Photo credit: Kathryn Rock
Horseshoes & Hand Grenades played the Driftless Music Gardens on Friday, July 3, 2020.
After not playing a show for 132 days, who would blame Adam Greuel for ignoring a downpour and continuing to sing, virtually a cappella, to an audience of mostly folks who had retreated to the shelter of their vehicles?
In what may become the new standard for events, concertgoers sat on lawn chairs and blankets, in assigned spaces next to their parked cars, keeping a regulated social distance. Just 100 car passes were made available for the July 3 Horseshoes & Hand Grenades concert.
Each parking spot included a 20’ area, cars were limited to four people and no food or beverages were sold. Fans were asked to wear masks in common areas. Each car received a complimentary bottle of hand sanitizer upon entering.
Driving through rolling bucolic hillsides, we slowed for an Amish horse-drawn buggy and then spotted a trio of sandhill cranes before passing through the small town of Yuba. The concert site, a small valley, provided a natural amphitheater in the Driftless Area outside Hillsboro, WI.
The humid evening was still holding onto the 85-degree day when the acoustic quintet took the stage, spacing themselves apart. “Forgive us, we are getting used to playing music again,” Greuel said. But no apology was necessary as the band dug in for two sets of music.
When the showers began fans held tarps over each musician’s head. The band sang “let it shine” in an attempt to appease the gods of precipitation, but it was no use. One by one the musicians retreated to their trailer until only Greuel was left, returning to the band’s anthem “Wisconsin Waters.”
In years past, without the benefit of wireless sound systems the evening would have been canceled due to rain. Yet, after a break and the skies cleared, the band (who formed when the members were in college at Stevens Point) let rip with the sounds of fiddle, banjo, harmonica, accordion and upright bass echoing off the opposite tree line.
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Horseshoes & Hand Grenades seamlessly moved from fiddle-led rave-ups to murder ballads. From standards “Darlin Cory” and “Morning Dew” to “This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody)” by Talking Heads. Their finale, “Whiskey,” segued into Pink Floyd’s “Time.” Such is the omnivorous state of bluegrass music today. Judging by folks who found the dancefloor to be next to their car, no one was complaining.
Concert venues will face challenges when performances ramp back up but for now, Driftless Music Gardens demonstrated how it can be done.
The Drive-In Tailgate Concert Series continues through August 7.
To read more concert reviews, click here.
To read more stories by Blaine Schultz, click here.
