Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats delivered a polished, soulful show at Vibrant Arena at The MARK Friday, performing a vivacious one-and-a-half-hour set of major hits mixed with tracks from their newest album “South of Here.”
The evening began with opener Hannah Cohen, who performed a clean 30-minute set of soft folk, reminiscent of an ethereal Janis Joplin. After Cohen, Trampled by Turtles took the stage, performing a triumphant one-hour set of their greatest hits, earning a standing ovation.
Rateliff sang confidently and moved assuredly throughout the stage, expressively belting “Survivor” and “Look It Here,” before taking out his tambourine to play “Intro.” As he sang, he spotlighted each member of his band, all who performed a solo in the song.
Throughout the show, the audience stood and danced in their seats. Rateliff and his band then played the thumping rock ballad “I Need Never Get Old” and the nostalgic “Time Makes Fools of Us All.”
“Ah man, what a pleasure,” Rateliff said. “This is our second time in the area on this tour, we had a day off yesterday in Davenport.”
Rateliff has previously performed around the Quad-Cities several times. For three years, starting in 2017, Rateliff performed at GARP, a two-day festival at Codfish Hollow in Maquoketa. Rateliff and The Night Sweats also performed at The Rust Belt in 2019, the venue’s first year in operation.
“To go from playing in a barn at Codfish Hollow, to here,” Rateliff said, sparking loud cheers. “From being an unknown artist to being known by all of you.”
The band began a performance of “A Little Honey,” an homage to love on the bands’ second album “The Future.”
The Night Sweats quickly moved into “You Worry Me” and “Wasting Time.”
During the show, Vibrant Arena lights blared red, blue, amber and gold, lingering on different hues that matched each song. Rateliff played “Heartless” with red lights as audience members stood and sang along.
Though many in the audience knew Rateliff’s earlier hits, the title track to his 2024 album “South of Here” earned a roar of applause during Rateliff’s opening guitar notes.
In early September, Rateliff and his band won Album of the Year for “South of Here” at the Americana Music Honors & Awards.
“We’ve kind of always gotten overlooked somehow,” Rateliff said about the Americana Awards. “But we’re not here for the awards, we’re here for you all. But it did feel good to be the cool kid in class for once. It’s hard being the chubby kid who got free lunches.”
The Night Sweats began the melancholic “Get Used to the Night” and the slower “Face Down in the Moment.” Rateliff also performed “Slow Pace of Time,” a jazzy track the band recorded for his 2021 album “The Future,” but later released on a separate EP.
As Rateliff’s performance passed the hour-mark, he took to the microphone to acknowledge his former guitar technician, whose name he said was Matt, who died unexpectedly days before.
“I want to recognize the hard work our crews and crews all around do that goes unnoticed,” Rateliff. “Losses are always always such a surprise. We carry those people with us.”
Alone on stage, Rateliff sang a tribute “And It’s Still Alright,” as spectators waved lights on their phones. The tribute did not last long, as Rateliff jumped into “Hey Mama,” before closing on final tracks of “I’ll be Damned,” “S.O.B.” and “Love Don’t.”
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