Bendigo Fletcher Returns to the High Noon Saloon For A Night of Pure Indie Folk Bliss
november 19, 2024 - madison, wisconsin
Kentucky’s best indie folk band, Bendigo Fletcher, made a stop in Madison, Wisconsin this past week on their FALL TOUR 2024. This was the second time this year that the group filled Madison’s High Noon Saloon with their eclectic sound, beckoning fans of all types to sing, dance, and be merry. The tour continues to celebrate Bendigo Fletcher’s spectacular fourth album, Two Things at Once, released back in March of this year. The eleven-track album takes fans on a sonic journey through tales of love, superstition, and most importantly, self-reflection. Some personal highlights off of Two Things at Once include “Babushka Dolls”, an intimate track that romances the little parts of falling in love, and “Sweet Tooth”, a powerful, spiteful track about the current selfish state of the world. No matter what genre you normally associate with, I would recommend the album for your winter playlist, as the album exudes a certain warmth that is perfect for the cold weather and is difficult not to love.
Opening up the evening was another Kentucky-based band, Sugadaisy. Though I was unfamiliar with the group going into the show, their upbeat-folky sound certainly made a fan out of both me and the rest of the room. The group has been around for quite a few years now and currently has two great full-length albums to their name. Their live performance was the perfect warm-up for the evening, and I would recommend Sugadaisy to fans of granola groups like Caamp and Mt. Joy.
After a quick changeover, it was time for Bendigo Fletcher. I was ecstatic when the five-piece opened up their set with a song that I had never heard them play before, “Green Murder”, off of their debut 2018 album, Consensual Wisdom. As the set progressed, I realized that “Green Murder” was the perfect introduction to the rest of the evening, as the group had curated a setlist full of Bendigo classics from older albums. The first track off of Two Things at Once came three songs into the set, when the group played “Real 2 Me”, an amusing track detailing an escape from a mythological creature in the woods. Fans all around the room chanted the lyrics and danced with their companions to the upbeat, entertaining instrumentalism. Several songs later, the audience was graced by a new, yet-to-be-released song, that lead singer, Ryan Anderson, introduced as “One Little Drink”. “One Little Drink” is among the most upbeat, rock-like songs that I have heard from the group and I will be anxiously awaiting its release. Towards the end of the set, the rest of the band left the stage, leaving Ryan Anderson alone for a few acoustic songs from their discography. Having seen the band several times before, I anticipated the performance of one of their most popular songs, “Soul Factory”, however, I was pleasantly surprised when another new-to-my-ears song, “Winter Strokes”, resounded through the air.
Coincidentally, “Winter Strokes” is among my favorite songs on the extensive “Bendigo Fletcher Complete” Spotify playlist, so it was amazing to hear it played live for the first time. A few acoustic songs later the band returned to the stage to finish out the rest of their set. Their second-to-last song, “Pterodactyl”, is always a favorite of the crowd, as it features a call to action to dance before the evening concludes, and that is exactly what everyone did. If you are a fan of singing and dancing in a crowd void of the toxicity of the modern-day concert world, a Bendigo Fletcher show is the place for you. Though their fall tour concluded on November 20th, I am sure the group will be back in the spring. Check them out!
