Noise & Flowers documents a 9-date tour that began just two weeks after Young’s lifetime friend and manager of more than 50 years, Elliot Roberts, passed away at age 76. Performing alongside a photograph of Roberts taped to his road case, Young approached each show as a celebratory memorial service to honour his late friend. It’s a trek that Neil describes as “wondrous.”
Noise & Flowers explores all corners of his vast discography. It balances all-timer anthems (“Mr. Soul,” “Helpless,” “Rockin’ in the Free World”) with rarely aired ‘70s deep cuts (“Field of Opportunity,” “On the Beach”) and ’90s gems (“From Hank to Hendrix,” “Throw Your Hatred Down”). His frequent backing band since 2015, Promise of the Real effectively bridges the extremes in Young’s sound, infusing his raging rockers and country serenades with their casual brilliance and telepathic intuition.