However, I can say, for the second night in a row, that the show I'm reviewing definitely does not suck. 12/5 is another show in the vein of 12/4; that is, it's well-played all the way through, the energy level is consistent, the song choice is excellent, and though there's not much jamming to speak of, the little that there is is reminiscent of some of the better (though longer) megajams of late summer.
At the start, the band's playing could best be described as "gamely." "Bag" isn't anything special, and "Chalkdust" takes a huge Trey-nosedive at the climax, but rather than getting rattled, the guys take it in stride and recover with a hot "KDF" and a standard-but-solid "Divided Sky."
Then comes the streaker, which seems to liven things up not just for the crowd, but also for the band. "Ya Mar" features some brilliant work from Mike, including lyrics that reference the streaker, after Trey's comment that "That took a lot of balls," And Mike continues to hold the reins for an energetic take on "Sneakin' Sally," including a closing vocal jam. "Old Home Place" is next, reinstating the bluegrass part of set one for the first time since 11/29.
"Cavern" and "Funky Bitch" keep the Mike train rolling, and this really lifts up the second half of the set. Mike's been the one consistently good band member since 12/2 or so, so getting to hear him take over the set like this is pretty appropriate since this is the last show of the tour. Things get a little more egalitarian with "Bowie," which is a standard-but-satisfying rock take, much like 12/4's "Reba." Then, right when it seems like the set should be over, Trey takes over with "The Wedge" and "Bold As Love," which put the exclamation point on strong set one showing.
Set two starts off with one of the deeper explorations of fall '09. Now this isn't saying much in some ways, but this "Tweezer" -> "Light" > "Piper" -> "Free" run is pretty great even if it won't be on any "...Of The Year" lists. The "Tweezer" jam is two balls-out rock sections led by some melodic leads from Trey sandwiching a neat little plinko space, and the segue into "Light" is clever and builds (seemingly) naturally out of the end of Trey's guitar pyrotechnics.
"Light," again, is the centerpiece here. It's standard Type 1 Trey up until about the 8:00 mark, and it honestly starts to get really repetitive until all of a sudden Page starts playing some ascending scales on the piano and Trey drops back into some chording. Just as those two mellow out, Fishman starts some seriously sinister drumming, and suddenly there's a really interesting dissonance going on. Things get sparser and sparser with Mike dropping some really high bass runs (to continue the dissonance) until we splinter into another loop-filled ambient space that, much like the one at the end of 12/3's "Disease," has more meat on its bones that what we've become accustomed to at this point in 2009.
This resolves into another nice segue into "Piper," which, despite revving up way too fast, features a brilliant two minutes or so of jamming between 4:30 and 6:30, oddly sandwiched between some pretty pedestrian soloing on each side. The song transitions roughly but, again, interestingly into "Free," which is (surprise!) a Mike-heavy version instead of a Trey-heavy one.
"Sweet Virginia" is the (geographically appropriate) setlist surprise. "Hood" features a poignant and patient build that climaxes brilliantly, but not really in the usual way...it's a bit more...umm...democratic than usual. "Golgi" includes some fun antics from Trey when Mike's bass temporarily goes out, with an explanation that this is the "trio version" as well as later shouts of "Cactus!" and "Bass!" "Antelope" does justice to the song in a way we haven't heard since some of the amazing versions of early- and mid-summer, as well as involving the ending vocals "Run like a naked guy, out of control!" from Trey and then the whole band as everyone catches on.
The "Loving Cup" > "Tweeprise" encore is the perfect exclamation point on what has been, at least at the end of the tour here, two great shows in a row.
While I was pleasantly surprised as the variety and nuance of much of the band's playing throughout the summer and up through Festival 8, I've honestly had a really hard time maintaining interest in every single show through much of fall. While there were a few moments I absolutely loved (with 11/28's "Seven Below" > "Ghost" quite likely being my favorite part of the whole year so far), for the most part things are starting to sound a bit stale. Here's hoping NYE ends the year on a high note before we move into 2010. Once I finish reviewing the Miami run, I'll also be putting up a fall highlights list, which might be a bit of a challenge. But I'll do my best.
No comments:
Post a Comment