that Isbell has gotten increasingly arrogant and insufferable over the last few years, particularly with a social media presence on which he’s made it clear that he’s unwilling to suffer fools or to entertain any “shut up and sing” bullshit. While there’s an element of truth to that criticism in how he’s leveraged his Xitter account– in full transparency, he’s engaged with us directly on that platform before we bailed on it– but it’s ultimately a matter of demanding civility in a discourse that was never bilaterally civil. What seems to get most under the skin of his critics is that he’s able to craft a withering insult as readily as he writes a heart-rending lyric: He makes no apology for punching down because he believes, correctly, that bigots and angry incels are inherently beneath him.
More to the point, though, is that he didn’t need to give a stump speech from his concert stage. His values– driven by a desire for things and people to be better, or at least to have the desire and resources to be better– have always been front-and-center in his songs. Working-class anthems “King Of Oklahoma” and “Something More Than Free” both benefitted from heftier arrangements than on their recorded versions, while the ever-growing power in his singing voice brought heightened conviction to the final verse of “Alabama Pines,” when he sings of the things he “gives a damn about.”
That he’s grown into a far better singer than he’s credited for was also a key element to this show. He belted “Middle of the Morning” into the high rafters, while he delivered a soulful rendition of “Cover Me Up” that was heightened by the addition of thundering percussion in its final chorus. His interplay with The 400 Unit showed an intuitive relationship with his backing band: There were plenty of moments when Isbell choked the absolute hell out of his guitar and just as many moments when he gave his band members space to shine. For someone who’s supposed to be such an egotist, he didn’t have to cede the spotlight to lead guitarist Sadler Vaden for a performance of Drivin’ N Cryin’s “Honeysuckle Blue.”
Isbell referred to Vaden as his “rock-and-roll guitarist” and to The 400 Unit as his “rock-and-roll band.” Isbell’s been increasingly vocal over the last few years that he doesn’t consider himself a country artist, and this show doubled-down on the notion that he and The 400 Unit are eager to prove themselves as an arena-rock outfit. If anything, Isbell need not worry about the genre semantics: However impressive his guitar solos may have been– and they really and truly were, particularly in terms of tone– his narratives and vernacular have always been rooted in country forms. He code-switches between country and rock now without stumbling.
That was most apparent when he pivoted between an inspired cover of The Cure’s “Just Like Heaven” and “Cast Iron Skillet” during the set’s encore. What could’ve been a jarring transition from a less skilled band was, instead, a natural progression of the overall setlist. Perhaps most impressive was that Isbell was able to omit many of his best and most-beloved songs– “Outfit,” “Dress Blues,” “24 Frames,” “Elephant,” “Last of My Kind,” and countless others– and still put on a wholly satisfying show.
Isbell’s at a point in his career that he’s able to curate a setlist that’s focused and purposeful in terms of what message he wants to send. As he sang on a stirring rendition of “Live Oak,” “There’s a man who walks beside me / He is who I used to be.” The 2024 iteration of Jason Isbell is fully aware of who he was before and, at least in terms of being a live performer, is comfortable in the knowledge that he’s now a better version of himself.
Setlist:
“Save the World”
“King of Oklahoma”
“Strawberry Woman”
“Traveling Alone”
“Death Wish”
“Overseas”
“Something More Than Free”
“Middle of the Morning”
“Honeysuckle Blue”
“Live Oak”
“Alabama Pines”
“When We Were Close”
“Stockholm”
“If We Were Vampires”
“Miles”
“Cover Me Up”
Encore:
“Just Like Heaven”
“Cast Iron Skillet”
“This Ain’t It”
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