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ACL review: Ryan Bingham
Who knew that plains poet Ryan Bingham rocked so ferociously? Perhaps inspired by the biggest crowd for the BMI stage all day Friday, Bingham put a metal slide on his pinky and let ‘er rip on the last two songs of his set, including KGSR fave “Bread and Water.” As a former bullrider, Bingham knows a bit about adrenaline and his slide work seemed to express the thrill of an eight second ride.
The standout of the set came earlier, with “Southside of Heaven,” the calm before the storm. With his voice set between whisper and growl, Bingham sang about feeling lost in an aimless place where “a breeze is just a change of pace.” His fine band, the Dead Horses, shaded the sentiments with care and then at the song’s end came the sweet release. Newly resolved, the singer headed down those byways and highways where he now calls home.
It was a powerful moment and the crowd reacted by pumping their arms over their heads. Next year look for Bingham on one of the bigger stages.
A sometime Austinite, Bingham plays Wednesday at Threadgill’s South.
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