January 27, 2012

Another actually pretty doggone good 2012 show. The setlist flow is a bit strange and there are a few blemishes, but there’s still a lot of nice and dirty stuff to love. They warm up with Lai before beginning a really incredible standalone I-Man, played as a sinister electro-funk romp. Magner and Barber communicate so well here, especially for the time period. Cyclone and the jam leading into it are very pleasantly stretched out and given plenty of room to breathe until it culminates in a few brief crushing moments of Reactor.

It says a lot when even the Magellan is dirty, featuring lots of distorted, angular riffs from Barber. After this standalone version, the dudes start off another sequence with Triumph. There are a few great moments here, but also some sloppiness. The Triumph jam hulks along until they first telegraph a hint of Waves, which injects some psychedelic urgency into the proceedings. When Waves actually hits, you almost think they weren’t going to do it. Waves probably contains the most flubs, and doesn’t really offer much in the way of the unexpected. However, the transition into Spaga makes up for it. Magner rings it in with some harsh detuned pads that briefly allow one to imagine it as a stoner metal song. The customary d&b jam strikes a gentle, cascading tone before dissolving into the cool blues workout that sets the stage for Morph. Barber gets a little lost once Brownie gives the signal, though. He eventually gets his bearings, righting the jam for the landing. The little bit of jamming in Munchkin ain’t bad, mostly Magner having fun tooting around on synth horns.

In reality, this show is probably a 3.75 but since I have to round I’ll round up to a 4. There are enough memorable moments in this show that a 3.5 feels like an insult. In particular, the I-Man hasn’t left my regular rotation since I heard it.