September 08, 2001

Note: all time-stamps refer to the nugs version.

Voices is standard, with two “jams” that don’t merit much attention. The Triumph jam sees Brownie struggle to move away from the distinctive bass line, but the band still manages to craft a beautiful mid-tempo theme within those strictures. It reaches a crescendo around the 12 minute mark, then begins to break down into eerie atmosphere. The segue into Floes is strong and manages to come as a surprise even after the breakdown. The Floes jam is a solid, strong version. Sammy (I think) provides an interesting percussive effect early on—a kind of wood block effect—and the jam moves into jungle territory. The buildup to the ending is patient and excellent. The Tunnel does not venture far beyond type one, if at all, but there are some cool moments, including Barber’s usage of muted distortion and some enjoyable atmospheric jamming. Ladies provides a fiery ending to a relatively mellow set. Magner comes in with an infectious theme immediately, and Barber delivers a strong complement, switching to the muted distortion effect around 6:30. Barber takes over here, building the jam up to a searing peak that threatens, but never quite manages, to go off the rails. It’s a solid conclusion to a decent set.

The second set, of course, is one of the all-time greatest in Biscuits history. The synths that open the Reactor jam are so iconic that I can’t help but hear them in my head every time the band plays Reactor. The jam has two heads, like the best Reactors of fall 01: the first theme is the iconic Reactor build, sparse atmosphere built around Magner’s foundational synth lines. It builds to a pretty distinctly Reactor peak section, but at the last second breaks into bliss right where you would expect the peak (11:45 or so). Barber’s theme beginning at 13:30 is one of the best ever bridges between two themes within a jam: another iconic moment in a set full of them. Great moments of Sammy and Barber interplay, as Sammy develops a steady yet uneven beat that allows the band to bring the energy down while still maintaining continuity. The jam breaks down and rebuilds to a stunning Crickets peak. The Crickets funk gets off to a slow start. It’s type one for a while but it has some funny vocalizations and solid atmosphere. It explores a very brief passage of tense type two before making its way to the Story intro. In its first appearance since the famous 9/1, Story is another banner version. The two-theme beast begins with some mournful trance, but soon settles into a steady, industrial groove built around Brownie’s thumping bass line. The jam reaches a blissful, mellow crescendo before steadily breaking down into dnb. Barber switches on the muted distortion as the tempo increases. The first part is fairly unremarkable, but this dnb section is where the jam shines. It reaches a massive crescendo that bores holes into your skull as Barber shouts “amplifier!” into the mic. The jam is fantastic, and the segue into Overture is masterfully executed. The jam out of Overture faces stiff competition, but it might be the best jam of the show. It leaves behind dnb almost immediately for a mournful mid-tempo trance vehicle. This theme builds with tremendous patience. It is centered around a steady beat from the rhythm section, with Magner layering different sounds around Barber’s ascending riff. Around the 12 minute mark, the tempo slowly begins to increase. The jam builds to a gorgeous and fully Magner-led crescendo before breaking down once more into chaos around the 16 minute mark. The following theme is more percussive, and has an almost playful quality. It reaches a passage of sparse minimalism around the 21 minute mark, and from here builds to the Story peak. The Story outro is pretty chaotic, and once again dominated by Brownie’s driving bass lines. This is probably one of the strongest jams into the Crickets funk yet, but of course there is still a lot of progress to be made there. After this, the rest of the show is pretty standard: Crickets > Reactor is an A-to-B progression and Barfly is largely jamless (though it does have some solid Barber moments).

5/5. Even with a just-okay first set, the show is nearly perfect. The second set is one of my favorites of all time, with Reactor > Crickets and Overture > Story being two perfect jams. Don’t sleep on the back half of Story > Overture either.

Stray Observations: Brownie dedicates The Tunnel to his mom, who had not yet heard it. The second set is the first palindrome set of the year, and the 6th ever. It is the first since 11/2/00 There are Hope ending teases in Reactor > Crickets. There are Dribble ending teases in Crickets > Story. There are Crickets ending teases in Story > Overture.

#4 on my list of 2001. [all the boxes are checked plus the sound is very good]

We had made VT & Saratoga but then we got a case of phungus stomach which gave us the ick and a porcelain visit every 12 minutes it seemed, so we gave our 3 tickets away the morning of. Those prep school hippies were beyond happy! Nothing like setting someone up with some miracles; like the "miracle tree" in Hampton :)

This monumental Triumph~> (as well as Floes from 13:00 onwards) showcases why they were at their best in 2001 but more importantly how unbelievably good Sam was. Please listen to the odd time signatures and perfectly laid down drumming in this song. It makes the whole jam possible. The 'Tunnel" for Marc's mum is excellent as well, even in it's standard deviation.

Another mind blowing Palindrome second set too. There are no second set fadeaways or throwaways (IMO) Reactor ~> Crickets (best combo of the year) SotW ~> (inv) Overture (filthy; a '01 norm; this combo (imo) has some of the finest bass & drum playing of Sept which is paved in gold)

Thanks to the man of Steele for the remaster...

This show is for Dr. Sammy & Ronald F. Grossman, who passed away after the Avalon show in Boston a few shows earlier from a heart attack from an undiagnosed aortic aneurysm :(

Tomorrow is never promised. 'Did you ever think about it That maybe we were all crazy from the start?'