The Verdict:
If MPP 1 dabbled very slightly in a second set that went somewhere other than back to the first set, MPP 2 gets confused and throws us some legit jams in the first set and then calls it a day.
Like MPP I, you can get a sense of most of the first set just by reading the setlist. It's pretty cool. Some rarities, a good mix of raging songs and mellow songs, etc. But everything's pretty standard until "Wolfman's" takes off in a blues-funk direction that departs a bit from the usual solo and then segues nicely into "Boogie On." This seems to set the band off a bit, and "Boogie On" deconstructs itself before moving to a standard "Gumbo." A regular "Halley's" gets butt-slammed (in a good way) into "Gin," and then the "Gin" > "JJLC" pairing, while never leaving Type I land, visits some really engaging blues-rock territory.
As I said, the second set is less interesting. The setlist is still well put together, and you shouldn't sleep on the "Hood" > "Number Line" pair, as they both deliver a lot of bang for their short running times. But other than that and a pretty hot solo from Trey during the "Crosseyed," the only jam that really strains at all at the seams is "Steam." And I'm being generous.
The Live Review:
6/12/11: This show opens with Buried Alive. So that's neat.
6/12/11: We just went Buried Alive, Lonesome Cowboy Bill, Ha Ha Ha to open. It's like they're picking songs based on increasing the gap.
6/12/11: Next is a fast Sample that leads directly (and I mean directly) into DSky.
6/12/11: Nice little ending solo to DSky propels us into Wolfman's.
6/12/11: Nice little vocal jam leading into a pretty straightforward blues space.
6/12/11: Trey bending some notes and then settling on a descending chord progression while Page lays down the foundation for some plinko.
6/12/11: Band forgoes a deeper jam for an excellent, drawn-out segue into Boogie On.
6/12/11: Great little Mike-led funk jam coming at the end of this Boogie On. Touching on plinko territory but more rhythm-driven.
6/12/11: Great blues-funk duo there, and a nicely chosen landing in Gumbo at the end of the Boogie On jam.
6/12/11: Halley's! Loving this song selection. Again.
6/12/11: Quick little Halley's with a perfect cut-off landing in Gin.
6/12/11: Kicking off a bluesy little jam in Gin, now.
6/12/11: That Gin stayed Type I throughout, but it was definitely a highlight reel version anyway.
6/12/11: Jesus Just Left Chicago! Seems like a very blues-oriented set in general.
6/12/11: Pretty typical JJLC jam, but with Mike featuring a bit more prominently than usual.
6/12/11: Really slick version of JJLC. Zero is next. End set?
6/12/11: Yep.
6/12/11: A rough Party Time to start the second set.
6/12/11: Ooh! Slow-tempo Crosseyed in the two-slot!
6/12/11: This Crosseyed is proceeding as a Trey-headed shred-fest, but it's a good 'un.
6/12/11: Ambient wash/loops end the song after a vocal refrain. Steam starts up.
6/12/11: After the composed part, there's an extended vocal outro with Mike singing different lyrics than usual.
6/12/11: I think I like that better than what's now the 'official' version.
6/12/11: Great Steam jam, with Mike holding it down.
6/12/11: Fading back into the ambient drone after the Steam jam.
6/12/11: Light!
6/12/11: Trey has been going arpeggio-crazy for awhile now.
6/12/11: A completely straight-laced Light lands in The Wedge.
6/12/11: Trey just got super-lost in The Wedge.
6/12/11: Alaska! Haven't heard that in awhile.
6/12/11: Kind of nice instrumental wind-up to the vocals. That's different.
6/12/11: Trey takes Alaska to town. Now, an early version of Halfway.
6/12/11: Organ solo from Page in the middle. Lyrics about 'the emotion train.' Sort of glad that one got changed.
6/12/11: > Hood.
6/12/11: No slow build in this Hood jam. They get right to it.
6/12/11: This might not be the most patient Hood jam ever, but it's pretty awesome anyway.
6/12/11: When I saw the running time of that Hood was 9:30, I expected to be disappointed. I am not disappointed.
6/12/11: Ending crashes into Number Line.
6/12/11: Number Line is done gettin' blowed up.
6/12/11: > Loving Cup!
6/12/11: End S2.
6/12/11: Sanity encore.
6/12/11: Okay, Sanity > Makisupa might be the weirdest thing ever.
6/12/11: Tons of 'What?!'s during the intro to Makisupa.
6/12/11: > First Tube.
6/12/11: There were a lot of songs in this show before the three-song encore.
6/12/11: Not that that's a bad thing.
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