The Avett Brothers Bust Out Songs, Offer Special Covers in Asheville on New Year’s

The Avett Brothers once again celebrated New Year’s Eve in their home state of North Carolina, this time holding court at Asheville’s ExploreAsheville.com Arena. Continuing another tradition, musician/actor Herbie Abernethy, known as Valient Himself of Valient Thorr, appeared as Father Time as 2025 segued into 2026 during a celebratory take on the traditional “Auld Lang Syne.” He then remained on stage to help The Avett Brothers close the main portion of their set with their debut covers of John Fogerty’s “Centerfield” and Black Sabbath’s “Paranoid.” The Avetts later returned to encore with “Laundry Room” and “Ain’t No Man.”

The sequence capped off a festive night that began with Seth and Scott Avett offering an a cappella version of The Zombies’ “This Will Be Our Year.” Notably, the Avetts have only performed the seasonally appropriate tune one other time–during a December 31, 2009 show held in the same building complex. A few songs later, the full band nodded to their surroundings once again with a take on Curly Fox’s “Black Mountain Rag” and, shortly after that, they busted out the Mignonette number “The New Love Song” for the first time since March 17, 2018.

The Avett Brothers Band’s next appearance is a collaborative set with Mike Patton as AVTT/PTTN at Knoxville, TN’s Big Ears Festival on March 28.