Shakey Graves makes a welcome return to Chicago for a midweek show at the city’s Vic Theatre in support of his latest release.
Chicago fans last had the opportunity to see Shakey Graves perform in July 2025 when he headlined what turned out to be the last-ever Out Of Space Festival, so they haven’t had too long to wait for his return to the area. Since then, he has released a new album, Fondness, Etc., which came out back in May, and this current tour is in support of.
The show kicked off initially as a one-man show, with the first two songs being performed solo, with Rose-Garcia armed with a guitar, and his suitcase kick drum and tambourine. This combination certainly required a high level of coordination to operate all three instruments, all the while singing. After performing “Roll The Bones” and “Nobody’s Fool,” the rest of the band then came out to join him, giving the performance a completely different feel and a much fuller sound.
One thing you certainly cannot do with Shakey Graves is pigeonhole his sound. He pulls from multiple genres to create his own special blend from blues, folk, country, and some good old fashioned rock and roll. This also goes for the show itself. One minute it had a relaxed, singer-songwriter vibe; the next it was a full-on foot-stomper. There was something for everyone in the setlist, with songs from his latest album, Fondness, Etc., such as “Time Flies” and “Don’t Change a Thing,” then reaching back to his debut album with “Dearly Departed” and “Hard Wired,” and everything in between. His entire discography was represented.
From the moment Alejandro Rose-Garcia, better known as his stage name Shakey Graves, stepped out onto the stage, he had the entire audience’s full attention. Throughout the show, he interacted with the crowd. He explained how he had been attending various funerals for family members and friends, having recently postponed a number of tour dates due to a death in the family. He light-heartedly joked, since he sings a lot about death and mortality, that he is often asked to perform at funerals. The crowd was clearly supportive of his recent circumstances, while also laughing at his anecdotes about the situation.
This was an early starting show, something which looked like it may have taken some of the attendees by surprise given how close to his set time it was before the venue began to fill up. If you are attending any of his upcoming shows, be sure to get there promptly as you do not want to miss this.
Shakey Graves has dates scheduled through until the end of the year, so be sure to include this as part of your holiday fun.
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