Following a rather entertaining opening act courtesy of the band Leagues (who have been gaining traction, especially in Nashville--I saw them open for The Fray last month at the Ryman Auditorium), Mat Kearney blazed his way onto the stage with a soulful and upbeat performance of “Fire and Rain,” one of the more notable songs from his 2009 release, City of Black and White. One quick transition later and the sold-out crowd was singing along to “Young, Dumb, and in Love” and “Count On Me,” both cuts from the new record.

 

What really fired up the audience, however, was when Kearney sat down at the piano and played “Breathe In, Breathe Out.” It was hard to count a person in The Cannery Ballroom who wasn’t singing along by that point, especially since he followed up with “Closer to Love,” perhaps his most widely-known hit.

The most interesting and exciting moment of the show, though, came during Kearney’s performance of “Runaway Car,” where he surprised the audience by jumping offstage and roaming about the crowd, ultimately ending up standing on top of the bar. Everyone, of course, was sent into a frenzy. Between the screams, the nonstop camera flashes, and the sheer mass of hands raised in the air during that one song alone, it was enough to create a truly lasting concert memory.

 

Later in the show, more highlights arrived.

Before a stripped down rendition of “All I Need” (a song he said was written about friends affected by the devastation of Hurricane Katrina), Kearney joked with the audience about how he “never would have imagined they’d be using my songs during make-out scenes on primetime TV shows.” This was a reference to the ABC show Grey’s Anatomy, which incorporated the track into its programming. Kearney also broke out into a freestyle rap about the city of Nashville and its surroundings, making mention of the three big universities in the area (Belmont, Lipscomb, and Vanderbilt), which drew multiple shouts of approval from the largely college-aged crowd.

 

During a rousing encore, Kearney reentered the stage to give the audience three more songs, including an impressive cover of Foster the People’s mega-hit, “Pumped Up Kicks,” during which he invited Leagues to join him on stage.

And with a solid way to close out the night, Mat Kearney said his thanks and goodbyes with “Hey Mama,” and all was well.

 

If concerts were any way to judge the true capability and credibility of an artist, Mat Kearney would get A+ ratings in both categories. Fortunately, he has a lot of other talents going for him as well. A talented singer, songwriter, musician, and yes, even a freestyle rapper, its easy to see why success in the industry has come easy for Kearney. Combine that with his ever-growing fan base and his faith, and the picture is completely perfect.