# Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real at Great American Music Hall, May 10, 2016

[Slim's](http://www.slimspresents.com/event/lukas-nelson-promise-of-the-real-gamh/) presents [Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real](http://www.promiseofthereal.com/) and [Insects vs. Robots](http://insectsvsrobots.com/)  
2016-05-10  
[Great American Music Hall](http://www.gamh.com/)  
[859 O'Farrell Street, San Francisco, CA 94109-7005 USA](http://maps.google.com/maps?q=859+O'Farrell+Street,+San+Francisco,+CA+94109-7005+USA&hl=en)  
8:00 PM, Tuesday, May 10, 2016

[[2016-05-02|Back to the previous event!]] ☸ [[:#section2016|Up to the 2016 yearbox!]] ☸ [[:2016#May_events|Up to the 2016 event list!]] ☸  [[2016-05-11|On to the next event!]]

## Set One: Insects vs. Robots

[8:00 PM lights down, band out]

01. [8:01 PM] _?_ \# »
02. [8:08 PM] _?_ \#  
[MN swaps to guitar]
03. [8:13 PM] _They'll Kill Ya_
04. [8:20 PM] _So Far Gone_ \#&
05. [8:32 PM] _Become a Crow_ (NS) %
06. [8:39 PM] _Infection (Time Grows Thin)_ *
07. [8:45 PM] _?_ "this is all just in our heads"
08. [8:49 PM; add Tato Melgar: percussion] _?_ (unidentified instrumental)
09. [8:56 PM; -TM] _?_ "tiny grain of sand" / "hourglass of man" (NS)   
[set ends 9:m PM]

### Insects vs. Robots

[Insects vs. Robots](http://insectsvsrobots.com/)

* Milo Gonzalez: guitar, slide guitar, harmony vox;
* Micah Nelson: \# electric charango, & harmonica, % keyboards, * guitar, percussion, lead and harmony vox;
* Tony Peluso: drums;
* Jeff Smith: bass;
* Nikita Sorokin: violin, % banjo, lead (t05, t09) and harmony vox.

## Set Two: Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real

[9:30 PM lights down, Lukas alone, acoustic]

01. [9:31 PM] _All the Pretty Horses_
02. [9:36 PM] _Mystery_
03. [9:39 PM] _Outside of Austin_  
[Lukas is joined by the band]
04. [9:44 PM] _?_ (new song) "life was unkind" / "reason for living" / "ain't gonna die alone"
05. [9:48 PM] _Running Shine_
06. [9:52 PM] _Just Breathe_
07. [9:57 PM] _?_ "feel like goin back where there's nowhere to stay"  
[Lukas swaps his acoustic to electric]
08. [10:03 PM] _?_
09. [10:09 PM] _Ugly Color_
10. [10:17 PM] _Something Real_
11. [10:21 PM] _I'll Make Love to You Anytime_
12. [10:26 PM] _Set Me Down on a Cloud_ » [10:30 PM] _Blackbird_ (tease)
13. [10:31 PM] _Sweet Dreams Baby_ (tease) » [10:33 PM note: id is late] _Four Letter Word_ (with an embedded tease of the Beatles' classic _I Want You_)
14. [10:42 PM] _?_ "don't take back" / "sittin' and listening baby take me home"
15. [10:52 PM] _Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes_
16. [11:01 PM] _Georgia (Forget About)_
17. [11:06 PM] _?_ "the love that I deserve" (maybe _Don't Want to Fly_)
18. [11:13 PM] _?_ "never get too far til you start to go"  
[set ends 11:20 PM]  
   
**Encore**
19. [11:22 PM] _San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Some Flowers in Your Hair)_  
[add Insects vs. Robots]
20. [11:27 PM] _Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town_ (Pearl jam tease) » [11:28 PM] _Like an Inca_  (M)
21. [11:39 PM] _L.A. Woman_ (L)  
[show ends 11:52 PM]

## Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real

[Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real](http://www.promiseofthereal.com/)

* Anthony LoGerfo: drums;
* Corey McCormick: bass, harmony vox;
* Tato Melgar: percussion;
* Lukas Nelson: guitar, acoustic guitar, vox.

## Notes

What a killer show!!! I'm really glad we rallied for a Tuesday night at the Great American -- it was light years more fun than spending an evening home working on chores! The turnout was pretty light when Insects vs. Robots began their opening set, but folks gradually trickled in so that the house was pretty full by the time they wrapped things up. I liked their set, mostly on the strength of the fine jamming, and I look forward to hearing them develop their repertoire over the coming years.

At set break I rustled up to the bar to buy a pint of Heretic porter (yum!), and found myself surrounded by friends from past shows. Yay! And it turned out that one of them was here to celebrate her Birthday -- quite the party if you ask my opinion.

After a half hour or so, the lights were turned back down, and Lukas sauntered out with an acoustic guitar to open the show with a three-song mini-set, serenading us with the same easy-going charm that characterizes his pop Willie's style. Although I was there to rock out, the acoustic tunes were a nice treat, and given the opportunity, I'd definitely like to hear a full solo show from Lukas at some future date.

Next the band joined in, bringing the energy up bit by bit over the next few songs. Lukas introduced only two of these tunes, _Running Shine_ and _Just Breathe_, so until the new lyrics show up on the net, the set list above will stay incomplete. About a half hour in, Lukas traded his acoustic for an electric, and with that, the band *really* blasted off, taking us on a 90 minute blues rock journey. After dropping a couple teases into other tunes, they finally treated us to a solid (and unexpected!) cover of Paul Simon's majestic _Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes_. What a classic! I hardly noticed the absence of Ladysmith Black Mambazo!

As you might expect, the crowd went crazy for the _San Francisco_ encore, and while it might be a trifle dated at this point (when was the last time *you* saw any people wearing flowers in their hair?), it was fun to hear nonetheless. Lukas then teased us with a snatch of _Pearl Jam_'s _XXX_ as he called Micah and the others back onstage. With _Insects vs. Robots_ joining _Promise of the Real_, the next tune was a jamfest reminiscent of any number of classic Neil Young shredders, though I believe the tune is actually one of Micah's originals. Closing the gig with _L.A. Woman_ might not have been the most PC choice for a San Francisco gig, but the band definitely killed it, and that crackling cosmic energy

{{tag>music Lukas_Nelson_&_Promise_of_the_Real Insects_vs._Robots Great_American_Music_Hall Anthony_LoGerfo Corey_McCormick Tato_Melgar Lukas_Nelson  Milo_Gonzalez Micah_Nelson Tony_Peluso Jeff_Smith Nikita_Sorokin}}

[[2016-05-02|Back to the previous event!]] ☸ [[:#section2016|Up to the 2016 yearbox!]] ☸ [[:2016#May_events|Up to the 2016 event list!]] ☸  [[2016-05-11|On to the next event!]]