Murder by Death gave fans a night to remember as they said farewell to Boise on what they say will be their final tour.
Founded in Bloomington, Indiana, and now based in Louisville, Kentucky, Murder by Death have never had a hit song – their unique and hard-to-define brand of Western, gothic, indie rock/Americana doesn’t lend itself to standard radio play. Instead, they’ve built a dedicated following over the course of 20-plus-year career that featured near-nonstop touring, a dozen albums, and multiple Kickstarter projects.
When the band announced a 51-stop U.S. tour at the beginning of the year, many shows sold out quickly and had to be moved to larger venues. This stop in Boise was one of those instances.
This leg of the tour was supported by Arizona-based Indie rockers AJJ, who got the night going just as the room was starting to fill in. Much like the headliners, the band is somewhat hard to categorize, featuring a unique folk-punk sound that combines elements of Elvis Costello and Woody Guthrie.
Led by vocalist and guitarist Sean Bonnette and bassist Ben Gallaty, the Arizona-based band put on an energetic performance with witty, politically-charged songs like “Normalization Blues.” Bonnette furiously strummed his acoustic guitar while belting out how he’s “dozing lackadaisically in this bubble where I’ve made my mental home,” and that “connection’s more important now than it ever was, but I’d rather be alone.”
After a short break, Murder by Death took the stage to a round of raucous whoops, hollers, and cheers and quickly launched into “Riders,” from their 2020 album Spell/Bound. It’s the song they’ve been using to kick off most shows on this tour, and it makes sense because it’s quintessential MBD. Cellist Sarah Balliet and violinist Emma Tiemann set the mood, while frontman Adam Turla’s deep baritone wove a dark, haunting tale of ghostly riders on horseback.From there, the band gave fans a roundup of greatest hits featuring roughly two songs from each album, with the next one being “Flamenco’s F***ing Easy” from their 2002 debut album Like The Exorcist, But More Breakdancing. Turla commented on how the title is a joke, because flamenco is the opposite of easy.
Multi-instrumentalist David Fountain stood out on “Natural Pearl,” from their album Big Dark Love, with his lap steel guitar inserting some twang to the set as fans sang along to the chorus. On “The Big Sleep,” MBD slowed it down. The dark lyrics about a remorseful sinner’s pending execution heightened by the chilling interplay between Balliet and Tiemann’s strings and Fountain on trumpet.
It wouldn’t be an MBD show without their silly, audience participatory song “A Pizza Party (at Gloria Estefan’s House)” marking the midway point. Unlike the rest of the band’s catalog, this one is pure fun, with the crowd shouting back “yeah!” every time Turla sang out “a pizza party!”
The set came to a close with “I Came Around,” from the 2012 album Bitter Drink, Bitter Moon. Turla explained that it’s about attending a wake for someone you didn’t like, but then realizing at the end of the day that maybe you were actually the jerk. It’s another one of those classic MBD songs combining dark subject matter with an upbeat tune as Dagan Thogerson’s steady drumbeat and Tyler Morse’s bassline had feet stomping and heads bobbing. Everyone raised their beers in the air and sang along as Turla belted the chorus line, “a couple hours in, we were drunk as sin!” all while the fast-paced string section drove the energy forward.
The crowd didn’t have to wait long for an encore, with another fan-favorite, “Alas,” closing out the night. It was a poetic, if not somewhat sad, ending to what may well be the band’s final Boise show, with Turla and the crowd singing out, “when should I return, I confess I don’t know,” followed by “I need to stay, but alas I must go.”
Considering they’re on their farewell tour, Murder by Death is definitely ending this phase of their career on a high note, with the band at the peak of their powers. For a DIY band that’s been on the road for 20 years, they still combine a level of passion, energy, and experienced musicianship that any other group would envy and any fan would be fortunate to experience.
The remaining shows on the tour take them across the Southwest before closing in their hometown of Louisville on November 15. After that, they’ve committed to keep playing their annual cave show at The Caverns in Pelham, Tennessee, but won’t say anything beyond that. Catch them while you still can.
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