Billy Strings Previews East Coast Summer Tour Dates, Including Bethel Camping Weekend

Billy Strings, photo by Dana Trippe

Beyond his widespread recognition on the cutting edge of bluegrass and quick picking, Billy Strings is quickly becoming an innovator in tour previews. After forecasting major tours last year with a word search and crossword puzzle, the pioneering performer has unconventionally teased his next outing with some scattered details scratched in a notebook. While we’re missing key details like venues and on-sale dates, Strings’ dispatch to his social channels outlines 12 performances in eight locations between July 14 and Sept. 11. He captioned the post, “Between us 👀.”

Strings will wrap up his previously announced Spring Tour with a sold-out three-night run at Fishers, Ind.’s Fishers Event Center from April 24-26, then return to the stage for a new summer series with a single stand in Roanoke, Va. on July 14. On July 17 and 18, he’ll be in Portsmouth, Va., before jumping to the Northeast for a single stand in Boston on July 21 and a double-header in Portland, Maine on July 24 and 25.

Strings has July 26 and 27 blocked out for travel, and he’ll greet his fans again on July 28 in Hartford, Conn. On July 31 and Aug. 1, he’ll head to Bethel, N.Y., circled in red with a note teasing camping; it seems reasonable to estimate that he’ll be setting up at the historic grounds of Bethel Woods. After Bethel, Strings will return to his hometown of Ioania, Mich. on August 28 and 29, which is followed by a question mark and made more intriguing by a note on a previous page reading “Gathering? Ionia?” At long last, he’ll wrap up the run with a single show in Kentucky on Sept. 11.

Other intriguing notes in the margins on Strings’ tour teaser include cryptic mentions of a new Austin City Limits taping – paired with a call to “Support PBS” – and allusions to a new album. Stings pointed to the latter with a note reading “Let’s make a record,” planning to “get with the boys and nail it down.” There’s also the letter T, hyphenated next to a doodle of a bone, which is tempting to read as an indication that he’ll be working with super-producer T-Bone Burnett, with whom he recently collaborated on tracks for Ringo Starr’s Look Up. Of course, this is all idle speculation.

For tickets and more information on Strings’ formally announced tour dates, visit billystrings.com. Read Strings’ recent Relix cover feature here.