Full Show Video | Joe Russo’s Almost Dead Debut

Tonight Joe Russo’s Almost Dead will play Port Chester, NY’s Capitol Theatre -the group’s second-ever show following their January 26 debut at NYC’s Brooklyn Bowl. The premise of the band is simple: Furthur drummer Joe Russo performs Grateful Dead covers accompanied by his Bustle In Your Hedgerow band mates Scott Metzger, Dave Dreiwitz and Marco Benevento, along with Tommy Hamilton of American Babies/Brothers Past.

[Photos by Andrew Blackstein]

What made JRAD’s debut so special? Not only did the quintet play tight and vicious versions of some of the most complex songs in the Grateful Dead’s repertoire, but they were also raw. More importantly, all of the jams were wild and incredibly adventurous. Russo’s a beast behind the kit who’s in the peak of his career. Metzger is a criminally underrated guitarist who has a chameleon-like ability to alter his sound to compliment any situation. Dreiwitz’s intensity is unmatched by anyone, while Marco will spout these crazy tones and layers of sound that’s almost a mix of the best of what each keyboardist in GD history brought to the Dead. And then there’s Tommy whose voice and biting leads help push this ensemble over the top.

We were excited to see pro-shot video of JRAD’s debut performance recently surfaced on YouTube thanks to TimeZonerTV. The first playlist below contains the first set, while the second playlist features the second set and encore. Check ’em out:

Set One: Bertha, Althea, Jack Straw, Deal > Mr. Charlie, Brown-Eyed Women, Tennessee Jed > Shakedown Street > China Cat Sunflower > I Know You Rider

Set Two: Estimated Prophet > Eyes of the World > Help On The Way > Slipknot! > Franklin’s Tower, St. Stephen > The Eleven > The Other One > Viola Lee Blues

Encore: U.S. Blues

We recently chatted with Russo about Almost Dead and more. Tickets for tonight’s show are available via Ticketfly.