Story and Photos: Spencer Fleming
It was a new wave of classic rock on Monday (4.29.24) when superstars Greta Van Fleet brought their Starcatcher world tour to the Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln!
This isn't the first time Stories From The Crowd has covered Greta, but it was my first time getting to see them live. Now I see what our past collaborators were so wild about! Greta puts on one heck of a show. Let's get into it.
I arrived just a couple songs into the opening band Mirador's set. I wasn't familiar with Mirador but I heard it was Greta Van Fleet guitarist Jake Kiszka's new band. As I found my seat I spotted Jake up front shredding away and taking lead vocal duty. Mirador had a killer vibe with wailing guitars and soulful harmonies. Much like Greta, they had a bit of a throwback classic rock feel. My mind conjured thoughts of Fleetwood Mac and the Doobie Brothers, but with a bit more tribal drums. I really dug their set and I look forward to catching them again sometime!
Next up was the band Geese (An American band), as their banner read. I did a quick google before the show and these guys showed up on a lot of "you need to see this band" articles so I was curious going in. Geese definitely has a lot of talent, but the trippy jazz punk vibe wasn't really in my lane. The Greta crowd seemed to be vibing with them though so that was cool. Hey, different strokes for different folks, right?
After a bit of stage setup it was time to shoot photos for the mighty Greta Van Fleet! The group of photographers I was with were instructed to wait until the curtain dropped before we could approach the stage. On both sides of the room there were long shiny catwalks and in the back a small stage setup. I could tell this was going to be quite the elaborate production. We waited on the outside of the catwalk as pirate music played over the house speakers and a giant Starcatcher symbol swayed across the curtain.
The music stopped and the curtain popped with sparks to reveal the Kiszka brothers in their flashiest rockstar outfits. The crowd roared in excitement as I moved through the catwalk setup and towards the stage to start shooting. From the very start lead singer Josh Kiszka was interacting with the front row making little motions and smiles in between belting out his signature high notes. I could tell he was a showman through and through. In the front row some fans had signs displaying "Sammy's Love Club" for bass player and Kiska brother Sam. With a killer Rickenbacker guitar Sam laid down the rhythms!
I made my way over the the far catwalk as Jake threw his hair back and wailed on the guitar. He looked so cool in his black boots and sequined jacket.
During the first couple songs the stage exploded with flames sending the crowd into a frenzy! It's always fun feeling the heat on your face since we're shooting photos only inches from the stage. Six years later and I still get goosebumps every time the curtain drops and I'm given the opportunity to capture an artist up close.
After the first seven songs the band moved to the back of the room and set up on the small stage to do an acoustic set. While heading to the small stage Josh made sure to throw out roses to some of the folks in the crowd. For those who caught one the look of surprise and joy was so cool to watch. I'm sure it made their whole month!
The band started off with a cover of "Unchained Melody" or for those of us coming up in the 80s "The Song from Ghost". Josh did an excellent job hitting those high notes. I really enjoyed this part of the show as drummer Daniel Wagner stepped away from his drums and picked up a guitar. Talk about talent! They finished the acoustic set with "Black Smoke Rising" the title track from Greta's debut EP. For his transportation back to the main stage Josh rode on one of the crew member's shoulders, which was hilarious to watch.
Greta would go on to play three more songs followed by an encore of "Light My Love" from 2021's The Battle At Garden's Gate and "Farewell For Now" from their latest release Starcatcher. Listening to some of the lyrics it's clearly one of the better closers to come along.
We have shared with you our stories
Had ourselves a really big time
Fought in battles far from the homeland
Made love, even drank from the wine
And I wish we all could stay
But I bid you a farewell
And it means the world to play
But I bid you a farewell
Friends who've come so far to join us
We hope you come and join us again
I'm so glad I got to catch this band live. As the song says I would definitely join them again, given the opportunity.
A huge shout out to 104.1 The Blaze for bringing such awesome rock shows to Lincoln, and a big thanks to Greta Van Fleet management for photo access. Special thanks to Pinnacle Bank Arena for being so great to work with. We'll see you at the next one!
Greta Van Fleet
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