The Avett Brothers Live Up to Headline Slot at Calgary Folk Festival

Conditions may have been a bit chilly Thursday, but that didn't stop thousands of fans from dancing as North Carolina's Avett Brothers -- Scott and Seth Avett, bassist Bob Crawford and cellist Joe Kwon -- brought the first night of the Calgary Folk Festival to a close with a spirited outdoor set.

Creating a musical gumbo of bluegrass, country, honky-tonk and, indeed, folk -- played with a punk aggressiveness -- the Brothers managed to shift seemlessly between genres, producing a live show that refuses both categorization and predictability. As such, it works as a perfect metaphor for the tone of the Calgary, Alberta festival itself: deeply rooted in the ethos of folk, but executed and interpreted in an outside-the-box manner.

Though none of the three previous bands playing the main stage could rouse the nearly 9,000 strong crowd from their lawn chairs and baby strollers, there was no denying the gyrating gatherings that assembled both directly in front of the stage and the middle of the field as the band ran though their more raucous numbers.

Earlier in the day, Seth Avett joked to Spinner that the band had been on the same tour for nearly 10 years, and, judging by both the clever interplay and the synchronized dance moves, it showed. Even more impressive is how the group still truly enjoys playing the material, as exemplified by the smile that refused to dislodge itself from Scott Avett's face throughout the evening.



While the band has already made a name for itself as a killer live unit, opening previously for legendary acts like Dave Matthews Band, on Thursday evening they made a convincing argument that they're ready for the big time.