11/19/11 Furthur @ Alliant Energy Center Coliseum - Madison, WI

Furthur
11/19/11
Alliant Energy Center-Coliseum
Madison, WI

I: Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion), I Need A Miracle > Wang Dang Doodle > I Need A Miracle, Althea, Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues, Money for Gasoline, It Must Have Been the Roses, Throwing Stones, One More Saturday Night

II: China Cat Sunflower > I Know You Rider, Jack Straw, Unbroken Chain, Viola Lee Blues, King Soloman's Marbles, Death Don't Have No Mercy, Bertha, Good Lovin'

E: Black Muddy River


__________________________________________________



I made the drive up to Madison on Saturday by myself and chose to take two lane highways on the way there.  It was enjoyable with the rolling country and the autumnal scenery.  I passed the state semi-final football game in Morrison which they won.  When I was younger I spent a lot of time in New Glarus, WI so it was nice to drive through that area.  Before the show I had some pizza at my friends Sam and Jesse's place.  After a brief walk through the Shakedown area I made it inside the venue just in time for the opening song which I recognized from the compilation album, Skeletons in the Closet. 

Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion) got things started nicely.  First I noticed was that they had changed up their stage format since last fall when I saw them in Ames.  Phil was now on the far right with Bobby next to him.  The arena was full on the floor and the first level but the top level was empty.  I had visited that venue ten years prior for Widespread Panic.  The Miracle/Wang Dang combo put me in the mind of something I saw from The Dead in Rosemont in 09.  Althea was nicely done by Fake Jerry (John Kadlecek).   I wasn't happy with his tone though.  I would prefer he have used more Jerry wah wah.  Dylan covers usually meander too much for my liking and this Tom Thumb's was an example of this.  I liked Money for Gasoline.  The backup singers helped out nicely on that one.  Kadlecek was good on It Must Have Been the Roses.  The end of the set with Throwing Stones and One More Saturday Night had me thinking perhaps it was a Bobby setlist.  I was happy with the first set though nothing really blew me away. 

For the second set I moved down on the floor and found some good people to surround myself with.  China > Rider was well executed.  Jack Straw is a song from the Europe '72 recordings that I have been enjoying lately so that was particularly sweet.  Unbroken Chain made the night for me.  Searching for the sound.  That's what it's all about.  I was impressed with the way they performed the complex King Soloman's Marbles.  Viola Lee Blues had a lot of energy.  However, things dragged to a crawl during the blues number Death Don't Have No Mercy.  Bertha was unusually placed so late in a show.  Good Lovin' wrapped up the set.  Black Muddy River is a rare encore for Furthur so that was special.  I had a good time celebrating the music of The Grateful Dead on Saturday in Madison. 



10/31/11 Widespread Panic @ Aragon Ballroom - Chicago, IL

Widespread Panic
10/31/11
Aragon Ballroom
Chicago, IL

I: Pigeons, Radio Child, Wishbone, True To My Nature, Time Zones, Love Tractor, Degenerate, Blight, Tail Dragger, Climb To Safety

II: Godzilla > Iron Man > Godzilla, Imitation Leather Shoes > Jack, Surprise Valley > Drums > Surprise Valley > Blue Indian, I'm Losing You, Chilly Water > Bust It Big > Chilly Water

E: Outta Mind (Outta Sight), Postcard, Porch Song, Werewolves Of London



postshow P.A. music was AC/DC 'Highway to Hell'





It appeared to be a buyers market with extra tickets appearing to be plentiful on a cold Monday night. On our way into the venue I saw pigeons underneath the L train. This turned out to be an omen for the show opener. The Aragon is one of my least favorite venues. It's impossible to get comfortable with people constantly distrupting your groove. For the first set we were on the Schools side of the soundboard. Eventually we moved up by Z-man who was FOB in the center. Before the show they were playing Halloween music on the P.A. that included the Addams Family theme and the Ghostbusters theme. Big is a movie I've always liked so I appreciated Todd's costume.

With the less than ideal conditions in the venue a rock show was what the situation required and that's what Panic brought on Halloween for the most part. They hit the stage before 8 pm with WXRT doing a short awkward intro onstage. The broadcast made them get onstage earlier than normal and made for a shorter setbreak both of which I was fine with. This was 10 years after the UIC show I'd seen which was the last time Panic had brought their Halloween party to this city. I felt like Panic played a lot of their staples to mix in with their covers and this worked well. Pigeons to open followed by Radio Child was a high energy start. Admittedly I was unfamiliar with most of the covers played. JB especially did a great job with the blues numbers. The Willis Alan Ramsey cover Wishbone was well done. It seemed like most of the crowd didn't recognize a lot of the covers. I question the choices of True to My Nature and Time Zones. They seemed like standard selections. Love Tractor got the crowd going again. The Vic cover Degenerate followed by Blight was pairing that was a tribute to their fallen friend. Blight has a dark vibe that works well on Halloween. JB and Jojo especially did a good job with the Howlin' Wolf cover Tail Dragger. CTS was a strong closer to round out the set. This performance had very little in the way of jamming but rather was a straight forward rock show.

Fortunately I had not heard about the soundcheck so Godzilla > Iron Man > Godzilla was a surprise. The second set of this show was solid work all the way through. It was a bit disappointing to hear them repeat ILS from Thursday in Ames. I liked the juxtaposition of ILS/Jack. Surprise Valley > Drums > Surprise Valley was high energy. Without stopping they segued smoothly into Blue Indian. John Lennon's I'm Losing You was appropriate with much of the crowd not recognizing a lot of the covers. Chilly Water > Bust It Big > Chilly Water finished out the set with authority. The second set was impressive.

The encore seemed a bit rushed. Wilco in Chicago was a nice tip of the hat. Postcard was expected after three shows in the city. After a quick run through of Porch Song they brought out the crew for Werewolves of London. After the show as the crowd waiting to get out of the bottleneck at the back of the room they blasted AC/DC Highway to Hell on the P.A.