Bronco or Bust: Orville Peck in Charlotte

My Man Crush Monday will now exclusively be held for Orville Peck/Daniel Pitout assuming he agrees to such an arrangement. This man is amazing – more so than John Mayer (which if you know me is saying a lot).

The last time I went to a country music concert was circa mid 2000s in Kaneohe Bay - Marine Corps Base Hawaii’s annual music festival for the troops at ‘Bayfest’. On this port/airstrip is a memorial to a downed aircraft shot down by U.S. Marines during the Japanese air raid on Hawaii on and on the horizon you can see the wonderfully magnanimous mountains which illuminate the setting to the fictional Jurrasic Park franchise. Here I would see Alan Jackson and hopelessly plead with my parents to see Eminem (this performance would make base headlines as there would be a stabbing in the audience which stopped his performance).

All of this to say, after many years from the country music scene, anyone and everyone should go see Orville Peck on his Bronco tour. If you enjoy showmanship, a raucous audience, and all-around good country music, you’re going to enjoy yourself. However, to truly get the most of this experience, you have to abide by Orville’s three rules:

1. Sing along if you know the lyrics

2. Dance along to have a good time

3. If you don’t know the lyrics, you better dance along

Luckily enough for everyone, I know all the lyrics to his major hits and every word off of his latest album, Bronco. 

This is by far the most interesting country music audience I have seen. The audience dressed to the occasion. And people who I never would have expected to enjoy country music enjoyed it to its fullest. If you are a little lost here, I encourage you to look a little bit more into who Orville Peck is. And, this is what made the outlaw atmosphere of 2022 all the more poignant. But also, this atmosphere is what America should aspire to be: good ol’ boys with dip chin sporting a hat to their favorite college football team who drove in in their pumped up Chevy trucks jammin’ alongside the free spirited, electric car crowd clandestinely and provocatively dressed to the occasion for fun, flirtation, and tom-foolery.

To follow up with my earlier reflection on this album, one of my tenants to a great artist is their ability to tell a story. And Orville narrated his way through Bronco and old hits alike illuminating all of us on what the deeper meaning behind his words actually meant. Tears were shed, catharsis was achieved, and feeling a sense of belonging with other lost individuals was long overdue.

If I am being a little opaque with this performance review, it’s because I encourage all of you all to buy a ticket to the nearest performance. Chances are tickets are cheap, but the performance will be legendary. Do it. Search for the nearest location and don’t look back. And notice that the quality behind the album isn’t lost in a live atmosphere.

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On a scale of 1-1, how excited are you for Aaron's cover of Orville Peck's "Curse of the Blackened Eye? Comment below, and stick around for that cover, coming soon!

- Botts