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Billy Strings at Royal Albert Hall — Concert Review
Billy Strings at Royal Albert Hall — Concert Review
Nearly sixty years after Bob Dylan faced the ire of the Royal Albert Hall due to his hybrid electric and acoustic set, Billy Strings has vindicated him by showing the raw power of the synthesis of traditional American folk and rock. The five man bluegrass outfit returned to the UK for the first time in two years on October 10th, in which time Strings had released a hugely successful album, started playing stadiums, and collected some high profile sit-ins and collaborations with the likes of Willie Nelson, Bob Weir, and Dylan himself. It’s fair to say that Billy has been on a journey of growth, and his reception in London only underscored that for both the performer and the audience.
Photos by Max Bowden, E.J. & Goode Family
The crowd had felt their absence; a powerful roar when the band came on the stage had a palpable effect on the quintet, and marked the start of a remarkable connection between performer and audience that pulsated through the evening. The Royal Albert Hall is a spectacular venue, built by Queen Victoria to memorialise her late husband, and is particularly well suited to jam-band shows. There is a Colosseum-like panorama for the performers, with circles stacked on top of each other to create a wall of audience, that in this case were screaming for the long absent Billy Strings. Preceding his usual greeting “Howdy” there was an awestruck look and a stunned “what the…” at the ecstatic reception.
The 150-year-old venue hummed with psychedelic energy as the band got started, and the dome of the Hall seemed perfect for hanging the huge dynamic lighting display Strings has adopted this year. Saxon Waller took over as the group’s lighting engineer in August, and has already made his mark on its scene with powerful light shows that not only compliment the bands playing but supplement it artistically too. In the tradition of the Grateful Dead‘s lighting engineer Candace Brightman (nominative determinism in action), the lights are also used to illuminate the crowd, and help build the relationship between the performer and their audience.
The first songs of the set made clear that Billy was seeking to make his mark on the historic venue. “Red Daisy,” “Gild the Lily,” “Hellbender,” and “Dust in a Baggie” began a set that was stacked with Billy’s originals, treating London to a near perfect setlist. It wasn’t all originals though; there were renditions of Doc Watson’s version of “Leaving London” to give the crowd a breather, and an enormous performance of David Grisman’s “Dawg’s Rag” to hype them back up again. The highlight of the set was the closing “Turmoil and Tinfoil,” with a deep and extended “Inspector Gadget Jam.”
After a short twenty-minute set break, the band was back for a set that will go down in both Billy Strings and Royal Albert Hall history. They opened with “Fire on my Tongue” –> “Ol’ Slewfoot,” bringing some of the crowd towards their own frantic glossolalia, and beginning to drive the crowd into a frenzy that I’m not sure the staff of the Royal Albert Hall were entirely ready for.
The set’s highlights were many, but the power of Strings’ acapella singing on “Am I Born to Die” will stay with me for a long time. The lights that defined so much of the experience so far were gone, save a spotlight, and the crowd were rapt in total silence.
A cover of “Nights in White Satin” memorialised John Lodge, who had just passed. The murder-ballad double of “Pretty Daughter” and “Psycho” added to Strings original “My Alice” to create a set peppered with narratives of dark characters, and an eye towards mortality, in a moment of such vivacious life. This led into the final crescendo of the evening with a huge version of “Hide and Seek” that drove the crowd so wild, I saw someone run down the aisle of my circle and leap into the pit. This was one step too far for the benighted security, who swiftly bundled him out of the pit and presumably into the cold night air.
This Europe tour will stand as one of the most accomplished of Billy’s career so far, and goes to show how ascendant he is. It seems like every show is better than the last, and his range is simply stunning. Over the five shows of the tour the band has played 126 songs, with 94 of those being only played once, showing the unprecedented depth of his musical catalogue and the breadth of the band’s ability. Amongst all this virtuosity, this night in London stands out as the crown jewel of the tour, a legendary show that will act as a benchmark for every live show I go to henceforth.
I’m waiting for the Live at the Royal Albert Hall Double EP already.
– Max Bowden
Instagram: @mappingthedeadverse
Billy Strings
October 10th, 2025 at Royal Albert Hall, London, England
Set I:
Red Daisy
Gild the Lily
Hellbender
Dust in a Baggie
Leaving London (Tom Paxton cover)
Show Me the Door
Dawg’s Rag (David Grisman Quintet cover)
Stratosphere Blues / I Believe in You
In the Clear
Turmoil & Tinfoil
Set II:
The Fire on My Tongue >
Ole Slew-Foot (Johnny Horton cover)
Age (Jim Croce cover; Live debut)
My Alice
Away From the Mire
Am I Born To Die? (Charles Wesley cover; Solo)
Brown’s Ferry Blues (The Delmore Brothers cover; Solo)
Dos Banjos
Escanaba
Nights in White Satin (The Moody Blues cover)
Pretty Daughter (Danny Barnes cover)
Psycho (Eddie Noack cover)
Hide and Seek
Richard Petty
Tennessee (Jimmy Martin cover)
Setlist from setlist.fm
Photos by Max Bowden, E.J. and the Goode Family
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