B-

Earlier this month, I traveled with my wife’s family up to Colorado to see a concert at the legendary Red Rocks amphitheater. They were there for Andy Frasco and the U.N., an amusing enough band that knows how to put on a highly entertaining live performance, even if their songwriting is nothing to write home about. But after the U.N.’s electric performance (the best set of the three I’ve seen yet from them), a group I had never heard of took the stage and proceeded to blow me away with a much smaller, more intimate, dare I say thoughtful sound. That group was Greensky Bluegrass.

While I didn’t get to stay for all of Greensky’s performance, what I did see was captivating and some of the best, and most unique, live music I’ve ever heard. The group’s effortless yet energetic riffing between guitar, slide guitar, mandolin and yes, the infamous banjo, was captivating and put all the more over the top through the inclusion of some truly phenomenal piano and keyboard playing from Holly Bowling, who has made a name for herself outside of the group as a solo artist and contributor to other groups including Ghost Light and Phil Lesh and Friends. And the natural outdoor venue couldn’t have been more perfect for this group; the audience literally gasped when the band flashed a live look at the giant moon that was overseeing the performance on the monitors. It’s a visual I won’t soon forget.

Immediately on the long ride home the next day, I started up Stress Dreams due to its inclusion of “Worry for You,” a standout from their Red Rocks set. Throughout the album, I found this track to be Greensky Bluegrass at their sharpest lyrically, though the title track is maybe the strongest musically, particularly thanks to its inclusion of piano which is sadly missing in the majority of the group’s studio work. Most of the rest of the album also hits a solid quality bar, even if it does dip at times for unnecessary gimmickry like “Get Sad” and “Give a Shit.”

All-in, Stress Dreams serves as a very good introduction to a truly talented group of musicians that should be interesting to anyone looking for a bit more depth to country and western musical stylings than what is often on offer. But if you can, catching them live is even better. When they hit their stride, there is something special going on here.