2012-06-16 Atlantic City, NJ

 6/16/12 Atlantic City, NJ

Set 1

Mike's Song - Awesome! A rare - and proper - Mike's Groove to kick off the show! Absolutely RAGES old school style. Wow!

>I Am Hydrogen - Like sweet auditory nectar to my ears....

>Weekapaug Groove - Raging, celebratory peak. Goes exactly as you want it to and it is terrific.

Gumbo - Very short but totally excellent all the way around.

Halley's Comet - Another terrifically performed version. Everyone is just on friggin' point tonight. Dang! Always wonderful to hear Halley! Some hot soloing from Trey that leads into a totally unexpected segue into....

>My Friend My Friend - See last two songs All three were excellent, but at the risk of turning this into another "every song highlighted" review, I'll really try to restrain myself

Wolfman's Brother - 11 minutes! When the jam begins they immediately go for it hard, as expected. Cactus is just tearing it up. They funk it super hard Type I style for a good long while. Around 8 minutes lots of piano starts creeping in and things get much more spastic on the drums. Sounds almost like we are going to head into a Possum or something! Trey goes Machine Gun splatter for a while while the band seems to teeter on the edge of "do we speed up or just rage at this tempo?". It's incredibly hot, that I will say. By 9:30 it sounds like the guys are going to wrap it up, but instead Page jumps on the organ and Trey just continues to rip it up (how does he not break strings?!). We are in full peak-land by now. As it turns out they ride this a bit further and bring the song to a close around 11:30. That was some of the most raging Type I awesomeness this sucker has ever heard! AWESOME!

Lawn Boy - Is LB. Is Fun.

Possum - Possum is always Possum, but this one feels like it stands out from the pack. It's not the hottest ever but they do some slightly interesting things in the jam. Worth a listen!

>Punch You In The Eye - WHO SAW THAT COMING?! NO YOU DIDNT, YOURE A LIAR! NOBODY EXPECTED THIS! YOU EXPECTED SET BREAK! Ok, ok, enough, haha. I always welcome Punch (#favoritesong) and getting it at this point in the set is like a special treat. They ride the intro nice and long and get some good crowd participation going. Feel that energy, yo! Trey has some minor trouble coming back after the dance section but recovers quickly. At the end of the day it's not the finest version ever but that set placement was kick in the pants

Ocelot - Huh. Kinda a head-scratcher in this position. It's like they were gonna end the set then realized it was only an hour in so they said "hey, we need to play more". This version is nicely ragged in a very bluesy and laid-back way. I mean, even more than usual. The boys are just taking their sweet time, milking the juice from the lemon, one drop at a time. But eventually that goes out the window and we get the guys bursting with that Wolfman's energy again, just absolutely annihilating this poor animal! Fantastic!!

Suzy Greenberg - GET IT LEO! It's Suzy, it slays, you know what to expect. But its so dang hot that it's list worthy.


All in all, that was a great first set. Sure everything was excellent basically, but there were notable standouts. Also cool that, other than Ocelot, it was an entirely 1.0 setlist, not far off from something outta 1995, no? Awesome fun. The set didn't floor me like I expected, but that's ok. Still great, overall.

 

 Set 2

Crosseyed and Painless - Yes! One of my favorites. I remember when they launched into it on 12/7/19 the whole building EXPLODED at once. I will never forget that and every time I hear the song now that's all I can remember. Extremely hot as expected. Absolutely freaking raging peak. Fantastic gun-shot-in-the-air start to the set!!! Around 9 minutes the Type I starts morphing into some chiller-yet-ultra-funky Type II stuff for several minutes. Unfortunately they don't seem to know what to do and the jam almost completely dies. Just as you think the end is nigh, they go into full-on delay-pedal bliss ambience mode for a bit. Very awesome. If this was 2020 they would jammed the hell out from here. Very intersetingly though, they decide to morph, completely unexpectedly, into....

Slave to the Traffic Light - Wow! In the 2nd slot?!?!?! That is refreshing as hell, I gotta say, and the segue into it was awesome. All hail Natural Segues! As for this version, there isn't much to say. It's excellent through and through and delivers what you expect in the best way. Still odd to have it in slot 2 though, as it makes you think the show is almost over, haha.

>Light - Just when Slave is lulling us into submission by going on too long, in comes a great Light to save the day! Right away the jamming begins and we get a full-on, PROPER Manteca!!! YES! ALL HAIL MANTECA! CRAB IN MY FRIGGIN SHOEMOUTH!!! And then just as quickly as it appeared they leave it in the dust and move to another section, haha. They never let up on the intensity, but the guys end up going through several distinct "phases" of the jam, much akin to what they would be doing so often in 2019. Microjam Bonanza. Eventually we morph into a full on "still-waiting" Crosseyed reprisal while Trey is singing the Light refrain above!!! THIS IS ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE! THIS LIGHT IS ONE OF THE MOST INSANE THINGS IVE EVER HEARD! THIS IS TOP TIER 1.0 LEVEL JAMMING! YOU HAVE GOT TO HEAR THIS MOTHER EFFER!!! HOLY FREAKING CRAP!!

Theme From the Bottom - Holy crap, this is the breather we needed. It's great as always, but after the insanity of that opening trio, it's merely a nice tuneful breeze flittering on by.

Golgi Apparatus - Haven't heard a Golgi in a good while it feels like. Nice to hear and slightly unexpected to me in this spot. Very fine version but Golgi is Golgi and not much else.

>Sand - Ah yes, Sand. It's 10 minutes of exactly what you expect and it's terrific. Trey is really going for the high-notes on this one all Alex Lifeson style. This as some extra sauce on it for sure. Fantastic!

Backwards Down the Number Line - Yea, hate on the song etc. But it almost works out of Sand tonight as a come-down after all the raging. This one, as with Theme and Golgi, is very good as always but nothing special.

Run Like an Antelope - See Theme and Golgi

Good Times, Bad Times - Always terrific to hear and this one is no exception. Sends us out on a big high.


All in all, as with set 1, nothing was poor, but there were clear highlights. This show had a terrific setlist even if the flow was a little jumbled at times. I'd say all in all the Light is MANDATORY "Jam of Summer Candidate" territory, but outside of that this show is excellent-but-non essential

2012-06-15 Atlantic City, NJ

 6/15/12 Atlantic City

Set 1

The Sloth - Wow! Talk about a punch to the face out of the gate! Can't remember ever hearing this as an opener and they absolutely kill it!!! So much energy!! KILLER!!! AWESOME OPENER!!!

My Sweet One - Absolutely RIPPING. GET IT LEO!!! Holy crap.

46 Days - Absolutely rips, hisses, snarls and bites. It's 46 Days and you get exactly what you expect. Fantastic little version.

Camel Walk - Oh man, absolutely perfect out of 46 Days. Nice and TIGHT, yet still slinky and loose. Oh man, if I was there I know I woulda been absolutely grooving....

Tube - Let's get it boys!!!! Yes! Let's go!! Fantastic funky workout as expected. Some incredibly cool playing from all. Awesome, awesome, AWESOME! A+ Tube. Cool stuff from Trey doing some pitch shifting.

Cities - Man oh man, a CW>Tube>Cities trio?! PERFECT! This one is slower than usual and really grooves hard. Mike is just digging right in. This is totally like a late-night kind of Cities. Trey gives some terrifically bluesy soloing near the end. Pretty unique for a 2012 Cities, if I must say! Great stuff!

>It's Ice - WHAT WAS THAT SEGUE!?!?!?! HOLY CRAP YOU HAVE TO HEAR THAT!!!! Literally one second Trey is soloing Cities and his soloing - in a split second - launches stupendously into the opening lick of Its Ice. WHAT. It was unexpected as hell! How did he do that?! Also, they friggin' nail this sucker! Wow! I'm not used to hearing versions this strong recently, haha. Fantastic!!!

Ginseng Sullivan - Ok, Ginseng is Ginseng. It's great but is it list worthy? Not on your life

Stash - Played ever so delicately by Trey, great vibe on this picking up where Cities left off. A little dynamic - whispering the song, then bellowing the "WOAH"s. It builds and builds and builds and eventually the final few minutes see the band climaxing with one of the hottest volcanic eruptions of fire this side of Krakatoa. Fantastic.

Simple - And into a standalone Simple to pick us up off the ground that we have fallen down onto!!! Ugh, the tempo and vibe are just perfect on this one. No dragging here. Dissolves quickly into Type II ambience bliss for a good minute before turning into....

The Wedge - Very nice. Nothing special but great call out of Simple and very fine as always!

Stealing Time From the Faulty Plan - Ooh, deep muddy murk-fest!!! Trey absolutely strangles his guitar - it sounds like he's trying to drown it in the black lagoon swamp!!! You have GOT to hear this!! This isn't just nasty, this is filthy. This is so filthy your mother would tell you to take a shower after listening to this. Awesome.

The Squirming Coil - Excellent as always, gorgeous outro solo as always.



All in all, an absolutely fantastic first set. Loaded with energy, a couple great segues, great set placement and jams (TUBE!!!)....Maybe not an all-time classic, but supremely enjoyable in the moment. Very strong set.

  

Set 2

My Soul - Semi-rarity (7th of 3.0 at this point) to get the second set going with a nice dance party Get it, Page! The song peaks as expected and absolutely RAGES to a fiery conclusion. Fantastic

Birds Of a Feather - Oh yes, let the heat continue!!! 15 minutes on this one! The Type I rages hard til about 6:30. Page hits upon an extended chord and instantly the mood shifts and we are heading towards Type II Bliss at a rapidly ascending rate! Things take their time to build. Eventually we reach a kind of plateau. Very 1999 ambient-yet-frantic kind of jamming emerges with Trey doing some super high repeating patterns while Fishman absolute destroys his kit in the background. Incredibly cool stuff. Eventually this evolves further into an absolutely perfect launching zone for the guys to head, perfectly, into....

>Back On The Train - WOW! Another incredible segue! The crowd absolutely eats it up. BOTT is standard Type I but keeping the energy going from Birds results in just a red-hot straight-up version that won't disappoint and certainly works in the context of this set. Freaking sweet. It hints at some great jamming in the final minute or so but stays firmly in the box. CHECK OUT GORDO TEARING IT UP!!!!

>Heavy Things - In the dying breaths of BOTT's small jam, Trey cues up his repeater and the guys launch into the tune. I love the studio recording - it's a nearly flawless piece of Phish pop rock - and live versions often leave me wanting. If the tempo is wrong it quickly feels rushed or drags - very easy to screw up. The guys absolutely nail the tempo and feel on this one and deliver a rousing rendition! A+ for Heavy Things!

>Twist - Outstanding little Twist. Ultra jazzy and latin as expected. Played so friggin' well....Jeez, the guys are just so ON tonight it's ridiculous! Vibe out the wazoo, ya dig? FREAKING HOT HOT HOT HOT HOT!!!!

>Piper - WOOOH!!!!! Wow, a 12 minute Piper out of Twist....classic stuff right here! This thing rages with the white hot intensity of 1,000 suns. Phish 1.0 would be proud. Of course it's not ultra "adventurous", but c'mon, it's a 12 minute long Piper this just EXPLODES! What more do you want!? Around 9 minutes we drift into proper Type II, the band descending into dark ambience. A tiny black-hole kind of meltdown. Strange sounds abound and Trey's looper doing it's job....We have firmly drifted into outer space!

>Billy Breathes - BEST SONG PLACEMENT OF ALL TIME HOLY CRAP!!!! Right out of the murk!! FANTASTIC!!! And good lord is this a thing of beauty. I got goosebumps from this..... Dang.....A+++++ A thing of pure beauty, this was....

Sneaking Sally Through The Alley - GET IT, CACTUS! It's Sally, it's funky as hell. What's here is absolutely terrific - if this were 2018 this would've been a 20 minute monster version. They start heading into some heavy jam zone before unfortunately pulling the cord in favor of....

>David Bowie - Boo! That Sally Jam was awesome and going places!!! Oh well, at least it was actually a transition and not a ripcord. I blame Fishman. Trey nails the composed section flawlessly and the song itself sounds as good as ever. There is an awesome Stash theme reprisal from Trey that gets the crowd going nuts, haha. Then a BOAF tease too!! THEN A SIMPLE TEASE! WHAT ELSE WILL TREY DO NEXT?! Ginseng Freakin' Sullivan! This is hilarious and awesome at the same time. Also, holy crap the energy from the crowd feeding into the band and vice versa. AWESOME crowd on this show!!! Page gets in on the action with his own Stash teases as well. Great peak that goes on forever. Absolutely terrific Bowie and talk about an amazing set closer!! GOOD JOB, LADS!

First Tube - And this incredible set comes to a close with a rip roaring FT.


Holy hell, this set was a BANGER!!! This show has a 4.3 rating on .NET so I wouldn't call it underrated - that being said I've never heard anyone laud it either, so....maybe just a forgotten classic?! Incredible show with awesomeness on every front. Both sets ruled. The jamming was great and the flow was like butter. Can't leave out the crowd - they are the MVP. Can't remember the last time I heard the crowd so well on a show!!!
AWESOME!

2012-06-10 Manchester, TN - Bonnaroo

 Got home from work 10 minutes ago, jumped in the shower, out of the shower, now I'm ready to get down to Bonnaroo 2012 I have zero expectations for this show considering the nature of the gig, so I'm hoping to just enjoy a strong, straightforward rock show type of night.

6/10/12 Manchester, TN - Bonnaroo

Set 1

Down With Disease - Raging opener as expected. Always fantastic. Nothing special though, lol

Funky B - Ooh, this is wonderful! Page absolute destroys on this!! Dang!! GET IT LEO!!!

Moma Dance - Ooh, you can just feel the energy oozing from the start. Is there any version out there that isn't just great?! Cuz toss this one into the pile as well!

Sample In a Jar - Nice but see DWD.

Axilla - Is Axilla

The Gambler - With Kenny Rogers. Absurd in the best way possible. Must-hear at least once.

Possum - After the country stylings of The Gambler, this is perfect. The Gambler reprisal jamming!

Wilson

Tweezer - Excellent jam on this!!! Very cool relaxed vibe - very chill! Gets going into some Type II for a little bit! Unexpectedly great! Don't skip!! Then it builds to a psychedelically raging peak! FREAKING SWEET!!!

Free - Good stuff as always, but this one seems a bit "ordinary" compared to others.

Backwards Down the Number Line - Been a little while since I've heard one and I always love it. Great song. This version is incredibly delicate. The guys are almost whispering the song and the jamming is downright gorgeous at times. Absolutely fantastic version.

Cavern - Is Cavern



All in all, a good little festival first set. Most of it was by-the-numbers as expected, but there was also some stuff that was surprisingly worth hearing! Check those highlights!

 

Set 2

Golden Age - Great choice for set opener to get everyone on their feet. Very nice! Wonderful Type I! The end gets ambient and spacey for a solid minute setting up a perfect segue into...

2001 - Surprisingly fantastic!!!! A perfect 1-2 punch out of Golden Age. This feels like the jam that GA cut off to segue into this. Really, really strong little version!!! The freaking energy on this sucker!

Chalkdust Torture - Absolutely raging, slays as expected. Trey getting creative with his leads. FANTASTIC!

Carini - Very dark and very evil. It's only 8 minutes but it definitely delivers the goods! Goes full-on Type II Black Hole ambient for a long while. This is some Halloween/horror movie stuff. SHORT BUT INCREDIBLE! DO NOT SKIP THIS!!!!!!

>Shafty - FRIGGIN SHAFTY! WHERE DID THIS COME FROM?! Unfortunately they don't really jam it and let it fizzle out, but talk about a bustout!

>Rock and Roll - Yes! LETS PUMP UP THE ENERGY! ROCK AND FRIGGIN ROLL EVERYBODY!!! Is this tune ever NOT fantastic?! THIS IS ABSOLUTELY FRIGGIN A+++ ROCK AND ROLL MACHINE GUN TREY INSANITY!!!! FREAKING FANTASTIC!!!!! I CANT STOP HEADBANGING!!! FREEBIRD GOT NOTHING ON THIS!!!




Ok, regardless of how the rest of the set turns out, the first 45 minutes through Rock and Roll are absolutely Must-Hear, imo. Absolute awesomeness.

Alaska - Really great extended blues jamming on this loaded with fiery hot playing from all and some interesting things at times from Trey. Surprisingly excellent!!!

Harry Hood - Fantastic shorter version. Prefer this over the 15 minute ones, really. This is just all killer no filler right here. GREAT! When it comes time for the big peak, Trey makes the right call and goes instead for....

>Light - HOLY CRAP A LIGHT SEGUE THAT WAS ACTUALLY A SEGUE AND ACTUALLY FREAKING WORKED!!! I DONT BELIEVE IT! AND THE ENERGY! THE ENTHUSIASM! THIS LIGHT IS JUST OOZING WITH PASSION! GET IT BOYS!!!!! This is absolutely incredible! How did they deliver such a ho-hum first set only to turn it around in the 2nd?! Did they all drink 20 Red Bulls or something?! Descends into wormhole ambient bliss....




Character Zero - And so the set-ending comedown begins It rips and rages. It's C Zero. It's great but c'mon is it really list worthy?

Rocky Top - see above

Show of Life - see above

Julius - see above

Tweeprise - see above




WOW!!! That's all I can say about this second set!!! Once we hit Character Zero you know it's after midnight, so to speak, but the ENTIRE 2nd set before that was like a blast in the face with a flamethrower!!! Absolutely outstanding 76 minutes of music from Golden Age through that insane Light.

FORGET ITS A FESTIVAL SET! GRAB THIS SECOND SET YESTERDAY!!!! YOU WONT REGRET IT! HOLY CRAP!

2012-06-08 Worcester, MA

 6/8/12 Worcester #2

Dude, look at this setlist! Is that loaded with probable fire or what?!

Set 1

Free - A rare Free opener, always great to hear. Terrific raging Free to open. The guys sound unsure/forgetful of the arrangement a few times, but who cares. It opens the show with a BANG!

Kill Devil Falls - BAM! HEAD IN THE SMASHER!! The crowd roars its approval and gets a 2nd shot in the face with an absolutely RAGING KDF!!! To be fair, is KDF ever NOT raging hot?! Well, make no exceptions, this one wails!!!! JUST BAM BAM BAM!!!! FANTASTIC!!!!

Roses are Free - A perfect cool down after having our faces melted for the first 20 minutes. HEADSMASHER EXPRESS #3, BOYS AND GIRLS!!! Just as the band is finishing the song as usual, instead of resolving the final peak, the guys keep the beat going and turn the finale into it's own actual extended jam for several awesome minutes! Wow! No, this isn't Big Cypress (what is?!) but for anyone saying Roses is never jammed, well chick this ditty out. We go full on Type II for 5 wonderful minutes, moaning whale call and minor key bass playing included. Eventually it fizzles out, but it's definitely incredibly unique and worth checking out. Weird and awesome!

>Theme From the Bottom - Ah yes, out of the murk rises the perfect choice, lol. As soon as those opening piano notes begin....it's like rain washing the dirt away, haha. AND OF COURSE THEY DESTROY THIS SUCKER LIKE ITS 1996, GOOD GOLLY MISS MOLLY!!! I always love the dichotomy of Theme - how it starts incredibly mellow and then turns into a swirling maelstrom of darkness (check Japan 2000 for maybe the greatest of all time!!!). Awesome.

>Axilla - After a 1,2,3! we are again into Head Smasher Zone. Jeez, man!!!

Julius - Still just straight fire, yo! For 10 minutes! Great chill bluesy jam in the middle. The guys bring it way down all nice and smooth. Then they turn the heat back up and tear our friggin' heads off!! NUTS! FANTASTIC!!!

Bouncing Around the Room - Wow, a version that doesn't feel tossed off! This is perfectly placed like Roses was and is played album-ready!!! I haven't "noticed" a BATR in a LONG time!!!! Exceptional!

Maze - More heat! Let's GO!!! Look, It's Maze. It's 2012 Trey. It's freaking face-melting.

Bathtub Gin - Very slow and slinky version tonight. Returns to the bluesy stylings of Julius a little bit. Fishman is purposefully dragging the beat at time kind of giving it a ramshackle feel. Very interesting. It stays pretty Type I for its duration and to be honest isn't very adventurous, but it's still strong as hell and just full of SO MUCH FIRE!!



WOW! That was as good or better than the first set from night 1!! There was just SO MUCH ENERGY and enthusiasm and the playing was at a high level - even Bouncing Around the Room was noteworthy!!!! Absolutely outstanding first set!! Must-hear if you want to ROCK!!!

  

Set 2

Down With Disease - Now THIS is how Disease is supposed to sound! None of that limp-wristed 2019 lack-of-energy in this one!!! It stays pretty much Type I for the majority, but does stretch out for sure. Great playing from all. This one may not be "the Grand Journey Of The Universe", but for 15 minutes of just damn fine playing it does the trick more than adequately. Nothing to slouch at here. The final minute or so sees the guys wind down into some very cool ambient funk stylings, slowly drifting into space, but instead they transition superbly into....

>Sand - That segue! Fantastic Type I. Plinko Hell. Anyone know what the huge cheer from the crowd was about? It sounds like they are teasing something in this but I'm not sure - It gets slightly Manteca-ish at times.

>Nellie Kane - Are you kidding me. They really just did that. A SAND>NELLIE KANE. AND IT FREAKING WORKED. WHAT IN THE HELL. FANTASTIC!!!

Mike's Song - Freaking red hot as expected. Trey is on FIRE, absolutely annihilating this. Incredible.

>Makisupa Policeman - WHAT?! WHERE DID THIS COME FROM?! Leo, Leo, Leo, Leo, Leo, Leo!! Get that Sour Diesel, brah!

>Weekapaug Groove - Nothing particularly noteworthy about this WG. It actually feels a little bit stunted, truth be told, like they peaked the set with MP or something. Hot and full of energy as always, but nobody will ever label this an all time version or anything.

Wading In the Velvet Sea - Very nice, but after that crazy M>MP>WG, it's a little TOO saccharine, imo. A for effort (do you want me to highlight every song again?!)

2001 - Great as always, this one feels like it has a hint of extra mustard sauce in it. Some interesting rhythms and bass within. List-worthy by a hair.

Character Zero - GET IT TREY! Is extremely hot as always. Is incredibly normal as always.

Oh Kee Pah Ceremony - Highlighted for bustout

Suzy Greenberg - Fantastic party end to a strong set!


All in all, set 2 was maybe the "weakest" (if you can call it that) of the 4 sets in Worcester, imo. Everything great but seemed just a little notch down from the greatness in the other 3 sets. Still a very strong set and overall this show is probably easily worth a 4.0 rating (or thereabouts)

2012-06-07 Worcester, MA

 Might as well keep on trudgin with 2012 - been excited for it, actually As great as the recent shows have been, it's a nice breather to go back to when crazy jams were the rare treat rather then every single show.

Don't fear - when I feel off I am going to be alternating with 1994, leaving off where I finished 1993. Excited for that too

Yes, I am an ambitious listener. Yes I have way too much time on my hands. Yes I like this band way too much. Sue me.

Anywho, on to 6/7/12 Worcester

Set 1

Buried Alive - Holy crap, talk about a way to kick off the summer tour! It's red hot (as expected) and Trey absolutely annihilates, even getting some gnarly feedback squealing in here and there. Fantastic.

>Runaway Jim - Hotter than the sun! They come BLASTING out of the gates with this!!! The guys are patient and take their time in between the verses building tension for the peaks and it just makes it all the better. Wow! Terrific little Jim!!! Buried Alive teases HOLY FREAKING CRAP THIS IS OUTSTANDING!

Torn and Frayed - Great to hear! Hesitantly rough sounding though. The crowd is aboslutely going bonkers though! Surprisingly lengthy jam on this one and very, very nice once it gets going. I can tell this will be a "everything is listworthy" gig, so let's just say it's almost list-worthy

Funky B - FREAKING GET IT PAGE!!! Insanely hot as always.

Moma Dance - Always a bop, this one feels special, like it's just oozing extra hot mustard sauce or something. Just the energy and excitement from the band and the crowd....it's freaking awesome. A+ Moma!!!!

Rift - GET IT BOYS! LETS FREAKING GO!

Nothing - This is fantastic and sounds well rehearsed. As with Access Me, why is this a rarity? This deserves a couple plays a year! Great tune that most have forgotten about and the multi-layered vocals sound great. Awesome stuff! Trey's solo is just lovely!

Ocelot - Exceptionally bluesy tonight. Really taking their time with this one, just soaking it all in. This builds to a lengthy peak with everyone just blowing their collective stacks. A very POWERFUL Ocelot!

Beauty Of a Broken Heart - Fantastic reading of this unfairly forgotten Page number! I absolutely love, love, LOVE this song and this is one of the best versions I've heard of it, by far. It might actually replace the version I have in a non-album songs compilation of mine! Definitely rehearsed, lol. HOT!!!

Possum - Endless Beat It On Down the Line intro, Beauty of a Broken Heart teases, smashing energy out the wazoo. Yes, Possum is Possum but this is some GNARLY ROADKILL RIGHT HERE! Fantastic Possum!!

Rocky Top - Is Rocky Top


Absolutely SMASHING first set!!! The mutual energy exchange between the crowd and band is palpable throughout and everything is played with aplomb. The rarities sound like they are always played and the classics have extra sauce abound. Couldn't hope for much more from the first set of a tour!!! Fantastic set!!!

 

Set 2

Carini - Things get predictably dark and gnarly right away. Very spooky playing with Fish and Mike locked into some patterns behind Trey widdling away. But they make it dynamic, bringing things down and then rising back up. They slowly explore the groove, evolving into Type II space ambient around 6 minutes in. Fish is still keeping a steady beat, but the other 3 guys are all playing with their "toy laser gun" sounds - you know what I'm talking about. Late 90's ambience. etc etc. Fishman brings the drumbeat up to a more frantic pace and Trey starts to very delicate lullaby-like playing on top of the synth washes. They are taking their time playing around with all this, Trey seemingly fumbling for where to go at points. Slowly he seems to gain more confidence and starts inserting licks and playing with feedback. Page replaces the synthesizer with some more upbeat keyboards and Fishman adjusts the tempo downward for a more blissful kind of feeling. Extremely cool jam here. Absolutely 1999/2000 worthy! All we are missing now is a whale siren! Around 10 minutes and Trey starts some stoccato picking while Fishman does some wood-block/Neil Peart tom tom worship with synth swells going on in the background. This is very, very cool and unique sounding! Eventually the beat stops except for cymbal taps and Page, Mike and Trey all join together in unison for some blissful playing, bouncing off what each other are doing. ABSOLUTELY FRIGGIN PERFECTLY TREY LEADS US INTO TASTE! WHAT A MOTHER EFFIN SEGUE!!!! THAT CARINI WAS SICK AND THAT SEGUE WAS PURE HONEY!

>Taste - Yes, that freaking segue...oi vey!!! No ripcord there! That was what we want! As expected this thing is a steamroller and Page takes center stage throughout. Fantastic piano out the wazoo!! Then Trey comes in with some tasty licks and all is right with the world. * chef's kiss * They ride this out to it's natural conclusion and it just peaks like a volcano. Fantastic. Jeez louise!!!! A+ guys!

Ghost - Taste ends properly, then Trey turns on some repeating loops and slowly leads us into Spookyville. The rest of the band take note and ever so slowly build the rhythm of the song, note by note, sounding like a 1970's porno flick soundtrack. Uniquely, Trey starts singing the song while still in this Slow Ghost mode giving this a very laid-back and kinda bluesy feel!!! Soon it picks right up, but that setup was fantastic. Definitely a very unique intro to the song!!! Thankfully, this sound/vibe continues throughout the song giving it more dynamics than perhaps is usual. 4 minutes in though and Trey sets off a high note, triggering it in his looper. This fades off into the background and we are officially in Jam Land. Instead of heading for ambience however, Page and Mike both get some air time in a funky jam that has shades of 1997 throughout. This is truly group playing with no one member taking center stage - everyone is contributing to the greater whole and playing off each other. The Type I continues until 9 minutes when Gordo kicks in some effects and the rest of the guys immediately latch on to his playing, leading the jam into a darker and more brooding direction. The crowd aptly notices as well and signifies their approval with roaring applause. They haven't gone full Type II yet, but they keep hinting at it, inserting little bits of oddball stuff here and there, only the reign it back and not take the plunge. That's ok when the FLOW of the jam is this good! Seriously, this thing is just like butter, baby. Around 11 minutes the guys take the plunge. Trey introduces a repeating melodic refrain that the other guys latch on to, again using his looper system to layer pattern on top of pattern. Everyone adjusts accordingly and rides through this space flight together. Eventually Trey lets the looper die off and the guys return to more blissful, major key playing with lots of great piano from Page and Mike inserting himself with little fills left and right. Trey lays back and lets the mood shift again - a heavy bass groove over some chill-ass keys from Page. 14 minutes and Mike turns this kinda floundering jam into Reggae Woman. Perfect timing! This was an awesome jam, but it seemed unsure of itself at times. It won't be one for the hall of classics, but it's also not one to sleep on either! Definitely worth a listen!!!

>Boogie On Reggae Woman - Wonderful song choice out of that point in the jam!!! Keeps the energy going and everyone on their feet. This jam is on fire!!! Trey lays out for several minutes, complete content to let Gordo absolutely friggin tear up his bass! GET IT, CACTUS!!! I mean, hell, we are 6 minutes in and only now is Trey beginning to add some tasteful licks to this swampy, funk-fest boogie invasion. This is all about Gordo! He is still tearing it up! DANG! Around 7 minutes though things turn around and Trey has begun playing some awesome melody lines with Page jumping on the organ and the other 2 tearing it up from behind. This is pure fire! Full-band playing at its finest!!! This absolutely has to go on the list of Greatest Reggae Woman's Ever Played. It is just spectacularly fantastic. For real. A+++++

>If I Could - Reggae Woman spends its dying 2 minutes melting down into soupy ooze, only for it to suddenly end and the gorgeous If I Could begin. Oh man, after that 47-minutes of raging, this is the perfect choice. Just great.

Quinn The Eskimo - It's Quinn. It's fantastic. And the crowd freaking laps it up. So much energy!

>Harry Hood - It's Harry Hood. It's good but goes on too long as always. Next!

Cavern - Fantastic! A+ fire!!! Got that 1993 energy for sure! Woke me back up after Hood and had me headbanging until the last notes rang out. AWESOME!

Buried Alive - BA Reprise! List worthy for sheer unpredictability alone!!!

Loving Cup - Two Exile covers in one show! Awesome! They kill at as always and bring this rip-roaring, darn-near-classic show to a close.



OUTSTANDING second set! Everything after Reggae Woman is a bonus, but that first 48 minutes of Carini>Taste>Ghost>Reggae was some of the most awesome music I've ever heard. This show was a phenomenal way to kick off the tour and the year!!! Don't sleep on this show! IT IS SICK!!!!