Barnhouse Brings It Home at the Georgia Theatre
The iconic Georgia Theatre has welcomed plenty of bands passing through Athens, but on September 4, the spotlight belonged to a group with roots right in town. Barnhouse returned to the stage for a Friday night headline show, bringing their place in Athens’ jam scene to one of the city’s most storied rooms. With Labor Day weekend stretching out ahead, it was a fitting occasion to settle in beneath that famous rooftop sign and leave a little room for wherever the music might go.
Barnhouse was no stranger to the Georgia Theatre stage, having appeared with Workin Past Midnight earlier this year. Every time I’ve seen this band, they’ve continued to grow in both size and quality. Their expanding lineup has brought more layers to the sound, while the music itself keeps giving me new reasons to come back. Watching that growth unfold in their hometown made this return to the Theatre feel especially fitting.
Leading the way was Robbie Saenz on vocals, joined by guitarists Ben Grogan and Alex Leahy, keyboardist Max Tyler, bassist Malone Overend, drummer Garrett Hess and percussionist Garrett McCarty. With Jacoozy opening the evening, the bill offered plenty of room for live music to stretch beyond the familiar and find its own direction. The long weekend was only getting started, and beneath the Georgia Theatre’s rooftop sign, Barnhouse was right at home.
Here's a look back at the night:
Date: September 4th, 2024
Location: Athens, GA
Venue: Georgia Theatre
Song of the Night: Twist and Bends (Original)
Honorable Mention: Greta (Widespread Panic Cover), Eyes of the World (Grateful Dead Cover), and 9 to 5 (Dolly Parton Cover)
Attendance: 850 (Estimate)
Barnhouse - GA Theatre - 9/4/26
Labor Day weekend marked my grand return to Athens after moving to Atlanta a few months earlier following graduation from UGA. Most of my closest buddies were still in school, and I couldn’t wait to see them. Getting everyone together for a show at the Georgia Theatre felt like a pretty good way to pick up where we’d left off. We loaded into an Uber and headed downtown, with Barnhouse waiting on the other end of the ride.
Despite being pretty active in the Athens music scene, I had somehow never caught a full Barnhouse show. I’d seen about a quarter of their set at the 40 Watt earlier in the year, enough to get my attention but nowhere near enough to get the full experience. This time, I was ready to stick around. It also happened to be my first time catching a show with a friend who is a humongous Widespread Panic fan, which turned out to be especially good timing.
By the time we arrived, Barnhouse had kicked off the night with Panic’s “Tall Boy.” Safe to say, my friend was immediately in his element, and the rest of the crowd seemed right there with him. It was a cheerful welcome back to the Theatre and a pretty convincing sign that we’d picked the right place to start our weekend.
“Tall Boy” flowed straight into “Spooky,” an unreleased Barnhouse original that the band had been teasing on Instagram. The tune is groovy as can be, and hearing it tucked between the opener and the Allman Brothers Band’s “Ain’t Wastin’ Time No More” made for a strong introduction to what Barnhouse could bring to the table. For a band with no officially released music at the time, sandwiching an original between two fan favorites felt like the perfect move. Give everyone something they know, slip in something they should know, and keep them moving through all of it. They certainly had my attention.
The middle portion of the set brought “Cherry Pie” into a stretch of drums before landing in Widespread Panic’s “Surprise Valley.” Having a huge Panic fan beside me made those returns to their catalog even more fun. I was getting my first full dose of Barnhouse, while he was hearing familiar songs through a different band’s interpretation. There was plenty for both of us to get excited about.
At that point, I thought the energy couldn’t get much better. Then came Panic’s “Greta,” followed by the Grateful Dead’s “Eyes of the World,” and that theory went out the window. The stretch was electric. Barnhouse had gained attention early on through an Instagram reel of their take on the Dead's catalog, so finally getting to hear it live felt like seeing something graduate from my phone screen to the room in front of me. A reel can get you interested, but standing inside the Georgia Theatre for the real thing is a much better way to get acquainted.
Before closing the set, Robbie shared some news that gave the evening a little extra significance: Barnhouse’s debut single, “Twists and Bends,” would be available on all platforms in two weeks. The band then played it for everyone, giving the room a live introduction to the song that would officially begin their recorded catalog.
For fans who had been wondering when they’d finally have some Barnhouse originals to put into rotation, it felt like a special moment to share. We’d spent the night hearing the band put its stamp on songs by some of the biggest names in the jam world, and now we were getting a glimpse of what came next under their own name. Being there for that announcement made the show feel like a small piece of the band’s history.
The boys left the stage, but the crowd wasn’t quite ready to let them call it a night. They quickly returned for an encore and brought the house down with Dolly Parton’s “9 to 5,” honoring the legend following her passing a little over a week earlier. It was a chance to celebrate her through a song that still knows exactly how to get a room going.
Christopher Cross’ “Ride Like the Wind” closed out the evening, sending us back onto the streets of Athens with plenty of energy left to spend. With Jacoozy merch in hand, I joined my buddies for the rest of our night downtown, truly riding off like the wind.
And with that, my first full Barnhouse show was complete. I’d come back to Athens excited to see my friends and finally give this band more than a quarter of a set. I left with another reason to keep coming back. Every time I’ve caught Barnhouse, they’ve given me something more, and this night made me excited to see where they go next.
Go stream Barnhouse’s debut single, “Twists and Bends,” and give their original music a place in your rotation. A big thank-you to the band for being so courteous to our page. We appreciate it, boys, and we’ll be keeping an ear out for whatever comes next.
Want to Get in the Groove?
Here are some tracks to get you started with Barnhouse:
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