By Jeff Wilson
Enquirer contributor

Nickel Creek took a huge risk during its second encore at Bogart's on Friday night. The club was packed, the audience was pumped, and playing without amplification seemed daunting with only mandolin, guitar and violin.

Mandolinist and singer Chris Thile asked for "unnatural silence." Considering the audience on hand, those words had extra meaning. Often the crowd acted as attentive as bar patrons at an open mic. Audience members seemed to take compartmentalization to new heights, chatting when the volume dipped but cheering after most songs, as if in a parallel universe they were hanging on every note.

The 29-song, 21/2-hour performance drew heavily from Nickel Creek's eponymous debut album and its second release, This Side. The instrumentals - including the opener, which segued from "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" into an original, "Smoothie Song" - have grown quirkier, and some reveal a newfound edge. Reeking of sarcasm, the Beatles' "Taxman" was an appropriate cover.

Nonetheless, Nickel Creek's strong suit remains the quiet, sensitive, well-crafted songs. The title track from his solo album, guitarist Sean Watkins' "Let it Fall" sounded like died-in-the-wool Nickel Creek. Although shy, violinist Sara Watkins can be an engaging singer, as shown during "Reasons Why" and "Sabra Girl."

An early single, "The Lighthouse's Tale" ended the first encore and seemed a natural closer, but the band walked out to the edge of the stage and played four more songs. "When You Come Back Down" quieted the audience and drew it in, and Pavement's "Spit on a Stranger" turned into a sing-along.

A Beach Boys cover, "Warmth of the Sun," met with a different fate. The audience laughed during the high harmonies even though the band sang the right notes in the same spirit as the original.

The band kept its composure, however. Its eagerness to take chances seems wise, for even though Nickel Creek has achieved considerable success it still seems like a work in progress.