Well, one more Thanksgiving in the books. I wasn’t able to write this immediately after the shows because I came down with my traditional post Thanksgiving cold brought on by Contact with my niece and nephews/ seeing friends/ change in outdoor temperature. I have since recovered and now am ready to drop some wisdom on ya like Stephen Hawking tripping balls.
Black Friday had Devolver at Kclinger’s is one of my favorite Thanksgiving traditions. Sometimes the sound is less than perfect but this time it was really good. The boys restrained the volume a little and didn’t try to play over each other. I haven’t written down a setlist in years but this time I did my best. A new cover, I Got Mine, by Akron’s own Black Keys was a welcome surprise. Then Devolver blew my fucking mind by playing One Big Holiday by My Morning Jacket. I’ve seen MMJ 3 times and when I saw them this past spring, it reaffirmed my belief in the redemptive power of rock and roll. I actually had been thinking how cool it would be for Phish or Devolver to cover a MMJ tune and then Andy begins the guitar intro to it. I feel rather proud of myself by restraining my initial reaction to them playing it. (My true reaction involved howling, smashing chairs, and a pagan sacrifice, but I digress.)
Other highlights include an amazing Cross-eyed and Painless and Paranoid Android.
The second set started off with 2001 and lead into an EPIC Funk II. After the song was over, they easily could have called it a night. It’s been awhile since they had a moment like that but they nailed it. After catching our breath, they went on to do I want You (She’s So Heavy), Edge, and Turnaround. There was more but I can’t remember or write them down. An energetic encore of Psycho Killer > Edge Reprise to end an amazing night. If that as the last Devolver show, what a way to go out.
Saturday brought Boxcar Social to the Coliseum. While not the best venue, Boxcar does their best to change the vibe. When you see them upstairs, it’s a mind-blowing spectacle of lights and jams. You go down to get a drink and some of the ambiance is lost.
They put on a tight show that highlighted their ability to stretch out the jams. I even got a NRPS “Dirty Business” for my birthday. I missed the shout out to myself because 1) I was downstairs 2) and I was having a discussion about if a Manhattan tasted right. I consider myself an expert on that old school cocktail because my Dad drank them and I know when the vermouth isn’t blended in correctly. After making it until almost the end of the show (very impressive given I was up at 6 am after Devolver the night before), we then went back to Andy/Corey O’s crib to watch the funniest movie of all time, Conan the Destroyer (only funny when the dude formerly known as Grace Jones appeared on screen). I was laughing so hard I was crying.
It was great seeing everyone and let me be the first to wish you a Merry Festivus.
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