Whew! Wow, what a show, what a trip. I am still beaming from Friday night's show.
To say I was excited for this show is an understatement. It was all I could think about after it was announced sometime in December. I think I got a ticket and booked a hotel that same day. We had some credit card points so I stayed at the hotel by the convention center right around the corner. Choice!!
As an aside, I used the opportunity to play some frolf in the area before the show. I played a nice 9 hole course in Manchester and checked out the course in Hartford. Beautiful park minus the trash and random idling cars all over the place. Course was tough to follow and doesn't seem like it's played much or taken care of. Too bad because it could be diamond in the rough.
Anyways, on to the show. The place was steadily filling up as I chilled on the patio as a familiar reggae beat entered my eardrums. Wow, Phaddy Boom Baddy to start? That's gotta be a rarity. And apropos, as I believe CT is about to give the green light to brick and mortar dispensaries, right? Right away I could feel something a little different in the air. Maybe it was not having played together since last September (at least publically), but there was energy swirling and smiles abound as they played with the song structure and lyrics.
I should note at this point that the place is packed! Almost uncomfortably so. But, I was so happy that the boys got a ser crowd drinking it up! They deserve it a million times over. I talked to a couple people before the show and they were there because of seeing some of the other bands these guys are now in. Could this be some sort of inverted surge in popularity going on here? One show is not enough of a sample size to make this kind of statement, but I can only think that playing in some popular bands can only help bring some more fans in.
Well Phaddy ends and STL starts up and the groovy vibes continue and everyone around me is smiling and Chris' bass is full and powerful and commanding. The move into Psygn was a little off for a couple seconds, but then got super interesting and I picked up the Psygns right away and the energy was powerful. The song dwindled down to almost nothing and then Adrian counts it off and bam! WPOA!!!
By now I am noticing the interesting set structure going on here. To me it seemed like all cards were on the table. Escher's 3??? Are you ser? Are they ser? Yes they are!!! How do they pull off this intricate stuff playing so rarely?? I am still astounded by this. Haven't they done the Crying Song before? Maybe just teased it? I am somewhat familiar with this song but with it emerging out of EE3 I found myself standing at the bar seriously grooving and folks around me are like WTF and I am spinning metaphysically and they weave it back into EE3. Whoa.
Doughboy to end the set was brilliant. I really need to hear this again because this jam went places. For ser. I love how Doughboy and the Chase have developed some legs over the years.
Amazing set. Great song choices and huge band/crowd energy. I'm not sure I have been to a Breakfast show this crowded and with this much energy. With how these guys play, this should be the norm. But anyways....
At setbreak I needed to find a seat. I didn't need to imbibe, I didn't need a drink, I just needed to gather myself and get ready for the second set. If that's what they brought to the table in set 1, what do they have up their sleeves for act 2?
MERGE!! That is the answer to that question! What?!? Has Merge ever opened a set? This is getting crazy. And then Metropolis? Yes! More strong Dangle bass and band energy.
Not much crowd drop off at setbreak either, which was great. This could be the start of something really beautiful. A Breakfast renaissance if you will. Time will tell.
Rust was another surprise but excellent with a shifting jam and then....Bugs? Hell yes. Another great, eclectic choice. Gladys Pimp signaled that it's time to turn up the intensity to warp 10. The place was going bananas! As the jam started to wind down, I could start to hear some familiar hints and then yes, Sundance!!! The wet, dreary Hartford day finally broke open in a dazzling display of reds and purples as the band righteously closed the show.
Thumpasorus was a killer choice to kick off the encore. The place grooved in unison as the band had us in their power. I was expecting a classic Thumpy > Taboo combo which would've ruled, but a very familiar melody emerged in Baba O'Riley. Again, what? The crowd ate it up and before I knew it, it was over. What a show!
They really dug into the repetoire and pulled together two very interesting sets. I can't wait for the next one!
