The Earls of Leicester Make the Most of a Concert Blackout [WATCH]

Most of the time, thanks to an army of hardworking stage professionals, concerts go off without a hitch. At last week's Earls of Leicester show in Auburn, Ala., though, things went a little dark.

On Friday, June 3, bluegrass promoter Mathan Holt noticed that a transformer near the stage where the Earls of Leicester were scheduled to perform just 30 minutes later was smoking. After this troubling discovery, Holt called the venue’s electric provider, who sent an electrician to survey the issue. Unfortunately, the transformer had to be turned completely off, which knocked out the venue’s power.

Still, the Earls made sure that fans got a show. Once the power had been turned off, the band moved down closer to the audience and performed a set without any lights or sound. “As everybody wondered what we should do, [Earls vocalist Shawn] Camp said to me, ‘Why don’t we just play a couple of tunes down front without the system?'” Earls of Leicester’s Jerry Douglas told Bluegrass Today. “I agreed with him completely. So down front we went with the help of some flashlights and cell phone lights, and we did what ended up being a whole show.”

Hopefully the band won’t experience any more power issues as they will likely want to head out on the road to support Rattle & Roar, the Earls of Leicester’s forthcoming sophomore album. Set for release on July 15, the album keeps with the Earls’ takes on classic Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs tunes.

In the meantime, scope out video of the Earls of Leicester’s unplugged performance.