It's about time Minneapolis' old black-walled rock palace got the blues again.
Five years into a booming career, Gary Clark Jr. returned to First Avenue on Saturday night for only his second Twin Cities headlining gig, and he clearly picked the right spot to play.
The Texas guitar slayer, 32, easily could have filled a bigger theater or waited for a higher-priced Minnesota Zoo show, like seemingly every other blues act of his stature has done in recent years. Saturday's 1¾-hour set had a more intense and electric vibe than your average blues show of late, though, which was amplified by — or at least well suited to — the packed, upright body movement in the sold-out fabled rock club. This wasn't a sit-down kind of show.
Saturday's performance rocked even harder than his local debut at First Avenue in 2013. Clark's 2015 album, "The Story of Sonny Slim," was too much of a mixed bag. However, its heaviest and rowdiest tracks made for fresh highlights in concert. The Delta-flavored stomper "Shake" had the 1,500 fans doing just as the title instructed before the encore. Then the slow-funking, hip-hop-infused single "The Healing" ended the show on a fiery, trembling note.
Another new tune, the falsetto-laden soul ballad "Our Love," added to the heavily blue hew in the concert's first half. The mellow-cool opening song "Bright Lights" — Clark's calling card in 2011 — set the tone early on. Clark then picked out a soulful cover of Elmore James' "Please Find My Baby" by himself, to great effect. Even better, he teamed up with second guitarist Eric Zapata for a duel in Albert Collins' "If Trouble Was Money," the night's bluest moment.
A one-time Twin Cities resident, Collins wasn't the only local hero Clark seemed to channel on the First Ave stage: His extended solo in "You Saved Me" toward the end of the set took on a decidedly flashy, Prince-like quality, especially when he cockily apologized afterward.
"Sometimes I get a bit carried away," Clark said.
No worries, Gary. The club can handle it.
