Yep, the Knights will be there too.
Dierks Bentley kicked off his massive Gravel & Gold Tour last weekend with stops in Texas and Arkansas, and he’s bringing along some killer up and coming talent with names like Mae Estes, Zach Top and Graham Barham along with more established names like Lee Brice and Chase Rice.
And ahead of the tour kicking off, we got the chance to stop by rehearsals and get a sneak peek of what Dierks has in store, as well as chat with him about getting back on the road.
Dierks has been at it for a while now, so we wanted to know: How has touring changed since he started out back with his debut album in 2003:
“My biggest thing about country music is just the music. We have a big stage setup, and the video wall moves, and we actually sing a song from behind the video wall, which is crazy. We’ve put a lot of time into the production of the show.
But just sonically, I feel like it’s changed a lot…
Heavy steel guitar…sometimes I’m up there playing and I’m always like, I really feel proud of what we do because I really feature the musicians in our show. They’re up front with me, they’re not hidden backstage, they’re not wearing black clothing all hiding, they’re right there with me.
I remember watching Pearl Jam play back in the day and it was five distinct individuals across the stage all doing something unique, and you didn’t know where to keep your attention, and I try to bring that to our show.
It’s changed in that I feel like what we do is a little more old school country band setup and sound and a lot of emphasis on the music and the parts and the playing. I like representing that era of country music on the live show.”
And with a catalog as big as Dierks has, he’s got to figure out how to pack nearly two decades of music into an hour and a half show:
“The ultimate guide to the whole thing is the fan experience. I am a fan…
My whole thing’s about, what’s the fan experience from the second they walk in to the second they walk out? Great opening bands is a big part of it. Collaborating with them on stage during our show.
And my setlist, as far as the songs go, sing the hits. I want to pack as many hits in there as possible, songs everyone knows. I try to build a rollercoaster with the set so there’s going to be some slower moments and maybe a song you don’t know, a new song, but for the most part I’m going to try to pack three hours of music into an hour and a half set…
I try to pack as many of the hits as I can and give everybody what they want. And what they want is what I want, which is to have a really fun night.”
For Dierks though, it’s as much about having a good time himself as it is making sure his fans have a good time – because those two go hand in hand:
“I want to step on stage and be taken for a ride myself. I don’t want to be thinking about putting on a show, I want to be like, ‘Let’s have a drink and let’s rock. Let’s have fun.'”
Of course when you go see Dierks you’re not just getting a Dierks Bentley show, because he just can’t seem to get the Hot Country Knights from showing up at his concerts either:
“The Knights, I can’t get rid of them. They’ve padlocked their van to the back of our bus so wherever we go, they go. They go on stage after ‘Drunk On a Plane’ when the show’s over. They call that headlining, we call that trespassing.
But they come out there and ruin the night. It was always a great night, hit it out of the park, and they come on there and offend a lot of people.
But yes, they will be out there on the road this summer singing the hits, closing the show out.”
So it sounds like Dierks is the opener on his own tour…
Either way, it sounds like fans who come out for the Gravel & Gold Tour are in for a hell of a show – one filled with actual country music, bluegrass, and all of the hits…plus an appearance from those pesky Hot Country Knights.
What more could you ask for?
@whiskeyriff #whiskeyriff #dierksbentley @dierksbentley ♬ original sound – Whiskey Riff
And make sure to check out our full interview with Dierks on the latest episode of our Whiskey Riff Raff podcast:
