Kenny George Band drops ‘Live from Sky City’ Christmas Day

It’s impossible to capture the energy of a rock concert – the screaming and swaying, the unrelenting throb of bass, the cheer when a random guitar riff becomes the introduction to a classic song – but live albums come close.

The genre was particularly popular in the 1970s, when classics such as Peter Frampton’s “Frampton Comes Alive”, Cheap Trick’s “Live at Budokan” and Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “One More from the Road” were released, but it certainly hasn’t died out. In 1983, U2’s “Under a Blood Red Sky” brought live albums back to life; Phish rediscovered the category in 2005 with “Live at Madison Square Garden.”

On Christmas Day, Aiken’s own Kenny George Band will release “Live from Sky City” which was recorded in Augusta, Georgia, in front of an audience of cheering fans. Like some of rock’s early live albums, “Live from Sky City” arrives completely unfiltered. “We wanted to share the entire experience with our fans,” says guitarist Scott Rankin. “The dialogue between the songs and the occasional blemish all help recreate the intensity of a live show.” It will also make a great last-minute Christmas gift for the rocker in your life.

Kenny George Band was founded in 2007 in Aiken. The five-member group plays a soulful blend of southern rock, country and folk. They’re on their way up, too, having won a songwriting competition at country star Zac Brown’s music club in 2014 and opening for Rascal Flatts in Savannah in November of 2015.

“Live from Sky City” is available on iTunes, Google Play, Pandora, Amazon Prime and Spotify. The band will perform live at Hemmingway’s in Irmo on Dec. 26. For more information, visit kennygeorgeband.com.

Katie McElveen, Special to The State