The very first time Greta Van Fleet played in New York City, it was before about 50 people in the basement of a now-defunct restaurant called Esther & Carol’s on the corner of Bowery and Broome Street. The hard-rocking quartet, named after a woman in their home town of Frankenmuth, Michigan, had formed five-years earlier and had digitally circulated its debut four-song EP, Black Smoke Rising, two months before the New York City showcase. Physical copies of the EP had not yet been pressed. In that basement, the band played the four recorded songs, plus two as-yet unreleased songs, “Edge of Darkness” and “Talk on the Street.”
At the time, twin brothers Joshua (vocals) and Jake (guitar) Kiszka were 21 years old. Their bassist brother, Samuel, and drummer Danny Wagner, were 18 Years old. Yet, even then, to this reporter, the youthful musicians sounded far older than their years. From the first song, they appeared to have studied Led Zeppelin very closely. Their song compositions and arrangements, their stage moves, even the way they dressed recalled the legendary British rock band that had disbanded decades before any of these musicians were born. Even then, the youngsters in Greta Van Fleet demonstrated the potential to become immensely popular, because every generation deserves a monolithic rock band like Led Zeppelin. Greta Van Fleet had the uniqueness of bridging the classic-rock baby boomers as well as Gen Z indie rockers.
A lot has happened since 2017. Greta Van Fleet has released three albums, performed at festivals, and earned numerous accolades and awards. In 2018, Elton John invited the band to perform at his Academy Award party. The rise to the 20,000-capacity Madison Square Garden was inevitable and became a reality on Greta Van Fleet’s most recent concert Starcatcher tour in 2023 and 2024.
After nearly two years of virtual invisibility, Greta Van Fleet recently posted a cryptic message on social media that fed rumors of the band’s demise. Then, last week, again on social media, the band announced that it would perform a one-night underplay at the 575-capacity Bowery Ballroom. Old-school style, physical tickets would be on sale for $20. only at the venue, and only on the day before the show. Little did the fans suspect that members of the band would be selling some of those tickets to them by hand.
On the big night, the Bowery Ballroom doors opened at 7 p.m. Greta Van Fleet’s performance began at 8:30 p.m. During that wait time, a seemingly endless line of fans stockpiled on $20 t-shirts and posters. Fans then walked into the ballroom space upstairs carrying armloads of these souvenirs.
Greta Van Fleet opened the Bowery Ballroom show with the four songs from the debut EP that the band introduced in the restaurant basement nine years ago. In the current manifestation, the block of songs included an extended drum solo. Rather than a staging a showcase of new songs, as concerts frequently do, the one-hour performance proved to be a retrospective of nine of the band’s fan favorites. “The Falling Sky” was listed on printed setlist but was not played.
Only at the end of the set did the band debut two new songs, “Tear It Down” and “Play Your Games.” This pair of songs pointed to a possible new direction for the band. While the new songs embraced the band’s signature classic rock sound, the lyrical hooklines were designed for mainstream play. The catch phrases repeated so often that the titles of the songs were easily discerned. Although the fans were hearing the songs for the first time, they were already singing along with Josh.
Maturity has settled in. The twins are now 30 years old. Josh is sporting facial hair. Professional as they are now, each of the four musicians did everything possible to play well, put on the flashy rock star moves, and engage the audience, particularly the fans at the edge of the stage who had waited for days on the line outside the venue. Considering that this was their first public performance in nearly two years, the musicians were remarkably well rehearsed. The musicians seemed happy to perform for a live audience. At one point, Joshua told the enthusiastic audience, “This is great. Maybe we should do it again sometime.” The concert ended with no encore, with Josh riding on someone’s shoulders through the audience, from the stage to the back of the room, gifting long-stem white roses to fans.
Although the concert was very satisfying, many questions remained unanswered. No explanations were given as to why Greta Van Fleet traveled to New York City for this one-shot concert. No announcements have been made about a subsequent tour or the release of any new music even as one song, "Play Your Games," drops on Friday, May 29. The band made no mention of the May 18 passing of 95-year-old Gretna Van Fleet, the Frankenmuth woman after whom the band was named. Did the musicians notice that the Bowery Ballroom is located only one short block from the restaurant basement where the band first played in New York City?
Greta Van Fleet’s original rise was meteoric. Judging by the Bowery Ballroom performance, the band is about to do it again.
Setlist
- Highway Tune
- Safari Song
- Flower Power
- Black Smoke Rising
- When the Curtain Falls
- Age of Man
- Heat Above
- Light My Love
- Meeting the Master
- Tear It Down
- Play Your Games
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The Manhattan Beat covers New York City's live music circuit. All articles are written by Everynight Charley Crespo. All photographs are taken by Everynight Charley Crespo, except when noted otherwise.
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