the good he'll do

Reluctant music superstar Zach Bryan heads to Houston on new U.S. stadium tour

Bryan heads to NRG as part of his huge stadium tour.

Zach Bryan/Instagram

Is the multi-talented Zach Bryan the greatest thing to happen to country music — or even music as a whole — in years? We’re absolutely biased in saying so, but let’s look at the numbers. Bryan’s May 19 show at Toyota Center, part of his Burn Burn Burn North American Tour, sold out immediately and marked the largest attendance for a country artist in Toyota Center history.

So yeah, he’s kind of a big deal.

Now, Houstonians can pack an even bigger stadium next summer as Bryan has just announced a big July 27, 2023 show at NRG Stadium in support of his wildly anticipated tour.

Dubbed The Quittin Time 2024 Tour, Bryan’s nationwide trek kicks off in Chicago at the United Center on March 6. He’ll perform with Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit plus Levi Turner as supporting acts. The NRG Stadium show marks 19 just-announced additional dates.

Bryan fans should head to the pre-sale registration site here — like, right now — to get in line for the pre-sale, which starts Wednesday, October 18. Regular sales kick off on Friday, October 20.

This surprise NRG announcement follows yet another surprise from Bryan, who suddenly dropped his new Boys Of Faith EP, featuring Bon Iver and Noah Kahan, just weeks ago in late September.

His 2022 triple album American Heartbreak (a must-listen release) debuted at No. 5 on the U.S. Billboard 200, marking the biggest first week for a country album in 2022. Known for his epic live shows, Bryan released All My Homies Hate Ticketmaster (Live from Red Rocks), a live album recorded at Red Rocks Amphitheatre, on Christmas Day last year.

This year, the reluctant superstar scored the Academy of Country Music Award for New Male Artist of the Year. (That certainly calls his snub for Best Country Solo Performance in the Grammy Awards for “Something in the Orange” even more so). He released his eponymous, fourth studio album in August, debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard 200.

His most recent single from the album, “I Remember Everything” (with fellow star Kacey Musgraves), managed to top the Billboard Hot 100, Hot Country Songs, Hot Rock Songs, and Hot Rock & Alternative Songs charts all at once, being the first song ever to do so and literally making music history.

Not too shabby for a Navy brat from Oologah, Oklahoma (by way of Okinawa, Japan where he was born when his family was stationed there). Boasting the kind of country music origin story that seems written for a movie, Bryan himself was an active member of the U.S. Navy when he launched his career via YouTube in 2017 — while he was literally on the naval base. He was only just honorably discharged in October 2021 after eight years of service — and the fact that he signed to Warner Records and played the legendary Grand Ole Opry that year.

Oh, and adding to his everyman/folk American hero status: He made sure that the most expensive ticket for his Burn Burn Burn tour show was a mere $156 — a steal compared to what fans have been forking out (think $450 plus) before he took over.

“I believe working class people should still be able to afford tickets to shows,” Bryan declared on social media. “I am so tired of people saying things can't be done about this massive issue while huge monopolies sit there stealing money from working class people. Also, to any songwriter trying to make relatable music for the working class man or woman’ should pride themself on fighting for the people who listen to the words they’re singing.”

See? He’s kind of a big deal.

Crafting irresistible hooks and the kind of poetic lyricism that harks to John Prine, Bob Dylan, or Jim Croce, Bryan can take listeners through wine-fueled romance, bro trips, and the dark loneliness of the cowboy life track by track. Songs like “Tishomingo” and “Good I’ll Do” became instant Google and Shazam searches when they appeared on Yellowstone (Bryan performed on the Taylor Sheridan hit, too.)

His Quittin Time 2024 Tour follows his trend of playing — and usually selling out — major U.S. stadiums. He’ll perform in major cities like New York City (two nights), Los Angeles (three nights), and Chicago — illustrating his major crossover appeal. He’ll gig with the aforementioned Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit, Turnpike Troubadours, Sheryl Crow, The War And Treaty, Mt. Joy, Sierra Ferrell, The Middle East, Matt Maeson, and Levi Turner.

Here are the new additions to The Quittin Time 2024 Tour. Find the full tour dates, ticket information, and more

here.

March 30 Belmont Park, NY UBS Arena
March 31 Belmont Park, NY UBS Arena
May 31 Oakland, CA Oakland Alameda County Coliseum
June 2 Los Angeles, CA Crypto.com Arena
June 3 Los Angeles, CA Crypto.com Arena
June 4 Los Angeles, CA Crypto.com Arena
June 14 Denver, CO Empower Field at Mile High
June 20 Detroit, MI Ford Field
June 29 Nashville, TN Nissan Stadium
July 17 Foxborough, MA Gillette Stadium
July 21 Orlando, FL Amway Center
July 22 Sunrise, FL Amerant Bank Arena
July 25 New Orleans, LA Caesars Superdome
July 27 Houston NRG Stadium
August 11 Atlanta, GA Mercedes-Benz Stadium
August 26 Grand Forks, ND Alerus Center
December 12 Tulsa, OK BOK Center
December 18 Brooklyn, NY Barclays Center
December 19 Brooklyn, NY Barclays Center

Movie Review

The Only Living Pickpocket in New York lifts big rewards from small stakes

Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics

John Turturro in The Only Living Pickpocket in New York.

John Turturro is one of those people who embodies the term “character actor” the best. With over 120 credits in his nearly 50-year career, Turturro has rarely been the star of any of his projects. Instead, filmmakers have mostly used his unique face, New York accent, and inimitable acting style to help support the lead actors, a role for which Turturro seems well-suited.

Now 69, Turturro is taking the reins in The Only Living Pickpocket in New York, playing Harry, a long-in-the-tooth thief who still has skills but not as many opportunities. The plucking of wallets isn’t as lucrative in the mostly-cashless modern society, and Harry has little use for smartphones since he doesn’t know how to use them. However, a rare opportunity presents itself when he happens upon Dylan (Will Price), a young man who seems to be as oblivious as he is rich.

After a clever robbery of Dylan’s vintage car, though, Harry discovers he might be in over his head, especially when he finds a card-shaped USB drive. It's the contents of the drive that soon puts Harry and anyone around him in danger, including his wife, Rosie (Karina Arroyave), who’s suffering from unresponsive wakefulness syndrome; Ben (Steve Buscemi), who helps Harry sell stolen items; and even his estranged daughter Kelly (Tatiana Maslany).

Written and directed by Noah Segan, the film is a low-key thriller made to emulate the tempo of Harry’s life. While one of the plot points puts a degree of urgency into his actions, for the most part Harry is someone for whom slow and steady always wins the race. He is someone who has developed relationships over decades, including with NYPD Detective Warren (Giancarlo Esposito), and it’s those bonds that help him make it through each day.

Even though Harry is a criminal, the film treats him as an overall good guy, especially through the way he takes care of Rosie and the generosity he displays with his (stolen) money. Almost no one has a bad thing to say about him, and so Segan comes up with a couple of ways to give him more depth. His one scene with Kelly does the trick, providing a glimpse into a lesser man who clearly existed at one time.

One of the pleasures of the film for longtime movie fans are the reunions Turturro has with Buscemi (his co-star in The Big Lebowski) and Esposito (his co-star in Do the Right Thing). All three could be all-stars on a team of character actors, with each having made big impressions in all sorts of roles over the past 40 years. Seeing them back together again as very different characters from when they last collaborated underscores the level of talent each of them has.

Turturro ably carries the load in the lead role, but given his acting style and the type of role he’s called to play, his performance is far from showy. The same goes for Buscemi and Esposito, who are there to give great support to the classic supporting actor. When someone does go over-the-top, as Price does in most of his scenes, it stands out in a bad way. Maslany scores a lot of points in her brief appearance.

The Only Living Pickpocket in New York is a quiet film with big rewards despite its small ambitions. The beauty of the story lies in its small details, both character-related and not. Turturro rarely disappoints when he’s not the lead actor, and he demonstrates that he’s equally capable of making a movie great when he’s out front.

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The Only Living Pickpocket in New York opens in theaters on October 30.