An intro to this review archive!

PLEASE READ!! - Welcome to Warewolf95's "Idiot Review" archive!!

 Howdy folks! As the title says, welcome to my archive of live show reviews as I have posted on the Steve Hoffman Music Forums website! I pr...

Showing posts with label Tennessee. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tennessee. Show all posts

Monday, November 15, 2021

2019-06-16 Manchester, TN

6/16/19 Manchester, TN - Bonnaroo, Night 2

Set Your Soul Free - FREAKIN SPECTACULAR VERSION! A knock-em-dead perfect opener with everyone smashing everything to pieces. LET's ROCK!!! :)

Blaze On - I still think Blaze On is a stupid song (and I'm King Dad Rock Defender!) but this one has extra mustard sauce all over it. A Type I excursion of perfection.

Death Don't Hurt Very Long - Still learning its place in the live set, great to hear but doesn't stand out besides being "normal" awesome.

Reba - The peak at the very end of the solo will send shivers down your spine, but on the whole this is just a "well-performed, flub-free, late 3.0" Reba. A fine version with no problems at all, but no reason at all to warrant a revisit.

Free - Another "strong but uneventful" song for the evening. This one sounds like it could've gone somewhere but instead they decided to just end it without a jam.

Sand - Very aggressive version! Lots of hack-and-slash chords goin' on before settling nicely into "chill Sand jam zone". This one has some cool stuff in store though - seamlessly, the guys flip flop between major and minor, light and dark. They can't decide whether to take us sky high or drown us in the depths. Very cool!!! Eventually we hone in on your typical Sand jam stylings, but this was pretty cool for a shorter jam. The giant raging hose peak with Trey mutilating his fretboard is a sound to behold. This gets my "mandatory listening" recommendation for sure. DO NOT SKIP OUT ON THIS SAND!!!!!!!!

Wolfman's Brother
- Gets whacky right off the bat! Friggin' cool version - the guys do some extended vocal jamming bits and then go into minimalist funk 1997 jam mode. Everyone is meshing together tightly, feeding off each other. Lots of bubbly rhythms and obtuse keyboard sounds. Goes really deep, but never completely abandons the Type I frame of the song. They ride that darn fence line extremely hard though! The whole time they are teetering on the edge of the abyss, risking falling down into it. The guys finally pull back and build us up to another blissful peak and bring this smasher to a close. Gosh darn that was cool!

Cavern - is Cavern :)


Overall, set 1 was pretty strong! Nothing was week but there were clear, major highlights. Don't skip on those highlighted tracks, yo :p
Onwards to set 2....  

--------------------------------------------------

Mike's Song - Rather short, but a wonderful set launcher. Quickly gets down to business. Heavy and dark. Aww yea, diz the bizniss. It's Mike's, you know what to expect.....or do you?

>Fluffhead - and into Fluffhead we go! A very strong late 3.0 version imo. Not much rust here and the energy is high. Everyone seems nice and present and I can't imagine a much better performed Fluffhead at this point in time. :)

>Twist - Watery, upbeat, ambient bliss Type II journey. Makes incredible use of its 12 minute run time! Feels way longer than it is and features several distinct sections. Goes from typical Twist jamming into some delay pedal zones, before melting into 1999 ambient-funk darkness to make its way to Weekapaug. So far, this is probably the jam of the night. Extremely worth your time.

>Weekapaug Groove - very short return to the theme, pretty darn smoothly I might add, acts as little more than a great little launch pad directly into...

>No Men In No Man's Land - Very, very short! Think of this more as the real Weekapaug for this Mike's Groove (or whatever the hell you guys wanna call it! :p ). This was COOL little transition piece before returning back to Weekapaug proper!

>Weekapaug Reprise

>Twist Reprise


Yo, that was COOL!!!!! This is why I love Phish!!! The Dead made some great sammiches, we know that, but Phish knows how to stack also!


>
Fuego out of Twist. Nothing Special here but it keeps the momentum going hardcore and gets us from point A to point B very well. I love the song so its always a welcome addition for me. :)

>Ghost - When will the segues stop?! :p Keeps up the momentum Fuego shot us with. Short but very sweet jamming. BEAUTIFUL Type II bliss jam.

---------------------------------
 
>Ghost - FRICKIN AWESOME!!! DO NOT SKIP THIS!!!! You would never guess by its runtime, but it's true - from small things, big things one day come! This is a BEAST of a Ghost!!! It goes for the friggin' sky and never lets up! And then it segues PERFECTLY into Bathtub Gin. What more do you want?!

>Bathtub Gin - PEAKS LIKE THE WENT, YO!!!! What did they do, turn Bonnaroo into their own festival?! HO LEE FREAKIN CRAP, MAN!

Wilson - Is Wilson

First Tube - Is First Tube


Dude, this show ANNIHILATED!
It was like, how much more intense can it get?!?!??!

I would easily rate this a 4.4 or 4.5 on .NET.

This show was INSANE!
 
6/16/19 Manchester, TN - Bonnaroo********* (Several MAJOR deep jams, hot playing throughout, and a large Mike's Twisty Groove sandwich make for a uniquely interesting 2nd set!)
Set Your Soul Free (Fantastic opener. Type I MONSTER! SHRED IT, TREY! EXTRA MUSTARD!)
Blaze On (Terrific Type I excursion)
Sand (Very aggressive version. Swaps between major and minor key, can't decide whether to be dark or light! RAGING HOSE PEAK! AWESOME SAND!)
Wolfman's Brother (Very cool vocal jamming!! Minimalist funk, ala 1997. Get down with your bad self!)
Mike's Song (Fantastic and dark typical Mike. Hot mustard on this one!)
>Twist (Watery, upbeat, ambient bliss Type II journey. Makes incredible use of its 12 minute run time! Feels way longer than it is and features several distinct sections. INCREDIBLE TWIST. JAM OF THE SHOW. ONE OF THE BEST JAMS OF THE YEAR SO FAR!!!)
>Weekapaug Groove (FLAWLESS segue back into!)
>No Men In No Man's Land (Short bridge back into Paug!!!)
>Weekapaug Groove (For real!)
>Twist (Reprise!)
>Fuego
>Ghost (BEAUTIFUL TYPE II!!! Goes for the sky! INCREDIBLE ENDING AND SEGUE INTO GIN!)
>Bathtub Gin (BRINGS THAT HEAT! PEAK IT LIKE THE WENT!)
  

2019-06-14 Manchester, TN

All Hail Charlie Watts. I can't ignore the Stones tonight, but that doesn't change the fact I'm still in Phish mode.

That being said, we move on to an unusual one-set show, 6/14/19, Bonnaroo

I think I did actually listen to this one right after it happenned. I know I remember thinking "dang, they packed all my favorites in one show!!!"

Love the setlist - I'd be in heaven at this show:

Carini, Disease, Everything's Right, Steam AND Mercury, Harry Hood....

Jeez, yo, save some heavy hitters for the main event!!!

So, here we go:

Carini - Nice call as opener. Always love to get it. This one doesn't go anywhere, but you can tell that if this were a normal show they would've jammed it good. Great energy, but it drops into Disease JUST as it normally would've taken off.

Down With Disease - Not a very good version of the song, but the 5 minutes of jamming make up for that. Still just "pretty good" overall.

Say It To Me SANTOS - Here we go! For a few minutes we achieve liftoff. It's short but worthy of the highlights list. :)

Everything's Right - Everything IS friggin' right!! Awesome and lengthy Type II excursion for about 10 solid minutes. Awesome stuff. Too tired to narrate tonight. :p

>Mercury - Very good version with great Type II fun. Some interesting Page sounds and Trey effects.

>Tweezer -
The guys are BRINGIN it!!! MORE AWESOME TYPE II BLISS JAMMING! BEAUTIFUL AND UPLIFTING! SPECTACULAR PEAK. JAM OF THE FRIGGIN SHOW!!!! HOLY CRAP!!!!!

>2001 - Great to hear but just a regular short 3.0 version :)

>Steam - Aww yea, the boys keep it going! Really great shorter version that just rides that dark funkiness into the night. Great, great groovy stuff!

Martian Monster - Doesn't do anything at all, lol. Just a time filler :p

More - Fantastic version for Trey. He lets it RIP and the energy is through the roof like they have something to prove!!! :)

Harry Hood - Awesome version!!! The guys really let it rip for a while and go into some interesting jazzy areas, especially Trey and Page. Awesome, awesome, AWESOME Hood!!! Goes into full on Type II 1999 Ambient space jamming before melting back into the main theme. FLAWLESS EXECUTION!!!

Character Zero - The Ballad of Machine Gun Trey. Ok, not really, but Trey absolutely destroys this one and everyone is going nuts at the top of their lungs. Freaking awesome.

Possum - Rocks as always. Very cool jazzy jamming bit. Awesome killer to close the set.

Tweeprise - Its Tweeprise. Show over :)


All in all, come into this show with few expectations and it will absolutely kill it for you. This was way better than it had any right to be (being an abbreviated festival set and whatnot), but I guess under pressure is when the boys bring it, no? :) FREAKIN AWESOME SHOW.

A solid 3.8 to 4.0 for me if I were to rate it on .NET. Not an all-timer, but absolutely not to be missed either. The hour-long stretch of SANTOS through Steam is just one smashing hit after another. And then from More through Possum it's Type I perfection.

Just a killer little hidden gem of a show. 

 

-------------------------------------------

6/14/19 Manchester, TN - Bonnaroo** (FANTASTIC!!!! 2/3 of the show is highlight worthy and its a wonderful little sleeper mini gig)
>Say It To Me SANTOS (Short, but the building peak is great)
Everything's Right (EVERYTHING IS FRICKIN ALRIGHT!!! Fantastic Type II jamming. Hell yea. BEAUTFIFUL BLISS!!!)
>Mercury (Very good version with great Type II fun. Some interesting Page sounds and Trey effects.)
>Tweezer (MORE AWESOME TYPE II BLISS JAMMING! BEAUTIFUL AND UPLIFTING! SPECTACULAR PEAK. JAM OF THE FRIGGIN SHOW!!!!)
>Steam (Very cool dark jamming. Dank as F. Trey WAILS!)
More (Great version! Trey lets it rip and its loaded with gusto!)
Harry Hood (Great jamming, very fluid. GOES TYPE II WACKY SPACE)
Character Zero (MACHINE GUN TREY!)
Possum (Awesome as always. Cool jazzy jamming).
 

 

 

Sunday, November 14, 2021

2018-10-24 Nashville, TN (.NET IS WRONG!!!)

Look at this friggin' setlist. A 3.7 rating?! C'mon, this HAS to be better than that!

A ripping Soul Planet kicks the show off with a bang. WOW!

For only 12 minutes AND being the show opener, they sure took this one for a ride! From ripping rock to '97-esque funky space jamming. NICE!
And then into 2001...literally there couldn't have been a better song to go into.

2001 was great. It didn't go anywhere jam-wise, but if you want a straight-to-the-point version for a Non Album Songs playlist, this is the one you need to grab. Perfectly "album ready", if that makes sense.

555 was pretty good. I wouldn't highlight it though. Personally I'm not really a fan of the song that much so I can't say anything other than "pretty good".

Farmhouse - normally I abhor seeing Farmhouse on a setlist BUT THIS IS FRIGGIN TERRIFIC!!!! This is GORGEOUS! An absolutely wonderful rendition!!!!  

-------------------------------------------------

Bathtub Gin

AWESOME!!!

Starts out slow and blissful. Eventually it starts getting heavy and menacing, turning into a dark funk jam. Trey does a lot of laying back, letting the others take the lead.

Page is killing it tonight - not just on this song but on others he's been going nuts :)

10 minutes in and we are about halfway (to the moon, haha). Trey reasserts his presence slowly working himself back into prominence.

The darkness has receded and we are in an uptempo blissful feel-good jam.

Then around 12 minutes in, we somehow - IN THE SPACE OF 5 FRIGGIN' SECONDS!!! - completely turn the jam upside down from uptempo 2010-era bliss rock into 1999 murky Ghost stomp!

HOW DID THEY DO THAT?! :D

Ambiance creeping in, if they slowed down the tempo they could segue perfectly into No Quarter.

But then Page gets off the keys and goes back to piano signalling a return in the jam to the bliss of before.

DAMN! Talk about a turnaround!!!!!!

They can't decide whether to go dark or light and continue the jam by straddling both sides of the abyss.

Oh my lawd, if I was in the crowd for this I would be dancing SO hard! I'm sitting at the dining room table listening to this on my laptop with all 4 limbs (and my head) bopping along the the jam.

Eventually they ride this to a final peak and segue perfectly back into the song portion letting us all catch our breath.

WOW. 

--------------------------------------------------

 Objectively, Night 1 was the better show, but this one is DAMN fine as well and gives the first night a run for its money in the energy department.

Also, LOOK AT THAT SETLIST! LOADED MUCH?!

Anywho, Bathtub Gin was straight up incredible.

Set 2 kicks off with a raging DWD that doesn't jam long, but it does reach some interestingly dark depths in its short lifespan.

Then BAM into Crosseyed (totally planned - no way was that segue unplanned!)

And this Crosseyed DESTROYS!

Seriously! It's only 11 minutes but feels like it covers as much ground as that 19 minute Gin did and with 12 times more explosive energy!

Then it's into Scents.....Again, just explosive.

 

10/24/18*********** (Hottest show of all time. The reviews on .NET are WRONG!)
Soul Planet (Ripping rocker to slow tempo funk grooving. INCREDIBLE peak then return to song!!!!)
2001 (Perfect short album-ready take)
Farmhouse (GORGEOUS!)
Halfway to the Moon
Waste)
Maze
Bathtub Gin (19 MINUTES OF THE GREATEST GIN OF THE WHOLE ENTIRE MOTHER FREAKING YEAR HOLY MOTHER OF JEEZUS!)
Down With Disease (Dark space descension!)
>Crosseyed and Painless (Very dark)
>Scents and Subtle Sounds (PARTY TIME JAM!)
NMINM'sLand
Harry Hood
Antelope

 

 

2018-10-23 Nashville, TN (UNSUNG CLASSIC ALERT!)

Fun Tweeprise to begin but the proper opener is Party Time.

Love hearing Party Time in shows. When I caught my first gigs in Charleston last year, PT wasn't exactly high on my list of must-hear tracks, but good lord if it didn't immediately bump the room vibe up to ELEVEN! Talk about a perfect opener - it absolutely set the mood for the show that night :)

It might not always seem like it when just listening, but the song is damn fun live! 

Free - Pretty fun version! Trey butchers the arrangement but the playing is on point so I'll let it slide. Then Gordo absolutely tears it up (or slams it down, rather) with a monstrous series of bombs. Trey comes in for the dark bridge section tearing it up again.

Not one for the record books but a nice little Free :)

------------------------------------------------------------------

HOLY SCHNIKE!

This first set started out so-so. Fun but nothing amazing.

Party Time was fun and Cool It Down Rocked.

Then we hit Theme From the Bottom and the guys flipped on that X Factor switch!!!!

Theme was explosive.

Funky B was NUCLEAR.

AND THIS IS THE MOST AWESOME KDF IVE EVER HEARD HOLY FRICKIN HELL!

THAT is how you jam out KDF!!!!!

:D

 

AND IT JUST KEEPS GETTING BETTER HOLY HELL THIS WOLFMANS IS A FRIGGIN BEAST!

:bigeek::bigeek::bigeek:

 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
MIKE'S GHOST

HOLY FREAKING HELL

:bigeek:

:bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::bigeek::yikes::yikes::yikes::yikes::yikes::yikes::yikes::yikes::yikes::yikes::yikes::yikes::yikes::yikes::yikes::yikes::yikes::yikes::yikes::yikes:
 
 

 I know I just went nuts with hyperbole (sorry!!!) but for real - this Mike's Ghost is absolutely MUST hear!!!

Holy mother of I don't know what anymore.... My jaw was firmly cemented in the floor. 

 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

10/23/18 (AS GOOD AS HAMPTON HOLY FREAKING CRAP!!!!!!! MIKES>GHOST IS THE GREATEST 30 MINUTES EVER PLAYED IN THE HISTORY OF MODERN PHISH!)***********
Party Time
Cool It Down
Theme From the Bottom (EXPLOSIVE!)
Funky Bitch (NUCLEAR!)
Kill Devil Falls (INCREDIBLE! Type 1.5 Jamming with lots of effects!!!)
Wolfman's Brother (FUNKY! TYPE II AWESOMENESS)
Character Zero
MIKE'S>
GHOST>
EVERYTHING's RIGHT>
SYSF>
CIRCUS>
WEEKAPAUG
Loving Cup (FACEMELTING!)