“A Brief History of Everything” tour recently made a stop at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena. The summer tour marks the second year in a row where Counting Crows teamed up with Matchbox Twenty for a co-headlining tour of the U.S. and Canada.
The two 90s rock staples played full sets before a packed crowd. Counting Crows took the stage first with a calm and collective assurance. Adam Duritz ran his hands through his iconic locks as he walked out to greet the audience. Previous tour stops have mentioned a lack to energy from the group, but that wasn't noticeable in Nashville. The entire band was on point, and
Duritz was smooth with his vocals and interacted well with both the band and the crowd throughout the entire set.
His powerful and emotional rendition of “Round Here” served as a great example to the band’s energy. Counting Crows left the stage, only momentarily, after thirteen songs; they returned to the stage to a standing ovation for a two-song encore featuring “Palisades Park,” and “Rain King.”
Matchbox Twenty and charismatic frontman Rob Thomas offered a second, more commercially appealing set soon after the Crows took their bow. Thomas was quite a bit chattier with the crowd than Duritz, and conquered the stage with confidence. The band was just as pumped as the crowd, jumping and spinning throughout the show.
Thomas’ crowd interaction went further than most artists. As he took a seat in front of the fans to perform the hit “Mad Season,” Thomas motioned for a security guard who walked to the front row to retrieve a woman’s cell phone. At that point Thomas took the phone and toured the stage while performing the song and simultaneously recording video footage in what made for a special souvenir for the lucky fan.
The tour is scheduled to continue throughout the rest of the summer, stopping all over the East Coast and Midwest with a final show on October 1, in Irving, Texas.