You long-time readers know that once in a while I'll write about something perfect. Cannot be improved upon, even in the smallest way. I wrote about the perfect trilogy called 30 Perfect Rounds describing the "Irish" Micky Ward and Arturo "Thunder" Gatti fights. You could argue that the Ali-Frazier trilogy was perfect but for me and my time and what I witnessed in real-time, you cannot touch Ward-Gatti.
Well, I found the perfect concert album. I must confess I only roughly knew of this man and to my shame dismissed him as a Bro-Country hack. It was out of my own ignorance as I did not do my homework on him even though what I had heard was really really good. Later I learned he was not played on the radio, if he was it was usually by request and even then it is iffy.
He reminds me of Metallica. They were the best band on the planet years before they got airplay which came with their very first video which was introduced in their fourth studio album, "...And Justice For All." When One was released they started to explode in popularity and started gaining mainstream attention. Then the Black album and the rest is history.
This man is that. He's the absolute best artist on the planet right now. He's a lyrical genius, he's Hemmingway in how he can turn a simple phrase and make it deep and esoteric. He's from Oklahoma and he's pure Red Dirt. He's the antidote to Bro-Country that has infested the radio for going on twenty years. Instead of lake-side hijinks, he writes things that I can easily relate to as I grew up in a town that was maybe a bit smaller than Oologah in the 80s. I understand where this man is coming from, lived it too with my friends.
He writes about heartbreak, loss, fun, triumph, and everything in between those four points. His albums are sparse, mostly him and his guitar only with the occasional bass drum or straining fiddle. He started to get noticed while he was in the Navy when he started posting original songs while dressed in his work greens. Before long he was getting millions of streams and after that, the Navy wanted to have a chat with him. Legend says he earned an Honorable Discharge and went on tour.
Zach Bryan is the best new Country artist in the world right now as I said, there are some that are every bit as good as him but have been around a few years and have really grown as artists like Cody Jinks, Ray Wylie Hubbard (a legend that's been around for a very long time), groups like Whiskey Myers, all of them have heart and speak to my like Mr. Bryan's music does but he's different at the same time. When you hear him, you'll understand what I mean.
In November of last year, he played a concert at Red Rocks. With a snow storm and freezing cold as the backdrop, Zach Bryan along with the fans created the absolute perfect concert. I've seen the Stones, Metallica, GnR in their prime, and Elton John on his last tour and many many more. This is better than all of that combined to me. This show is the epitome of how an artist loves the people and the love they give back to the artist while on stage that is just amplified and given back into an infinite loop. This show is a love story between the two and the dance that unfolds over an hour and a half.
It's an experience and it isn't diminished in the least tiny bit if you're unfamiliar with his art. If anything once you're familiar with his songs then this show gets better. I honestly don't have the words to accurately describe this other than it is perfect. I don't even want to run down the tracklist, if you haven't experienced it, I ask you to get relaxed, find a place where you won't be disturbed for a while, and enjoy this absolute masterpiece. You can stream it on any service or watch a stitched-together concert with fan footage timed up to the actual concert audio on YouTube.
