Sal's site
The Wallflowers have seen a revolving door of band members over the decades, but founder and frontman Jakob Dylan remains the group’s steadfast anchor and enduring draw. For many who filled Champaign’s historic Virginia Theatre on July 19, 2024, he was the main event.
“Jakob Dylan,” Heidi Bidner said with a modest laugh when asked what brought her to the show. The 51-year-old—who works at the University of Illinois School of Music and formerly owned the Shady Nook bar in Saybrook—simply called Dylan an “awesome singer.”
The crowd—a remarkably multi-generational cross-section of rock fans—seemed to share her sentiment. Over the course of a 20-song set (including a generous four-song encore), Dylan and his band pulled from nearly every era of The Wallflowers’ catalog, leaning heavily on tracks from 2021’s Exit Wounds and their landmark 1996 multi-platinum breakthrough, Bringing Down the Horse.
At 54, Dylan sports a slightly receded but still dark mane of hair and carries himself with an easy, seasoned charisma. The son of Bob Dylan—who played Champaign’s Assembly Hall thirty years prior on his 1994 Never Ending Tour—Jakob forged his own path starting in the early 1990s. The Wallflowers’ 1992 self-titled debut was a comfortable, hour-long collection of laid-back roots rock. Yet the four-year gap between that debut and their sophomore effort revealed an artist willing to take his time, refine his craft, assemble the right players, and pivot toward radio-ready melodies. The patience paid off: Bringing Down the Horse spawned four hit singles and sold over four million copies. None of the debut tracks made the cut at the Virginia Theatre, but the hits from Horse anchored the evening.
Watching Dylan’s onstage mannerisms was nearly as entertaining as the steady stream of hooks his band churned out. Unassuming as a public figure, Dylan is nevertheless a natural showman. Throughout the set, he watched his bandmates with genuine amusement and admiration during their solos, trading playful banter and smiles between songs.
While audience chitchat was sparse, Dylan took a moment early on to share that the band had traveled a long way for the gig and was determined to give Champaign their best. Midway through “God Don’t Make Lonely Girls,” he introduced his bandmates, letting each take a brief turn in the spotlight. Guitarist Chris Masterson shredded with precise authority all night, supported by a locked-in rhythm section featuring drummer Mark Stepro and bassist Whynot Jansveld. Multi-instrumentalist Ben Peeler and keyboardist Aaron Embry rounded out the wall of sound, harmonizing on the bigger choruses.
Dylan’s raspy baritone frequently evokes Bruce Springsteen, but the gravelly inflections and conversational phrasing in his delivery offer subtle nods to his musical lineage. On “I’ve Been Delivered” from 2000’s Breach, he unslung his guitar entirely, leaning into the fast-paced, narrative-driven lyrics to lock eyes and connect directly with the audience.
The encore opened with a cover of Cat Stevens’ “Wild World,” followed by two classic Tom Petty covers. While a few diehards might have preferred deeper Wallflowers cuts to wrap the night, the recognizable hits kept the entire theater on its feet. The band finally brought down the house with the bouncy, driving rhythm of “The Difference”—one last Bringing Down the Horse classic to send the crowd home happy.
It was a fun, deeply satisfying performance from a band—and a frontman—that still knows exactly how to capture a room.