The Cadillac Three performed songs from their new album "Country Fuzz" to a nearly sold out crowd at 9 p.m. Thursday night at the Bluebird Nightclub.
The country rock trio, who walked onstage with red solo cups and matching skull-and-crossbones jackets, is made up of band members Jaren Johnston, Kelby Ray and Neil Mason.
For them, “Country Fuzz” is an all-encompassing term. Not only is it the name of their new genre-fluid album, which comes out Feb. 7, but it’s also a phrase they coined to encapsulate all their musical influences, said lap steel guitarist Kelby Ray.
“It’s a combination of all the genres we grew up listening to, everything from country to rock to metal to funk,” Ray said. “It seemed like it fit. It’s kind of ingrained in us. We wanted to express how unique we are.”
This mix of genres was evident throughout their performance. Classic country topics of beer, girls and trucks matched with hard rock interludes, funk-inspired vocal patterns and lots of guitar. Lead vocalist Jaren Johnston had a different guitar for just about every song, including one that was lime green, one with block letters spelling out “Nashville” and one with red, white and blue stripes.
At one point, he hung his snapback on his mic stand and jumped on top of a speaker to shred a guitar solo, to which the audience responded by throwing their hands holding beer bottles in the air.
The band regularly engaged with the audience in between songs, addressing the whiskey drinkers and women directly. Jamie Jagnecki, who drove three hours to see the band, said she loves how Johnston makes their concerts feel as though the band and audience are one group rather than two separate entities.
“He tries to connect,” Jagnecki said. “It’s not just a performance. They genuinely care.”
The audience members, many of whom knew almost every lyric, screamed the loudest when the band played songs off their upcoming album. They performed “Hard Out Here” and “Crackin’ Cold Ones With The Boys” from the unreleased record, and even debuted a previously unheard song called “Heat.”
Andy Hagler, who’s been a fan of the Cadillac Three since the band started out in 2011, was there with his pregnant wife. He said he was most excited for how loud the band was and hoped it would even be loud enough for his baby to hear.
“They get you amped up for anything,” Hagler said. “Like going out to the lake with your buddies and just driving fast.”
In addition to headlining tours, the Cadillac Three has shared the stage with Keith Urban, Florida Georgia Line and Metallica. As fun as it is to perform for crowds of 40,000 people, Ray said that playing in smaller venues like the Bluebird Nightclub establishes a stronger connection between the band and the audience.
“The Bluebird is awesome because everybody is right up front,” Ray said. “It’s like we’re playing in someone’s living room club with a whole bunch of close friends.”
