September 02, 2001

The show-opening Morph begins in type one territory and doesn’t deviate, unlike some of the definitive Morphs of the year. This version goes about as deep as a type one Morph can go, however: the energy breaks down in the first few minutes as the band builds the theme, with Magner utilizing some of the new toys that would define the sound of the fall tour. Humu vies with 12/3/00 for strongest standalone (though I’d say it comes just short). The jam immediately locks into a theme that develops into a vibrant trance vehicle, making a melancholy dive before returning to Humu proper. The couple minutes before the jam returns to type one territory are seriously fantastic, almost cinematic in scope. 7-11 follows, and the towel jam is beginning to grow (although it remains fully type one here). The jam out is pretty restrained mid-tempo trance. It remains mostly light and playful until around the 12 minute mark where it takes on a more harried tone. This gives way to a very well-executed segue into Sound 1. The Sound 1 jam fits comfortably into the pantheon of legendary September 01 versions, and has all the hallmarks: steady driving trance, eerie atmosphere, and a massive build to arguably the most distinct peak section in the band’s catalogue. What a Show is, of course, just a Helix jam. It breaks the type one mold, but it never really grabbed my attention.

The Reactor is my easy pick for the show highlight. The jam is a two-headed beast, with the first jam a dark and dnb-adjacent vehicle and the second a more mellow groove that builds to an uncomposed bliss peak before the first personnel change. Because of precedent, only the Reactor track counts toward the final score, but make no mistake, the rest of the set (especially the Young Guy Jam, which is essentially just a Brothers Past jam) is must-hear Biscuits-adjacent music as well.

The second-ever Astronaut is nearly three times as long as the first. The jam section begins as do the other September versions: the SITA section is followed by a reprisal of the verse instrumental which melts into the jam. The first part of the jam is a fairly standard build up to Astro peak territory until a sudden breakdown at 8:30 into a tense and percussive section. There are parts that work and parts that don’t, but overall it didn’t interest me much. However, it was an ambitious second attempt. The hilariously botched peak doesn’t take away from the jam, but it is a truly hall-of-fame tier fuckup. The Basis is not particularly memorable. The intro jam is dark and atmospheric, but not much else, and the middle jam is basically non-existent. The main jam in Basis is over 20 minutes long, and that pretty much guarantees that there will be at least some interesting portion. Sadly, this version takes a long time to get going—the first five or so minutes do absolutely nothing for me. The following minutes have some “soundy” moments, and Magner in particular is pretty interesting, but the jam doesn’t really catch my interest until around 18:30. The mellow, melancholy theme that the band develops here is pretty solid. This turns to a more steady build which, again, is overlong and doesn’t do much to interest me. The build before the return to Basis territory is frenzied and chaotic, and has some great moments. Overall, though, remarkably little meat to such a lengthy jam. The M.E.M.P.H.I.S. first jam is shorter and less developed than the best from the era, but there is a nice atmospheric section and the peak illustrates just how fucking sick Barber was at guitar in 2001. The outro jam is pretty much the same—almost entirely type one jamming redeemed by some top-notch shredding. This Nughuffer is no 4/7/01, but it was the perfect encore for the final Wetlands show, and perfectly solid, melancholy trance.

4/5. A little weaker than the previous night, but not the drastic dip in quality you might be led to believe. The Reactor is the highlight (even leaving off the all-star jam) and the Humu and Sound 1 are both strong enough to make up for the doldrums in the third set.

Stray Observations: After Morph, you can hear someone in the crowd yelling for Tricycle. Heady bustout request if ever there was one. During the Humu intro Brownie dedicates the song to Laurie, to whom the 8/26 Hope was also dedicated. Barber basically pitches Holidaze after Humu. Amusing banter alert: “would somebody give this guy over here some acid already?” This is the debut of the Sound 1 peak, which was played in every version from September 2001 and not again until May 2021. This is the first pairing of M.E.M.P.H.I.S. > 7-11, which was played again later in the year, and cropped up a couple times in 07. Brownie dedicates the Nughuffer for Fundos. This is not the first time Brownie has dedicated “The B Flat” to Fundos: see 12/31/99 for example.