Sunday, November 30, 2014

Devolver, Live at the Circle, Hanover, PA Nov 29, 2014

      Ok folks, a real short one here. Devolver returning to the Circle on a Thanksgiving weekend. How can it not be epic?
      A bizarre side note. We walked to the show and a stretch limo was in the Lot. I joked that someone was trying to outdo me at a Devolver show. It ended up being someone I work with and used to see him occassionally at Devolver shows during the Golden Era.


Devolver, Live at the Circle, Hanover, PA, Nov. 29th, 2014


Set 1
Fearless, Highway 29, Everything Comes Around, Tumbleweeds and Mailboxes>Paint It, Black, Strange Red Afternoon, Surprise, Surprise, YYZ, Bubblespeak, Laughing Clown, Alone at the Applecart>Jungle Boogie>Frankenstein, Divided Sky


Set 2
2001, Serve Me Up Another, Funk II, Miss You, Peanuts Theme, Turnaround>Psycho Killer>Jam>El Nino>Black Magic Woman>Gypsy Queen, SRV tune, Shutdown, After Midnight> Tweezer Reprise


Set 3
Comfortably Numb*, Edge of Town, Monkey Man, Crosseyed and Painless*, Looking Blind,Time, Whipping Post.


*with Tommy Huffnagle on vocals


      Good crowd came out but not super crazy packed. The energy from last week carried over. Not too much else to say. It was a great birthday weekend and the Devolver show was the icing on the cake. I also read on an article in the men's bathroom that the expansion of the Circle will begin in the Spring. Until next time, rock and roll


Dave Kemp
BA American Studies
PhD Rock and Roll


You can stream Devolver here and this and last week's show should be up next week.

Sunday, November 23, 2014

Devolver, Live at the Bridgeport Ribhouse, Bridgeport, PA Nov. 22, 2014

      Hello folks. Got a real short one for you today. I experienced a blast from the past while simultaneously experiencing the future and it looks very bright. So as I type this and remaster a Devolver 1.0 show from August of 1999, allow me to give the first report on Devolver 3.0, live at the Bridgeport Ribhouse in Bridgeport, PA on Nov. 22 2014.


Set list


Set 1
After Midnight, Highway 29, Little Wing, Happy Birthday, Bubble Speak, Time, Laughing Clown, Miss You*, Tumbleweed and Mailboxes>Psycho Killer, Divided Sky, Marina Came to Be, YYZ, A Day Gone By, Frankenstein


Set 2
Serve Me Up Another, Ramble On%, Whipping Post%, Edge of Town>Cross eyed and Painless>Monkey Man, Waiting By the Sand, 2001, SRV blues tune, Turnaround>Black Magic Woman>Gypsy Queen>Turnaround......


I left at the end of Turnaround. I had to drive and was very tired.


Psycho Killer had Manteca teases
Turnaround had Run Like Hell teases
*with Anthony Petrino on vocals
% with Karen on vocals


      Myself and Casey set the GPS for Bridgeport and when we arrived I saw a pizza joint called Little Sicily and said let's eat there. Unbeknownst to me, it was right next to the Bridgeport Ribhouse where Devolver was throwing it down.
      The setlist was cover heavy because a lot of the people were Zach's family and they didn't know a lot of the originals. Anthony slipped right back in, rather impressive since he hadn’t played with them in about 12 years. And Andy has made it clear he wants to take a break from performing with Devolver, this is now Devolver 3.0. 1.0 was with all 5 members. 2.0 was from 2002ish on with just Andy. 3.0 is with Kyle and Anthony. It is different and breathes new life into the tunes, not that they really needed it. Of course, there are breakdowns within the era's, and I will delve more into 2.2 era Devolver at a later date.
      Kyle was playing like a man possessed. Zach looked like he had adequately built up the callouses on his fingers. Josh sang some beautiful backing vocals for Divided Sky. And wait until you hear them do that. It is amazing. They will destroy the Circle.
     The transition into Psycho Killer was fantastic. YYZ was fantastic. Alot more cover tunes are possible with a keyboard. And very appropriate it was Anthony and no one else that sang Miss You. Karen had a great wailing voice for her 2 tunes. Cross eyed into Monkeyman, oh Yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!




If this is the future of Devolver then bring it on! See you Sat. at the Circle by the Square.
You can stream Devolver's archive here.





Dave Kemp
BA American Studies
PhD Rock and Roll

Wednesday, November 5, 2014

Phish, October 27, 28, and 29th, 2014, Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, San Francisco, CA

      Ahh Fall Tour. Nothing quite gets my motor running like this time of year. Something super special about fall. Hoodies, a slight chill to the air as you hang in the Lot. But this Fall is different because it is on the West Coast. We've been lucky to get any Fall tours since the initial hiatus in 2000. And I was blessed enough to be able to attend 6 of those shows, 3 in San Francisco and 3 in Las Vegas. So without further delay, here is the incredible tale about my return to the City by the Bay, for Phish at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium on Oct. 27, 28, and 29th, 2014.
      I got incredibly fortunate with mail order this year. After taking care of a few people and myself, I still had tickets to trade for the second and third night. I took care of that the day of the emails and only had to met one person in San Fran. After a long and uneventful flight, I had no energy to go anywhere and I texted him “Unless you live in Outer Richmond, we will just meet before the show” his reply was that he LIVED in Outer Richmond, about 4 blocks away. Where else does that happen except on Tour?
      I chilled out the first day, found a great place for breakfast in San Fran, Simple Pleasures Cafe. I also participated in my favorite non Phish activity, walking Rubin. This pug is the cutest thing around and we got along famously. I also walked to Land's End Point, which overlooks the Bay with the Golden Gate bridge to your right and the Pacific to your left. I actually giggled at how beautiful it is.




Monday, 10/27/2014
Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, San Francisco, CA

Set 1: Walfredo, Ocelot > Camel Walk, Axilla, Rift, 555, Maze, Brian and Robert, Stash, Party Time, 46 Days
Set 2: Sand > Birds of a Feather, Waiting All Night, Ghost > Bug > Seven Below > I Didn't Know, Chalk Dust Torture, Also Sprach Zarathustra > Slave to the Traffic Light
Encore: Take Me Out to the Ballgame[1], Winterqueen, A Day in the Life
[1] Phish debut; instrumental.
Teases:
· Simple tease in Camel Walk
· Theme from The Munsters tease
Notes: Walfredo was played for the first time since June 27, 2010 (186 shows). Trey teased Simple in Camel Walk and the Munsters theme after Rift. Take Me Out to the Ballgame was a Phish debut, and was played as an instrumental.

                                                               You can stream it here



      Hung out in a room at the Kabuki Hotel in Japantown, rather close to the venue. The suite was on the top floor and offered stunning views. We then made our way to the Fillmore neighborhood, which until the 90's was much like Harlem was in New York, the center of black culture in the city. It is also home to the Fillmore Auditorium. We stopped in a bar for food and 4 sharply dresses black guys were playing cards at a table at 5:30 in the afternoon. I'd like to think they were all musicians.
      I had to meet up with 3 people, one whom I have never met and has no idea what she looks like, to take care of ticket business for D because she had to work. Management, always on duty. The first set was solid and high energy. It had been awhile since I got a Brian and Robert and a Party Time, so that was super cool.
      Second set Sand opener? Yes please. Waiting was a nice catch your breath. Ghost thru I Didn't Know was outstanding. We were on the balcony level so we had a great view of I Didn't Know. The 2001 was extra tasty. Winterqueen and ADITL were the icing on the danish.
      Another day, more chilling out. But there was a rather unique event going on before the show, Game 6 of the World Series, SF Giants versus the KC Royals. There definitely was a buzz in the air about the game. We found a place 2 blocks from the venue called Cafe Soluma. It was right next to an urban garden which got lots of sun. The bartender looked like grumpy Robin Thicke. The sun came through the windows and blinded the staff. The Royals took a huge lead and we lost interest real fast. So we headed to a rather special show. Why so special? Because Phish was about to join an elite club: Bands I Have Seen Over 100 Hundred Times. And what a show #100 was!!


Tuesday, 10/28/2014
Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, San Francisco, CA

Set 1: Crowd Control, Mike's Song > I Am Hydrogen > Weekapaug Groove, Wingsuit, Water in the Sky, Plasma, Halfway to the Moon > Poor Heart, Gumbo -> Sanity > Run Like an Antelope
Set 2: Kill Devil Falls[1] > Mountains in the Mist, Fuego > Julius, Twist > Runaway Jim > Harry Hood
Encore: Loving Cup
[1] Unfinished.
Teases:
· Gumbo tease in Sanity
· Gumbo tease in Run Like an Antelope
· Funk #49, Have Mercy, and Ramblin' Man teases in Harry Hood
· Smoke on the Water tease in Twist
Notes: Kill Devil Falls was unfinished. Trey teased Gumbo during Sanity and Antelope. Twist included a Smoke on the Water tease from Trey. Hood contained teases of Funk #49 and Ramblin' Man and Have Mercy teases from Trey.

You can stream it here


      The first 4 songs BLEW my mind. The rest of it was stellar to including my third Sanity (second in SF). KDF had some real nice jams in them. The segue way from Fuego into Julius was incredible. Twist through Hood and especially Hood, WOW!


      Last night of the run and a Game 7??? SF is gonna be cra-cra! We went to the same Cafe to watch a much more entertaining game.As we were waiting for the show to start, Chris Koroda stopped by to check out the back of my shirt.


Wednesday, 10/29/2014
Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, San Francisco, CA

Set 1: Stealing Time From the Faulty Plan, The Moma Dance > Free, Back on the Train, Yarmouth Road, Strange Design > Taste, The Wedge, The Line, Wolfman's Brother
Set 2: First Tube > Down with Disease[1] > Theme From the Bottom > Split Open and Melt, Heavy Things > Light -> Possum
Encore: Contact, Meatstick > Character Zero
[1] Unfinished.
Teases:
· We Are the Champions tease in Yarmouth Road
· All About That Bass quote
· We Are the Champions tease in The Moma Dance
Notes: Immediately following the San Francisco Giants winning game seven of the World Series, We Are the Champions was teased by the full band. Yarmouth also included a We Are the Champions tease from Trey.  Following a "let's go Giants" chant after The Wedge, Page congratulated the Giants, adding that he watched the whole series. Trey told the crowd that Page was a Mets fan and that Page watches every Mets game streamed on his phone with many of them on the organ while the band's playing. Page said  "we can't be world champions all the time... or ever." Trey then introduced The Line in honor of losers in sports. Disease was unfinished. Trey quoted All About That Bass in Contact.
You can stream it here


      I watched the end of the game in the lobby and then walked into the crowd and Phish breaks into “We Are the Champions” So cool. Crowd was going apeshit. You can clearly hear when the Giants sealed the deal; the crowd gets very LOUD. I think the highlight of the second set for me was Heavy Things. Shawn remarked “Ah man”. And then 5 minutes alter we were both Wow, Type 2 jamming in Heavy Things with a great transition into Light. Bravo to Phish for keep mixing things up!
      After the show we went to Oakland and then hit the road for Vegas. I was going to fly but then my Tour manager Switzer said I should ride with them. Saw a spectacular sunrise over the desert as we rolled along for 8 hours to our destination, the oasis of sin, debauchery, excess: Las Vegas, built by Moe Green and Bugsy Segal, conquered by Phish.


Dave Kemp
BA American Studies
PhD Rock and Roll