GretaVan Fleet
continued from page 22
Live Music Concerts at Pheasant Run!
Fri Oct 5
Sat Oct 6
8pm
7:30pm
R&B Motown
RICK SAUCEDO
THE MOODS
SUN Oct 7
7pm
BAD MOTOR SCOOTER 9PM
'YACHT ROCK'
NIGHT
HEISENBERG UNCERTAINTY PLAYERS: ABBEY ROAD 3PM
8pm
8pm
Toby Keith Tribute
MAGGIE SPEAKS
Sat Oct 13
Fri Oct 12
Bon Jovi Tribute
out.
“I’d like to say that I fell in love with the
drums,” Danny continued. “They were not
my first instrument; I learned guitar first,
played French horn in band, learned piano
from my sister, I learned keyboard and
organ from Sam, and bass and ukelele and
trumpet and sax, and then my parents got
this drum kit. It was so different than any
other instrument. I fell in love with the
ability to make so much noise and to have
so much precision but to release so much
energy. I was an athlete, so it was almost
taking music to that level.”
They started reaching out to a few
labels in early 2017, including pop/rock
visionary Jason Flom at Lava Records.
Flom responded immediately and
snatched up the band. “He had so much
confidence in us it was scary,” said Danny.
“Sam and I were still finishing up high
school. I was doing homework and invited
to sign a record deal. But we didn’t tell
anyone until we were graduating. It was
kind of a secret between us because it was
a big deal. We didn’t want a bunch of
rumors going around. Yes, we come from a
very small town. Things can spread
around town in less than a day. We publi- Danny mused. “In all music, it’s important
for it to evolve over time, and for it to hap-
pen naturally. A lot of it has to do with our
maturity, developing as musicians. I’d say
a lot of it comes from our childhood and
the blues, soul, and rudimentary genres we
brought with us, and we channel our
youthful energy into it. We’re very tired
after every show; there’s no question. We
just love to put ourselves out there and to
work hard. And when you’re really loving
it, it doesn’t seem like work.”
Elaborating further on their live shows,
Jake adds, “We take a very loose approach
in the sense that we have somewhat of a
standard set, but there are many sections
within that to expand and jam and impro-
vise. Because if something becomes stag-
nant, it becomes boring and dies, you
know? And as much as there is a set, we
throw in different songs, and we try to
change the set each night not only for our
experience but for the audience as well.
There are a lot of people who come to
[multiple] shows, and it’s different every
single night. That’s another very special
element of our live show and how it has
evolved - it’s everybody sharing that expe-
rience together in a room unified for
cized it eventually. People have always
been huge supporters back home, which is
great.”
They signed to Lava/Republic in
March 2017, and a month later released
their debut studio EP, Black Smoke Rising.
Their debut single, "Highway Tune,"
topped the Billboard US Mainstream Rock
and Active Rock charts in September 2017
for four weeks in a row. A second EP From
the Fires (containing the four songs from
Black Smoke Rising plus four new songs),
was released on November 10, 2017. In the
U.S., From the Fires topped Billboard's Hard
Rock Albums chart and rocketed Greta Van
Fleet to global success, charting through-
out Europe and reaching #4 in New
Zealand.
Being young makes touring easier for
sure. It takes stamina to travel and perform
night after night, so being 18-21 years old
is an ideal age. Touring also gives a band
the opportunity to hone their craft. “I think
the most important part of this band’s evo-
lution is the fact that it does evolve,” music, being there for that purpose, but
hearing something that will never be
repeated because each show is very much
different and will probably never be
repeated.”
When they first started playing in bars
and clubs, the crowd was older (because
the guys were underage). “I thought it was
great because then a lot of them introduced
the music to their kids,” said Danny.
“We’ve always seen [people] ages 8 to 80 at
all of our shows. It’s incredible. There’s
usually an abundance of different types of
people, and it’s awesome because then
there isn’t a specific target market and no
one’s feeling left out.”
Chances are you’ve heard some of their
first releases, seen one of their many live
YouTube clips, caught one of their late-
night TV appearances, saw them at this
year's Lollapalooza, or are already on the
GVF bandwagon. Chances are you’ve
already got your ticket for one of their
three sold-out shows at The Aragon in
MADE IN AMERICA
SUN Oct 14
BAD MEDICINE
3pm
Classical Pop
& Rock
CLASSICAL BLAST
October 19 – October 28
RUMPELSTILTSKIN
AN ORIGINAL MUSICAL
Presented by Sigman Brothers
Fri Nov 9
Fri Nov 23
7:30pm
8pm
The Beatles
Tribute
Doobie Bros Tribute + Allman Bros Tribute
CHINA GROVE
AND
MIDNIGHT RIDER
AMERICAN ENGLISH
Coming to Mainstage Theater at Pheasant Run Resort
Nov 24
Nov 25
BRASS FROM THE PAST
ONE OF THESE NIGHTS
Ticket Box Office (224) 944-2591 • www.MainstageTix.com
Artisit and Music Booking in part by:
United Talent Coordinators
Sigman Brothers
Pheasant Run Resort
4501 East Main Street • St. Charles IL 60174
Phone: (630) 584-6300 • www.PheasantRun.com
24 illinoisentertainer.com october 2018
Continued
48
continues on
on page
page 49