Gary Clark Jr. brings the blues to Palace Theatre in St. Paul

Can we get super loud real quick?

Gary Clark Jr. is a renaissance man of sorts who has almost single-handedly brought blues-rock back into the mainstream. On his first of two nights at the Palace Theatre in St. Paul, he and his band played loose and drove home a fine set that lasted nearly two hours long. Strolling up to the mic while strapping his guitar on, Clark Jr. said with a smirk to start the show, “It smells good in here,” referring to the wafts of weed smoke billowing towards the stage.

At 33, Gary Clark Jr. has a unique fanbase. While there were plenty of millennials around, a majority of the crowd was pushing age 50 or older. All seemed to having a great time as Gary Clark Jr. brought his brand of the blues to St. Paul.

“Bright Lights” is one of Clark Jr’s biggest hits, and on this night it was incredible. Starting off with a slow chug, Clark Jr. and his band finally let it go over the bridge with a huge solo that had the crowd screaming. “Numb” from his great 2012 album Blak and Blu was also fantastic. As was his soulful R&B singing on “Things Are Changin'” to name a few.

Swerving in between straight up blues, rock, and soul, Gary Clark Jr. played a fantastic set at the Palace Theatre in St. Paul. While it didn’t have the energy of his last performance at First Avenue in Minneapolis, the Palace was a perfect venue to pack in more fans and it sounded great. I’m betting that the sold out night two show will be even better.