On March 5, over 15,000 people packed themselves into Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center to hear country artist Eric Church perform in his 15th stop along his 2026 Free the Machine tour.

Knoxville’s crowd held a mixed demographic of adults and college students gathering to feel the nostalgia embedded in Church’s music. 49 Winchester opened, setting the tone of the concert with a powerful voice.

The Free the Machine tour follows the 2025 album release of “Evangeline vs. The Machine,” which features themes of sentimentality and lost innocence.

The opening lights and background graphics on stage intensified the conflict between the metaphorical Evangeline (representing real-life, authenticity, nostalgia) and The Machine (representing technology, social media, dependency).

Church opened the evening with “Hands of Time” from his latest album, as background graphics featuring hand-drawn images of cars, clocks and other elements told the song’s story in coordination with the lyrics.

Sporting his signature Ray-Ban sunglasses and a bright red jean jacket, Church hit all the classics. A 16-person band and a seven-person choir supported Church, which added to his quintessential country twang.

“We are gonna give you our heart, and we are gonna give you our soul,” Church said. “Real music written by real people … The same way we recorded it in the studio is the way you’ll hear it tonight.”

Church’s vocals, supplemented by co-singer Joanna Cotten, took the audience down memory lane with “Springsteen,” “Record Year” and “Talladega.”

The set transitioned from a full band to the “original” group, and eventually to just Church and his guitar. In classic Rocky Top style, Church ended his set with “Through my Ray-Bans” while wearing a Vols baseball jersey.