Band of Horses at House of Blues Cleveland

Band of Horses played a sold out show last night at The House of Blues in Cleveland. We arrived about 10 minutes before the first act went on stage and we were pleasantly surprised that the venue was already completely packed.

Some fans may have had the opportunity to see Band of Horses last May when they were in town opening for Pearl Jam at Quicken Loans Arena. The House of Blues is a much more intimate venue and was the perfect setting for BOH.

At 10 p.m. exactly Ben Bridwell first took the stage with fellow band member Tyler Ramsey. The remaining band members joined them on stage about half way through the first song. Images of nature were projected on a large screen behind the band for the entire show. The images went along with the music well and helped create a mood.

The show included a mix of both old and new songs including many of the songs from the recently released album titled "Infinite Arms". Bridwell seemed very relaxed on stage during the entire performance. While performing Bridwell puffed on a cigarette between lyrics. He later handed the cigarette to a fan in the front row who apparently had asked him to share.

A few of the other songs fans got to hear were "Is There a Ghost", "Ode to LRC", "Laredo", and "The Great Salt Lake".

During one of my personal favorite songs "NW Apt." Steve Brown joined the band on stage. Steve is an award winning competitive yo-yo player currently living in Cleveland. He performed on stage during two songs. I'm wondering how that connection was made and who's idea it was to have Steve perform while the band played. It was very entertaining and the crowd loved Steve.

At some point in the show the crowd got rough. Bridwell interrupted the lyrics to tell everyone "to play nice with each other". He then continued the song as if what he had just said never happened.

I wish I could see the same show again tonight. The band was amazing and they deserve the attention they have been receiving lately.