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An Eminently Satisfying Frenzy

by Dean Budnick

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First off I want to thank all of the bands who came out and all of the fans who showed up to support the tour. It was quite a hectic week and a half. A big shout out to all of you who sought me out and said hello :) Here are a few of the memories that I will take away from each night, and then I will yield the floor to Jesse.

Ooops one more thing - I also especially want to thank Butch Trucks and Oteil Burbridge who really elevated the first four shows to another level with their presence.

One more thing - I also wish to express my gratitude and admiration to the Live Archive crew- Anton and Jeff especially. We recorded all of the shows and with any luck, we'll be able to put together a tour disc once we take the time to hear everything. U ntil then visit http://www.livearchive.com for more on this label with some real interesting releases on the way (jam and more).

June 2 Theater of Living Arts - Above all else I may remember this one as my daughter's indoor concert debut (she took in a bit of the Recipe before we ran backstage to see Oteil and Butch - oh yes and if you're scoring at home, her first outdoor s how was a Disco Biscuits gig at Brown University). Beyond that the highlight for me had to be Butch and Oteil taking the stage with The Slip - very satisfying. It was also great to see viperHouse give it their all despite the sweltering heat (as for the s pittle of G. Gordon, well, I'll leave that tale for another day...)

June 3 Recher Theater - A big thank you to Tim, Junipa and Mickey. I loved the hang this night as all the bands stood outside to yap before and after the show- this was one of the aims of the tour and I was happy to see it realized. It was fun bein g in there to watch Jiggle's set- I really dig "Walking Backwards." I'm also proud to say that during Jiggle, Jesse and I were the lone ones to venture forth beyond the carpet. Percy Hill's "Sun Machine" will stick with from this night along with Peter Pr ince his Moon Boots. Then of course Bisco. I had been hankering for "Helicopters" for quite some time and I wasn't disappointed on that score. Now if only Jon hadn't busted a string during "Magellan"...

June 4 Wetlands - You have to love the Wetlands - Pete, Chris, Charlie and everyone else really know how to put on a show (yes, you too Lance). This night was tough as I found myself running up and down, getting caught in one band's groove only to miss most of someone else's set. I though the lounge came alive this night without any vocals, just the instrumental grooves of the Living Daylights, Sector 9 and Ulu who really made the room their own (I was especially psyched to see Oteil sit in with Ul u as well as that group's late night jam with the Daylights). I did make it upstairs too to see a raucous Blind Man Sun display as well as Oteil with Conehead Buddha and Butch with the Pods (and what do you know, Jonny Z was right Todd does look like he's taking a blissful crap when he solos).

June 5 Wetlands - Another burner. I walked outside to find a friend around midnight and people were lined up the block quite a ways - there's a lesson here - buy advance tickets! This night was a bit more work than the first as it was tougher to mo ve about. The lounge once again more than held its own with Uncle Sammy, Lake Trout and the Miracle Orchestra. I caught a snippet of Juggling (once again Jonny was correct about their new drummer- good stuff- I can't wait to see them in Runaway Bride) and I missed Oteil sit in with Jiggle. However, I was upstairs in time to stand transfixed in front of Peter Prince once again :) As for personal memories, though, I will never forget the smile on Percy Hill drummer Aaron Katz's face as Butch and Oteil joine d them on stage for "In Memory of Elizabeth Reed." I'll say this for Percy, they have cajones. The look on Aaron's face rivaled that of writer Richard Gehr as he pointed to the cover of the new compilation disc he has assembled, "Help Us Get High" (people had contrasting reactions to it- sheer horror or uproarious laughter- seek out a copy when it comes out this month and decide for yourself). After Percy the night belonged to The Biscuits as they played until 5 in the morning. Lightwhiz Matt Iarrobino wa s gracious enough to let me stand behind him during the set so I had a fine vantage point to soak up the Bisco (the first set and the 50 minute encore really did it for me...) What a feeling to walk out of there just as the sun came up.

June 10 Stone Coast Brewery - I really needed the days off to recharge my batteries, braincells, catch some r.e.m.'s. etc. but by Thursday I was ready for action again and this night did not disappoint. The entertainment started during soundcheck a s I sat back at the bar with a wheat ale and watched the Daylights take the stage with the Slip (for a quick preview of the "Slipping Daylights" set which will take place at High Sierra in July). The Daylights set itself was another fine one, as Arne, Dal e and Jessica are captivating players- what makes each of their shows so entertaining is that one can move from one musician to another taking in everyone's stellar contributions because no one's a slacker here, much like...The Slip who came on next- thei r new song "Torque" really sticks in my craw. As for Deep Banana Blackout- from the opening bars of "Bump and Sway," I found myself doing just that, captivated by whirling dervish Jen Durkin and the swinging Mr. Hankey on Fuzz's guitar for starters. It's easy to see why the buzz is out on Banana- they offer up quite a bit- energetic dance grooves and elevated musicianship as well. The crowd happily gritted it out to the end of this high-octane jazzified funk workout.

June 11 Somerville Theater - A thank you to the good folks from Gamelan- Andrew and Howard rage (even if I am a Celtics fan- another story for another time). I will always recall the mad rush of young people to the front few rows as soon as the doo rs opened, as well as the Daylights efforts to "corrupt" them with their entrancing display (and free stickers). The Jiggle set yielded two highlights, their new opus "The Dragon" as well as a set closing jam featuring Jessica and Dale from the Daylights, along with most of Deep Banana. I will unabashedly admit to being psyched when Jen Durkin came on stage donning a Jambands.com Tour shirt (Thanks!). Deep Banana's set was another stomping one with my personal favorite moment being the open jam featuring Jessica, Gary (from Jiggle) and Dale (harassing Erik on drums)- a beautiful thing (it's wild to listen to Jen as she improvises vocal lines).

June 12 Middle East - The triumphant conclusion to the tour. Once more we controlled upstairs and down, akin to the Wetlands and aside from some very zealous security (Dave Saslavsky- we hardly saw you) this was a splendid evening. I began upstairs with rising heroes Uncle Sammy's exhortation to "Smile, Smile, Smile." Then it was downstairs for some Ulu- "Braintree" was particularly satisfying by my count. I ran up again to catch New Groove of the Month Smokin' Grass and some febrile (not feeble) p icking. Ooops then I had to run down for Schleigho- whoah! Support these guys- attend their Ho Fest in July, buy their discs, answer their mail for them (actually I don't know what that means but I did enjoy their set- with a Brad Barr bonus as well). Ups tairs again for my home-state heroes, Foxtrot Zulu. The room was steamy by this time, taking me back to my old stomping grounds and their current fiefdom the Ocean Mist (as soon as they finished, I pledged to check them out next time they are there- July 17 it turns out). One highlight from their set was "A Perfectly Good God Damned Day" which debuts this month on our radio charts at number one. Then the night concluded with a tough choice for many in attendance- a number of my friends smiled as they comp lained that they couldn't decide what to do as The Slip took the stage at the same time as viperHouse. My solution was to begin the final stretch of music on the Jambands.com tour with the Vipers and then finish it out with the Slip. Friends of mine saw m e in each room and came up to me with reports from the other. As for viperHouse, I'm always amazed by the facility with which they can move from Neil Young to Charles Mingus to viperMusic. It was a sauna up there. As for the Slip, whether it be Marc Fried man, Andrew Barr or Brad Barr you can lock in with any of these players and come away invigorated and impressed- which many did this night for nearly two hours. I'm drawn to their newer tunes but I was also psyched when Jesse from Schleigho stepped up and pushed the band during a rousing "Honey Melon." The evening ended in a fitting manner, as the band walked off and the club started to pipe in recorded music but the fervor of the crowd won out, allowing the Slip to return for an encore. Score another one for us ("We're here, we hear, get over it."). See you next time :)