Here’s the top portion of the New York Times‘ review of the Avett Brothers sold-out show at Radio City Music Hall:
The Avett Brothers have not, to my knowledge, made a children’s album. They should. Not because their music — reductively, a string-band hijacking of pop-punk, or vice versa — carries enough boisterous cheer for an iPod commercial. Not because the ruckus of their live show is harmless merriment, even when they’re asserting otherwise. Those things are true enough, but the bigger factor is the emotional landscape of their songs, an unwalled garden of wonderment and confusion. Judged by preadolescent standards, those songs are pretty deep.
At Radio City Music Hall, where they played to a sold-out, grown-up house on Wednesday night, the Avett Brothers pushed a program of guileless enthusiasm. Scott and Seth Avett (pronounced AY-vet), who share vocal duties in the band, strummed hard at some instruments (banjo, guitar) and pounded fast at others (piano, bass drum), changing up often; at their strongest they were joined only by the bassist Bob Crawford and the cellist Joe Kwon. There were also, intermittently, a drummer, Jacob Edwards, and recurring guests like the indie-folk troubadours Paleface and Langhorne Slim, who wore out their welcome as the evening sprawled on.
The Avett Brothers hail from North Carolina, which is where they recorded their new album and DVD, “Live, Volume 3.” There were nods to their home turf in this show, but they were outnumbered by half-awed salutes to the big city.
Thanks to loyal readers Sam and Julie for pointing me to this.