Notes From The Drop Zone - 3/25/21

Review:

Before I begin to dissect the music in any way, I should begin with a disclaimer. I did not attend any of the drive-in shows in October. This was my first live concert experience with The Disco Biscuits since 12/31/19, and it was oh so good to be back. I caught many songs that I had been chasing—this was my first time seeing Mr. Don since 2018 (12/31 for the song at all, 5/27 for the ending), my first Therapy since 5/27/18, and my first Shelby ending since freaking Camp in 2016. I had felt trapped at home in Las Vegas for over a year, and the joy that I felt in seeing my favorite band, and many of my friends, for the first time in over a year is almost indescribable.

I was worried that the joyousness of the occasion would make it difficult for me to objectively talk about the music. I was wrong.

Musically, this show was very average, with moments verging on something interesting and others verging on mediocrity. There were no moments that sounded “bad” but on the other hand there was very little I plan on revisiting more than once. The opening salvo—a standalone Safety Dance with a short intro jam followed by a fully jamless Bazaar Escape—was an odd choice to say the least. Not only opening the show with two jamless standalones, but using the rarity Bazaar Escape (LTP: 12/28/19) to do it. This was followed by King of the World, which immediately settled into a blissful theme (this would be the theme for most of the night). The theme was pretty and bouncy, but it never felt locked in, and, perhaps paradoxically, never evolved either. The band wandered around various bliss themes before building up to that signature Grass is Green ending progression. The inversion was more capably executed than the last version, from 10/30/20, but the jam was significantly less interesting to me. The jam out of Grass is Green was probably my highlight of the set. Magner immediately locked into a catchy theme and the band delivered a focused groove going into Don. Mr. Don felt short (I have no idea how long it actually was) but it was a very pretty build to a well-executed ending. Barber delivered some gorgeous lines in the build-up to the peak. Strangely, the band followed up with a very short, standalone Therapy. I had been wanting to hear Therapy since the first inversion back on 1/26/19, but I feel like I may have made a Monkey’s Paw wish. I got my Therapy, sure, but it was one that negated the almost 5 years of progress that the song had made into a heavy hitter.

The theme of the first set was blissco, and I was hoping the second set would deliver the dark dungeon untz. I was thrilled when the set opened with my favorite opener bar none, Helicopters. I was less than thrilled, however, when the jam returned to the ending after a woefully short ~10 minutes. Despite the length and the straightforwardness of the jam, it still registers as a highlight because of how infectiously fun it was. Munchkin Invasion followed. Prior to the show, I had mentioned how much I was hoping for a Munchkin because of how strong the previous two (12/28/19, 10/17/20) had been. This one was not on the same level, but it did deliver some of the more interesting moments of the show. Rather than immediately dropping into type two darkness, it stayed pretty mellow, seeming to alternate between a Munchkin ending passage and a more improvisational theme (also I remember hearing Voices at one point?). Eventually the jam broke away from Munchkin and delivered a strong segue to Orch Theme. This was another highlight for me, as Orch Theme is hands down my favorite song to hear live. The jam out of Orch Theme, however, registered as perhaps the low point for me. It was pretty aimless and pedestrian, with excessive clavinet from Magner and no real theme development, before it dropped into my least favorite cover, I Feel Love. The jam out of I Feel Love was actually a pretty good theme, but it didn’t really evolve, and instead landed into Tempest (with a pretty bizarre drop-out transition to boot). Tempest segued into Munchkin without much difficulty—the jam was Tempest, and then it became Munchkin. The double encore was nice, but I’d have preferred one song with a bigger jam (of course). Both Shelby Rose and Home Again were played perfectly.

I said it to many people at the time, and I will say it again: Orch > IFL > Tempest is lazy setlist construction. It is the epitome of safe playing. And that really sums up the whole show. There were no “bad” moments, no real errors (except maybe the aforementioned weird Tempest drop, and if that was an error they certainly turned it around quickly). Everyone was playing really well. And yet, the show struck me as very bland, and above all, very safe.

Highlights:

Munchkin > Orch

Not even so much a highlight, as a moment I will definitely be revisiting when I have the opportunity. It seemed to me that the jam was heading in an uncharted direction before returning to the Munchkin ending fakeout, and ultimately blasting off towards Orch.

GIG > Don

A really simple bliss theme with an infectiously catchy jam. Was Magner teasing something? Either he was and I couldn’t figure it out, or he just landed on that catchy theme right away.

IFL > Tempest

As type one as it gets, this jam was still the brooding sinister bisco that I was hoping for all show (and was woefully absent).

Helicopters

Fist-pumping type one standalone rager.

Mr. Don

More mellow than the standalone Helix, this still falls into the category of the well-played standalone. Barber delivered some gorgeous thematic riffs and a strong peak.

Stray Observations:

This was the first Bazaar since 12/28/19 and the first Therapy since 1/26/19.

This was my first pandemic show, and I have to say I absolutely loved the setup. Major props to the staff for creating such a welcoming atmosphere.

On the outside chance that anyone from the band is reading this, please don’t let the Ableton/Tractorbeam jamming that was so prevalent during the drive-in tour become just a passing phase. I and many others thought that it yielded some of the most creative Biscuits jamming in years. Please bring back Barber’s synth guitar. OK thanks B4L.

—Mr. Zan