Grammy Award-winning Soul Asylum brought its Acoustic 2026 tour to Levon Helm Studios in Woodstock Friday, April 17, 2026. The show marked the mid-way point of a 20-date run spanning April to May 2026.
The band’s lineup featured founding member Dave Pirner (who was celebrating a birthday), Ryan Smith, lead guitarist, and bass guitarist Jeremy Tappero. Smith added foot percussion to his duties with no drummer on this tour. Tappero and Smith acted as musical bookends to Pirner, who took the sold-out crowd on a retrospective of the band’s catalog.
Being an acoustic show, the stage was void of amplifiers. This configuration aligns well with Levon Helm Studios. Originally built as a recording studio, the room is constructed of 100% wood which supplements the unadulterated sound from the instruments while adding a special warmth to the music as it flows through the house.
Soul Asylum started the night performing “Somebody to Shove” from the 1992 release Grave Dancers Union. This album was featured throughout the night, including renditions of “Black Gold,” “Runaway Train,” as well as “Get on Out.”
With twelve releases under their belt the band had plenty to share with the Woodstock audience. “Bittersweetheart” and “To My Own Devices” from Let Your Dim Light Shine, and “High Road” from Slowly but Shirley was included as part of the nineteen song, ninety-minute show.
The feeling at Levon Helm Studios is as if you are at someone’s house, in their great room listening to friends playing live music. It was obvious the band felt that. Throughout the show you could tell they were feeling right at home, smiling to each other as they played.
At song breaks, Dave would thank the crowd for their response to the band’s performance and occasionally throwing in jokes for good measure. During the song “Misery,” with Pirner’s encouragement, the audience joined in on the chorus. At this point you could feel the delineation between performers and audience fading.
The night began with a performance by singer songwriter Trapper Schoepp from Wisconsin. Supporting Schoepp was Daniel Wolff on stand-up bass. Trapper shared songs of personal trials and tribulations. Being out-of-towners in New York, the pair felt obligated to close out their set with The Velvet Underground’s “Waiting for My Man.”
Soul Asylum has been described over the years as alt rock, grunge, punk rock, all of which connotate a loud, peak-decibel sound. This acoustic presentation did not detract from the music but allowed the songs to be experienced in a raw, unpretentious state, quite possibly as they were first created. Combining the musical heritage of Woodstock, the legacy of Levon Helm and The Band, and Soul Asylum songs that have stood the test of time – this night was a musical trifecta.
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