September 01, 2001

10 days before New York City and the world as a whole would change forever, the Biscuits played a show that cannot be adequately described in words. My friends and I were there. None of us seem to remember the exact time when they started playing, but we all remember the sun held high in the sky, ready to blind us when they finally finished the show, as we all stumbled out the rusty doors and onto the city streets.

The legendary venue that was the Wetlands Preserve was perfect. The entirety of the crowd, from start to finish, was perfect. The band's seemingly never-ending performance was perfect.

It's strange to hear myself say that this was the best Bisco show that I've ever seen, considering the fact that I've seen them so many times since that unforgettable night on Hudson Street. But because of that night's energy, music, vibes and the catastrophe that would occur ten days later--only two miles away from the landmark building that we found ourselves in on that fateful night--it must be, at the very least, mentioned when considering the very best performances put on by this endlessly enjoyable band.

I guess what I'm trying to say is this: The September 1st, 2001 show that encompassed both late Saturday and early Sunday was the pinnacle of the Dr. Sammy Altman-era Biscuits. That's a fact. Furthermore, it might also be the absolute apex of the Disco Biscuits live performances as a whole. I'm sure that I'm not the only living human being that had the pleasure of witnessing this musical masterpiece firsthand.

This show was that good. I promise you. I was there, conscious and in tune for every spectacular moment. And I will never, ever forget it.

My god this is one hell of a show. Set 2 is full of deep psychedelic jamming. The encore - especially the final third of it - is epic. The standalone songs range from excellent to freakishly good (which means set 1 is fantastic, too). It's all so good!

Great thoughts Mr. Zan, terrific take on a classic. I concur as well as procur.

The iconic show opens with what is likely the definitive standalone Story of the World. The theme, like many great versions from the past year and a half since its debut, explores a brooding, sinister theme before returning to the triumphant peak, but this version takes the idea and runs with it. The jam takes its time before settling into a tense theme, and builds to a crescendo at the 10-11 minute mark, well before it returns to the peak. Magner makes use of the synths that would define the original Strobelights as the jam reaches for its conclusion. Excellent peaking from Barber. Triumph (the first since May) seems to have been reworked, and there is some confusion in the first chorus as a result. The jam remains in Triumph territory the entire time, but around the 8 minute mark it starts to get interesting. Here, the jam begins to break down as the band pulls off the difficult segue into Crater with one of the more famous “peter down to nothing” segues. The music before the peter down is particularly solid. After this experimental transition, the rest of the set is pretty par to sub-par. The Crater itself is of course jamless, and the Home Again is standard. The Sands has a pretty disjointed, jambandy theme in the middle. It takes the jam out of usual type one territory, but it didn’t really grab me beyond that.

The Fiddler that opens set two (like the Story in set one, and in fact like many other songs from this show) is widely hailed as the best ever. I would not go so far, but it is a definitive version nonetheless. The first jam is standard, but the second is remarkable. It settles into a pleasant Blissco groove around the 8 minute mark, which drifts into the minor key over the next few minutes and returns to Fiddler territory for a strong peak. The Dribble is, of course, a paradigm shifting version. The “jam” section out of this Dribble would later become Strobelights and Martinis, and defined the Dribble jams that came later in the month. It’s hard to imagine the amazement this audience would have felt at hearing this jam (hitherto, all Dribble jams had begun in the exact same style, and this was a drastic departure). However, listening back, there isn’t much to this segment. The majority of the jam is the Strobelights and Martinis progression, until it speeds up and becomes an inverted Waves progression. There is a brief, unsettling jam in between the two; however, the most interesting portion of this jam to my ears is the “Strobelights intro,” and just because this section is underutilized comparatively in the modern composition. It’s still an enjoyable listen, especially in the back half as it moves towards Waves and reaches the electrifying peak. The jam out of Waves, on the other hand, is maybe the best of the show. It begins as trance, breaking down to a very quiet passage. Barber delivers a dissonant riff, and the jam coalesces around it. Sammy quickly moves to breakbeats for an unconventional dnb Waves. The jam builds to an aggressive crescendo (sounding at points like it could easily drop into Aquatic Ape) before breaking down around the 23 minute mark into a dissonant digital space. The Dribble hits emerge suddenly out of this space, finally breaking the dnb patterns as it returns to the Dribble ending. Strong Dribble ending. The Dribble outro is a tense, repetitive trance jam. Magner lays down the backbone for the jam, and later layers on some of the more distorted effects. It’s pretty cool, if a little unadventurous, but I think I prefer the Barber-led type one Floes intro beginning around the 15 minute mark. Floes has a mid-verse jam that’s actually decently interesting, with some Dribble teases and pleasing textures. The jam out of Floes is spectacular, maybe the best of the show. It’s a patient mid-tempo bliss trance build that reaches a huge Confrontation-esque crescendo before a breakdown into House Dog. House Dog might seem like a disappointing end to such a magnificent segment, but it’s a much stronger version than typical. The first jam is type one, but it’s extended. It builds to an uncomposed peak beginning at 11:15 and reaches a truly gorgeous passage at 12:15 just before the real peak. The second jam is similarly well-executed but unadventurous. The main theme is drawn-out, and a bit more major-key than usual, and builds up to a strong ending. The encore contains the only songs of the show that were not debuted at the Wetlands, and is likely an homage to the famous 12/29/98 segment. The Pygmy jam is short enough that you would be justified in not expecting much, but the band locks in to a sweet theme immediately. It’s pretty apparently a Run Like Hell intro right away, but it’s still a sweet build and the drop comes suddenly. The Run Like Hell jam is pretty standard.

4/5. The second set achieves a perfect score, despite containing a Fiddler, a House Dog closer, and a jam that is essentially all composition. Still, the overall score is dragged down by the long stretch of Crater, Sands, and Home Again in set one. Waves > Dribble and Floes > House Dog are the essential, must-hear jams of this one.

Stray Observations: This was the 23rd of 24 shows at the Wetlands Preserve. Before the show, there is a lengthy banter track. Brownie mentions that the band debuted a large portion of their material at the Wetlands. They discuss their first time there, 8/7/96, and inform the crowd that the show would consist entirely of Wetlands debuts. Every show on the setlist (besides the encore) did debut at the Wetlands: in order, Dribble (2/19/98), Fiddler (8/28/98), Above The Waves (12/29/98), House Dog, Crater (both 8/11/99), Story and Floes (both 3/11/00). Triumph, Kamaole Sands, and Home Again were all debuted 4/8/00 at the one and only performance of the Maui Project. The encore is likely a tribute to 12/29/98, which featured a lengthy Pygmy > Run Like Hell. There are Story teases in the > Crater segue. After Crater, some people call out songs, and one person calls out “let them play what they want!” The jam out of Dribble contains all the elements that would later become Strobelights & Martinis, which was included on Bisco Lives II and later debuted as a proper song on 2/16/07 at the Starland Ballroom. Besides 9/21/01, every other September 01 Dribble jam began with this “Strobelights” intro. There are Dribble teases in Floes.