Usually, nothing indicates a throw-down more than a "Tweezer" opener. Usually, if both "Tweezer" and "You Enjoy Myself" are in the same set, you are in for a wild ride. But 2.0 was anything but usual.
Why they chose to play "Tweezer" at a tempo so glacial it makes the 2022 performances seem speedy is beyond me, but I guess that is a testament to the unpredictable nature of the era. Just as oddly, it never picks up, wandering around at that tempo until it segues into a similarly-paced "Theme From the Bottom".
Trey is always most excited to play his newest songs, so even though an adequate "Foam" picks up the pace a bit, it is "Pebbles and Marbles" that finally injects some needed energy. But it is quickly deflated when "YEM" begins so disastrously that Trey calls it off and restarts it just as badly. Blowing their signature tune was such a major low point that it was what I remembered most vividly about this holiday run, 20 years later. Which is a shame because the jam ended up being a rocker.
The "Birds of a Feather" opener for the second set helps to wash away the stink; as does the "Wolfman's Brother" that spends some time as a battle of the wah-wahs between Trey and Page before finally breaking into a traditional jam for the final few minutes. As will continue to be the trend for the next year and a half, the song eschews a proper finish ("Twist" does the same) and leads into a very weird "Makisupa Policeman" (or is that redundant?). Another new song, "All of These Dreams" is dropped into the set and I am reminded of how much I love the 'Round Room' ballads.
In the encore, the band has a little bit of fun with stops and starts in the middle section of "Contact", which is a unique change, before closing it out with the "Tweezer Reprise" bookend. This is a wildly uneven show and I still cringe at that "YEM" opening, but there are bright spots that should not be overshadowed by that.
No comments:
Post a Comment