As the countdown for the Zac Brown Band concert goes from days to hours, the excitement among Syracuse University country fans has become nearly tangible.

“I put on my finest cowboy boots, lassoed my laptop over to me, and ordered my tickets,” said Sean McGovern, a freshman mechanical engineering major, in an email. “Yee-haw.”

Zac Brown Band will make a stop in the Carrier Dome on Friday at 7 p.m. as part of its 2012-13 tour. Country group Blackberry Smoke and solo artist Levi Lowrey will open. 

Pete Sala, managing director of the Carrier Dome, said 23,000 tickets have already been sold for the concert. Tickets are still on sale at the Carrier Dome box office and range from $30-60.

Zac Brown Band is an Atlanta-born, country-folk band that has produced No. 1 hits such as “Chicken Fried,” “Free” and “As She’s Walking Away.” The group debuted its fifth album, “Uncaged,” in mid-July, instantly taking the top spot on the Billboard album chart.

Kevin Case, a freshman broadcast and digital journalism major, said he finds Zac Brown Band to be one of the best country music acts out there.

“Their music is very relaxing and I like the acoustic feel of their music,” Case said. “It’s not synched. It’s people actually playing real instruments.”

Case’s expectations extended not only from the band, but from the level of appreciation from the audience as well.

“Other concerts have just been like, ‘Oh, everyone’s going. I’ll just go,’” Case said. “This one’s more of a musical performance than a theater show.”

Others are just looking to have the time of their lives at Friday’s concert.

“I expect a crazy time with non-stop dancing and Zac Brown rocking out in my face as I’m down on the Carrier Dome turf,” McGovern said in an email. “Where so many greats have come before, now adding one more to the list: Zac Brown Band.”

Published on November 15, 2012 at 1:57 am

Contact Aury: ahnaranj@syr.edu