Concert review: Bon Iver at Rabbit Rabbit

Jonny Leather: While I was absorbing everything that Bon Iver had to offer at its June 26 tour finale at Rabbit Rabbit, I overheard a fan in my vicinity tell her friend that we had reached the moment during which she cried during the prior night’s performance, leaving me wondering just how similar the two Asheville sets had been. Fortunately, Asheville Stages’ own Edwin Arnaudin had attended the June 25 show, providing an ideal opportunity for discussion of our varied experiences.

Heading into this past weekend, I knew that frontman Justin Vernon’s band is popular and that both shows had sold out, but it wasn’t until I saw the size of the crowd that it hit me just how popular this group is. Considering that Belle & Sebastian’s show earlier this summer got downgraded to The Orange Peel, did you expect Bon Iver to have the draw to pull in such massive crowds two nights in a row in Asheville?

Edwin Arnaudin: The pair of Bon Iver shows at Thomas Wolfe Auditorium in early November 2018 were either sold out or close to it, so I knew the band had strong local drawing power, but accomplishing the same feat at Asheville’s biggest outdoor venue was somewhat of a surprise. As our buddy Matt Kane noted, these are weird songs, and to have this many people come out to experience them is pretty wild and wonderful, if you think about it.

JL: That’s a great point. For as much as Vernon is connected to megastars Taylor Swift and Kanye West, Bon Iver’s own music has arguably grown less commercially friendly over the years. Although neither of us saw both nights, it was clear that there were more than a few fans who shelled out the money to see the back-to-back performances.

From my recollection, I’ve only personally seen two bands perform two nights in a row. The Faint played such an exhilarating set the first night that I bought tickets for the next. The two performances were at different New York venues, but otherwise nearly identical, and I couldn’t have been happier about that. The other was Radiohead — they headlined the first two of three nights of a short-lived music festival. Those were two of my favorite performances I’ve ever seen, with each night having a very different setlist. The variety between the two really made it worth attending both nights, and heading into this weekend, I wondered if Bon Iver would mix things up as much as Radiohead had, or if Vernon & Co. would more or less play the same show both nights like The Faint did. Have you ever seen a band perform back-to-back shows in the same city?

EA: I intentionally conducted this experiment with Portugal. The Man at The Orange Peel in 2017, and other than what felt like an intentional self-parody, poking fun at the extreme popularity of “Feel It Still” by playing it a second time later in the first night, the two setlists mirrored each other. 

A little less than a year later, I was fortunate enough to attend Vernon’s buddies The National’s inaugural (and, so far, only — thanks, COVID…) Homecoming festival in Cincinnati. The first night, the hosts played an eclectic set of originals, and the following evening played through Boxer in its entirety, plus some other jams, including my beloved “Pink Rabbits.” They were going to perform High Violet all the way through in 2020, so hopefully that’ll happen in 2023.

JL: The first time I saw Bon Iver was an incomparable experience. Just beginning to ascend on a titanic wave of hype, Vernon  performed in a relatively small, influential DIY venue in Brooklyn, opening for Black Mountain in 2008. It was a frigid winter day, but inside that space it was so densely crowded that it felt like it was 100 degrees. Set up on the main floor rather than the stage, the band played as a trio with the audience and a Pitchfork film crew surrounding them. For as much as the tightly packed space had all the discomfort of an overcrowded subway train during rush hour, the set was one of communal bliss. Several months later, I experienced that euphoria again when Bon Iver performed at Music Hall of Williamsburg. 

Both of those performances have remained pretty cemented in my memory, and provided me with an oddly dated and rather lofty expectation of what Sunday night’s performance would be like. But I also knew that Bon Iver’s sound had evolved quite significantly in the time that had passed since those concerts 14 years ago. What kind of expectations did you have leading up to Saturday’s show?

EA: I’m a late convert to Bon Iver, having written the acclaimed self-titled album off as hipster nonsense, only to come around a few years later after hearing it and For Emma, Forever Ago with a more open mind. I was at the second TWA performance four years ago, also on a Sunday night, and enjoyed a chill but fascinating show, mesmerized by a headphone-clad Vernon building and looping songs from his elevated booth.

We were also seated throughout the evening, rising only to applaud the performance’s conclusion, so my main question was whether I’d crave a chair at Rabbit Rabbit or if the band would deliver high(er)-energy renditions of its tracks. I wasn’t expecting a dance party, but I also didn’t want to be lulled into a sonic stupor while standing on what’s still very much a parking lot.

JL: Normally, prior to shows I have a tendency to dig deep into an artist’s discography and build up my familiarity with their songs, especially the material they’re most likely to play live. A busy weekend schedule only allowed for time to visit each of the most recent albums, i,i and 22, A Million. I love the direction Vernon took on 22, A Million, shifting to a strange sort of post-apocalyptic version of yacht rock. As much as i,i was a continuation of that style, it has always left me with less of an impression to hang onto. So, heading into the show, I was hoping for a set that wouldn't be too overloaded with songs from i,i — and I also had a lot of hope for some throwbacks from Bon Iver’s folkier era. Did you have an idealized setlist in mind heading into Saturday night?

EA: Honestly, not really. Vernon had so thoroughly earned my trust in 2018 that I was ready to follow wherever he led — albeit with the aforementioned standing concerns. But “U (Man Like)” made my Best of 2019 mix and “8 (Circle)” is on the 2016 edition, so I wasn’t going to complain if either got played. However, some cars might have gotten flipped if “Holocene” and “Skinny Love” got skipped. Basic, I am, Master Yoda.

JL: Of the two nights, the Sunday performance was more i,i-heavy, while Saturday night featured a higher percentage of 22, A Million songs. That being said, I can’t imagine a more enjoyable performance than what we got on Night Two, and hearing many of those songs that I had felt less excited about in a live setting provided me with a greater appreciation for them. Included in the additional i,i songs that the Sunday crowd experienced was “Salem,” which featured some excellent guitar accompaniment by Josh Kaufman of opener Bonny Light Horseman. 

As much as I loved all of the recent material that Bon Iver played, I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that nothing made me happier than hearing both “Flume” and “Lump Sum.” For Emma, Forever Ago came out during a pretty significant and challenging period in my life, and those songs will never not send an emotional shockwave through my mind when hearing them. 

How did the set compare to your idealized version?

EA: My modest dreams all came true, plus “Heavenly Father,” aka The Other Bon Iver Song on the Wish I Was Here Soundtrack. Can I name the bulk of Vernon’s songs without looking them up? No. Do I enjoy listening to the bulk of what he and his bandmates throw at me? You’re goddamn right.

Whatever I thought might get played, however, paled in comparison to the sound quality — by far the best I’ve experienced at Rabbit Rabbit thus far. Matt and I are convinced that, as with bringing in its own photographers and videographers, Bon Iver had its own audio team tag along. In addition to sounding great, the show was also visually engaging with each musician encased by a thin neon barrier that resembled a primitive version of TRON.

JL: Indeed. No other Rabbit Rabbit show I’ve attended this summer has come close to sounding so explosive and flawlessly mixed.

For as great as it was hearing Bon Iver play its own songs, no moment felt more magical than the cover of Bob Dylan’s “With God On Our Side” during the encore. Joined by the members of Bonny Light Horseman, there was an immense amount of talent on that stage all at once — and unlike a lot of performances during which members of multiple bands collect to perform together, the experience really was a sum of all of the parts. 

Following an opening verse by Vernon, the opening act’s Eric D. Johnson and Anaïs Mitchell, and Bon Iver recruit Jenn Wasner (of Wye Oak) each took turns singing subsequent verses. It's challenging to even single out a star because each vocalist truly excelled, but Wasner really stood out. And that was actually a common theme for Bon Iver’s entire set. Vernon and Sean Carey are both exceptional singers who define the sound of Bon Iver, but that also makes them usual and expected. I knew Wasner was performing in the band, but didn’t know how much singing she’d do. Every time she harmonized or took lead on a verse was an unexpected and delightful treat that really elevated the entire performance. 

Was there any singular moment that really stood out for you?

EA: Other than Saturday night’s rendition of that same encore selection, not really. I made it a priority to get there in time for the opener, mainly to hear Fruit Bats mastermind Johnson share his singular voice with his biggest Asheville crowd yet. Bonny Light Horseman sounded phenomenal, particularly on its namesake song and recent track “California” from its forthcoming sophomore album. Plus, it was a treat to see former Asheville resident Michael Libramento as the band’s bassist. The guy can play whatever instrument you put in front of him, and my friend Jake Frankel and I were joking (somewhat seriously) that Libramento was critiquing everyone in the headliner and would be offering tips after the show.

Otherwise, it was more of a cumulative experience, watching Vernon move between various instruments as his big ass headphones remained glued to his ears. By opting to have consecutive night shows in Asheville for the second time, he’s suggesting that our fair city is important to him. And unlike The National, whose poorly-attended, low-audience-energy Civic Center show a few days after Homecoming makes me wonder if they’ll ever return, I’m confident that we’ll be seeing Bon Iver here on a regular basis for as long as Vernon wants to tour.

(Photos by Claire Powell) 

Set list (June 25)

22 (OVER S∞∞N)
666 ʇ
Jelmore
U (Man Like)
Heavenly Father
iMi
10 d E A T h b R E a s T
PDLIF
AUATC
Blood Bank
Faith
Towers
____45_____
33 “GOD”
8 (circle)
Perth
715 - CREEKS
Holocene
The Wolves (Act I and II) 

With God on Our Side
RABi 

Set list (June 26)

Heavenly Father
33 "GOD"
U (Man Like)
Lump Sum 
iMi
AUATC
10
Jelmore
PDLIF
Flume
666
Faith
Salem
Marion
Blood Bank
Holocene
Calgary
Sh'Diah
Naeem 

With God on Our Side
RABi