Dierks Bentley Concert Review: A Fun Loving Country Star

Dierks Bentley, the fun loving country star, has been performing on stages big and small for years. The Bay Area has rarely seen Bentley in a headlining role until recently. His name was the largest on the marquee in San Jose and he brought along Jerrod Niemann and the Eli Young Band to open, what was, a standard Bentley performance that had the auditorium buzzing.

The Country and Cold Cans Tour was the perfect moniker for what was nearly four hours of solid country music. Niemann is definitely a force to be reckoned with in the country industry. With a few hits songs under his belt and an on stage persona much like Bentley’s, he may be a head liner in the near future.

Niemann’s most recognizable song to date is “Lover, Lover,” a tune that hit the number one spot on the US country charts. There’s no argument that Niemann deserves every bit of the success he has attained. Having recorded two albums independently and working in the industry since 2001. He seems to genuinely appreciate the fans and it translated well live.

Bentley has a perfect voice for country music. His personality doesn’t hinder record sales either. In fact, that’s what drove Bentley into the hearts and ipod’s of all his fans. He’s an artist that will walk the line of waiting fans outside of the venue and serenade them with an acoustic guitar. He’ll drink moonshine with them after his shows. And he’ll certainly make sure every single fan in attendance gets their money’s worth.

Much of his time on stage was spent at the end of a massive cat walk. If a fan stuck out a camera Bentley world be sure to snap a picture, anything that needed to be signed was scrawled on by the country star as well. He did get around to singing a few hits. “What Was I Thinkin'” was met with uproarious applause and also gave Bentley a thousand new background vocalists.

His new single “Home,” was one of the high points of the 90 minute set. Although the opening acts were solid, Bentley could have a carried the entire night. With his scraggly hair in his face and his signature trucker hat on backwards Bentley and his band came to center stage and took a bow. They could have gone on for a few more hours but their time was up. The show did have some production value to it and even though there was a time limit, Bentley made the auditorium feel like a honky tonk. Something he does frequently and something his fans can’t get enough.