There's a standout amount of quality jamming in 7/23's second set, but during the first set the band drops one of the best jams I've heard from them out of pretty much nowhere, so I'm sort of focused on that right now.
I'll swallow my enthusiasm and just review chronologically, though.
The "Sunday Morning" opener, with Fishman vocals, is the first nod to the night's theme, but from there things are a bit more predictable...briefly. Your mileage may vary, but for my money, this "Back On The Train" spins off into some really interesting territory for a few minutes thanks to guitar pyrotechnics from Trey. I'm someone who usually zones out during this song, but this take got my attention. "How Many People Are You?" doesn't technically get "extended," but Trey locks on to a neat riff right after the lyrics and the band develops it for a few minutes. It's already a great song, and that jamming bit makes this a mandatory listen.
It's worth mentioning that next the band plays a pretty flawless "Glide" (sorry, but "Glide" always makes me think of Coventry). But what REALLY MATTERS is the "It's Ice." It's a contemplative, jazz-inflected improvisation that stretches to fifteen minutes, wraps back around to finish the song proper at the end, doesn't feature a peak that you can see a mile away, and is pretty much perfect. I love this jam and have already replayed it three times after listening to the show. I feel like I'm pretty enthusiastic in at least some way about every jam the band plays, but this one is special. Check it out:
Set two opens with a fairly normal "Bag" before moving a "Wolfman's" that starts by heading in the "Gin"-inflected direction many versions of the song have pursued lately. But then, the wheels come off in the best way and we visit ambient territory for a few minutes, just rolling along on a pleasant, loosely melodic wave until it crashes onto the shore of "Twist." "Twist" moves smoothly through a few distinct sections: more "It's Ice"-style jazz jamming, a more beat-heavy version of the "Wolfman's" ambient jam, and then a great loops-and-synth-style peak.
"Waves" starts off with Page leading a great Type I jam but then jumps off track and, goes back to the ambient territory that "Wolfman's" started exploring. This is even more minimalist, though, going to a really creepy place and winding down so far that it seems like the song has ended a few times before it finally does. I'm not sure if this one is great music, but it's unique jamming (for this era, at least) and deserves a listen.
"Miss You" is the absolute weirdest call ever after this evil jam, but there it is. It also institutes a pretty jukebox-y fourth quarter with nothing much to comment on. But hey, that wraps up another fantastic BD show with five more jams worth sinking your teeth into, so I'm not really complaining. The on-theme "Sweet Jane" cover for the encore would be the perfect cherry on top if people put cherries on top of donuts.
The Live Review:
7/23/17: Sunday Morning opener.
7/23/17: That was neat. Axila I.
7/23/17: I remember when I thought it was weird when they started playing Axila I again when I was used to Axila II.
7/23/17: Now if they played Axila II I'd be totally confused.
7/23/17: Your Pet Cat! This is one of my favorite of the Thrilling, Chilling songs.
7/23/17: Your Pet Cat is followed by a BOTT highlighted by some seriously great Trey leads.
7/23/17: People are audibly cheering, on the SBD recording, for BOTT. That's how good it is, in case you were wondering.
7/23/17: How Many People Are You? is next. Early on after the lyrics, Trey moves away from the song's main riff to something more bliss-y.
7/23/17: Great build after with vocal refrain before returning to the song's outro. I feel like that counts as a 'jam.'
7/23/17: Well, that definitely upped my interest in this set. Now, Glide!
7/23/17: The silence from the crowd waiting to see if Trey would nail Glide was palpable. He did.
7/23/17: I always expect Tweezer to start after Glide. Instead, Theme.
7/23/17: Oddly, that's only happened live three times, last time in '94, as per @phishnet
7/23/17: Glide > Tweezer, I mean.
7/23/17: Theme had some extra mustard (extra icing?).
7/23/17: It's Ice next.
7/23/17: Interestingly bass-led middle jam in It's Ice.
7/23/17: Legit jam here, folks. Page to electric piano and synth. Trey stepped back. Fish raining jazz beats.
7/23/17: This is like watching the Weather Channel 10-Day Forecast on acid.
7/23/17: This is mellow, layered improvisation that doesn't seem to exist just for the sake of rocketing to some pre-planned explosion.
7/23/17: I love that there's more of that going on lately.
7/23/17: I understand it's likely less fun to play, but it's way more fun to listen to.
7/23/17: Well, that was just gorgeous. More is next.
7/23/17: More is getting better and better live. Nice Number Line-style outro jam on this one.
7/23/17: End set. Set 2 opens with AC/DC Bag.
7/23/17: One thing I love about this run is that most of the songs that aren't debuts/covers/bust-outs/surprise jams still get some love.
7/23/17: Like, there was nothing particularly special about that Bag, but it was a particularly great, 'normal' version.
7/23/17: Wolfman's jam going the echoplex-chording route briefly. Oh, and they're playing Wolfman's. Forgot to mention that.
7/23/17: Massive Gin-rock-style jam now in this Wolfman's. Trey and Page killing it.
7/23/17: Ooh, sudden post-peak move into a darker jam space. This isn't over yet.
7/23/17: Really pretty minimalist jam now. Really spacey and ambient, but not with that hard edge that usually shows up in those jams.
7/23/17: Easing back into rock and roll territory again.
7/23/17: This is the most interesting Wolfman's jam I think I've ever heard. That goes for It's Ice, too.
7/23/17: > Twist.
7/23/17: Another jazzy Type II jam forming in Twist.
7/23/17: I swear I've heard Trey tease Woman From Tokyo a few times this summer and Page just teased it. Am I crazy?
7/23/17: Another pretty space that sort of recalls the Wolfman's ambient jam, but with a beat.
7/23/17: Out of the happy space and now into something more space-funky. Page on synth. Weird place for it.
7/23/17: Intense looping jam now. Synth with the loops is pretty great.
7/23/17: Awesome guitar and bass breakdown now.
7/23/17: Smooth return to the Twist riff. Nice!
7/23/17: > Waves. These guys just aren't stopping.
7/23/17: Nice, piano-heavy Type I jam unfolding here.
7/23/17: Things getting ambient again. Page playing piano chords over noise.
7/23/17: Such space between noise crowd doesn't know if the song is over yet or not. Neither do I.
7/23/17: Nope, still going. Spooky.
7/23/17: This is hilariously creepy. Wow.
7/23/17: I want to see CK5's lights on this.
7/23/17: Serious Gorge RnR throwback.
7/23/17: Going into Miss You from that was pretty much the weirdest thing that's ever happened.
7/23/17: Even Boogie On doesn't escape unscathed, getting a brief echo-plinko treatment.
7/23/17: > Wading. At this point I'm sort of expecting them to tack a funk jam onto the end.
7/23/17: No funk jam, but a big time Velvet Sea there. Sweet Jane encore as another gesture to the velvetly, velvety donuts.
7/23/17: Those last few tunes look like a victory lap on paper, but they were great. Huge Miss You and Wading, and Boogie On was jammed.
7/23/17: Hope shows like this don't get buried in all the talk of OMG PHISH PLAYED SO MANY 20 MINUTE JAMS AT BD
7/23/17: I mean, I love 20 minute jams, but this show had 3 15 min jams, 3 shorter jams. 6/17 went Type II in some way.
7/23/17: Incredible show, is all I'm saying. NO 20 MINUTE JAM means nothing, really.
7/23/17: 7/24/15 II doesn't have a 20 minute jam and it's probably my favorite set I've seen live.
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