Sound Tribe at Red Rocks

9/6/07 – Denver, CO – Ogden Theatre (23rd show) listen
I: Hi-Key, Evasive Maneuvers > Kamuy, Bigs, Crystal Instrument, Today, GLOgli, Wika Chikana
II: Somesing, Hubble, Jebez, Blu Mood, Twilight, Grow, Baraka
E: Inspire Strikes Back

It had been 193 days (2/24/07) since my last Sound Tribe show, and boy-o-boy was I ever ready to get down. Teri and I decided to take it easy during the day for a few reasons. The first was that I was fighting off strep throat (thanks Mark!) and needed to rest. The second was that we knew two days at Red Rocks were staring us in the face.

We left the hotel around five and arrived at the Ogden around 5:30…just in time for sound check. After taking in ‘Hi-Key’ from the alley outside the venue we proceeded down the street, past the Denver Fillmore (where Jonny Lang was playing), to Sancho’s Broken Arrow. Sancho’s was directly across the street from The Fillmore and had jukebox full of live shows (kudos to the guy in the smoke shop for suggesting it). I always dreamed of a bar with a music selection like this, it’s just too bad it took me 33 years to find one.

After hanging at Sancho’s for a couple of hours or so, I have two suggestions for them. #1) Turn the music down a touch. I know everyone in there was digging the tunes, but there’s no need to have to yell at the person next to you to communicate. #2) Diversify the selection in the jukebox. Yes, everyone loves The Grateful Dead and Widespread Panic, but having only one Phish and String Cheese Incident show each as alternatives to the Dead & WSP is a faux pas.

We headed inside around 8:30 and after taking a quick look at the small floor we headed upstairs to the balcony/bar area. The upstairs was practically empty a half hour before show time, so we were able to procure prime seats with a straight on view and a waitress taboot. NICE!

The ‘Hi-Key’ opener was a not surprise being that they sound checked it. From there the ‘Evasive’ really took off and was one of the highlights of the first set. After ‘Kamuy’ was over I was thinking to myself “It’d be really nice to hear something new like ‘Bigs’ right now.” And voila, there it was. ‘Bigs’ was super phat and delivered the goods “big” time. ‘Crystal’ was the perfect change up tune to slow things up after all the ass shaking that had been going down.

‘Today’ is a rarity (only six since 2005) and many were excited to hear it, I just wasn’t one of them. ‘GLOgli’ is one of Teri’s favorites and I do love the ending “floating” section, but ‘Today, GLOgli’ was the down portion of the set for me.

Even though ‘Wika’ seems to be making a comeback in 2007 (played four times in ’07 after only two from ’04-06), I hadn’t heard it since 3/25/03. What a way to close things out! If this first set was sign of things to come, the “fan club show” was going to deliver in a huge way.

Unfortunately the second set was bit uneven in my mind as well as Teri’s. It’s not that it was bad, just a little on the average side. ‘Somesing’ is no way to open a set, it’s really that simple. You take a bunch of hyped up people and drop a melodic number on them when they are ready to tear the roof off and it completely deflates the energy in the room.

‘Hubble’ brought things back up a bit and ‘Jebez’ was a treat to hear as always. These two songs along with a fantasterrific ‘Grow’ really carried the set for me. ‘Twilight’ was dropped for only third time since 10/12/05, but didn’t strike my fancy. My first ‘Baraka’ since 10/29/04 was a nice way to close things out, and the ‘ISB’ encore brought things to a crescendo one last time.

Overall I’d say of the four so called “treat” songs for the hardcore fans in attendance (‘Today, Wika, Twilight & Baraka’) only ‘Wika’ really got me pumped up. I guess I’m being a snob here, but if I had heard ‘Gobnugget, …And Some are Angels & STS9’ then all would have been well, and the fan club show would have delivered in my book. This could also be a case of my expectations being too high going in, but I got the feeling that this was universally looked at as the weakest show of the weekend.

9/7/07 – Morrison, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheatre (24th show) listen
I: This, Us, Tooth, F. Word, Really Wut?, Pianoir, Luma Daylight, Tokyo
II: Surreality > EB, Arigato, We’ll Meet in Our Dreams, Aimlessly > Nautilus > Aimlessly, Abcees > Moon Socket > So It Goes > You Don’t Say
E: Circus, Tap-In

Our first time at Red Rocks, and let me tell you, it’s just as beautiful as they say. First off, it’s a National Park for cripes sake. Complete with non-concert going tourists from all over the world (not an exaggeration, as I heard multiple foreign languages being spoken each day) site seeing.

We parked in the upper north lot around 4:30 to have the best view of the surrounding area, and it did not disappoint. Being that Sound Tribe did not sell out either night, the lower north lot was closed and all of the “action” was really centralized in the lower south lot. We didn’t really mind being in the more chill lot as we are old and like to leave the “raging” to the youngsters. While tailgating we saw two families of deer and a rainbow. Now I guarantee you only get that at Red Rocks.

We headed inside around 9ish and were immediately taken aback again. The amphitheatre is literally cut into the mountain. With giant red rocks (imagine that?) on either side of the bleachers and another behind the stage. Yes, the stage is carved into a giant rock as well. We were able to mosey on down to the right of the sound board with hardly any resistance at all. So we ended up dead center about as close as we’d like to be. Again, my days of jostling up front with the kidz are long gone.

Although ‘This, Us & Tooth’ was a rather bland way to start things off, I really didn’t mind at all. The music opening slowly allowed me to check out the surroundings. Like the lights of Denver in the background behind the stage, the rocks themselves and the massive Phish-esque light rig hanging above the stage. That’s right folks, the “spaceship” was back in effect. Now I’m not sure if that rig is a permanent fixture at the Rocks, or if it was there because Chris Kuroda (former Phish light man) would be in town with the Black Crowes on 9/9. Either way, Saxton (STS9’s lighting director) had a whole new arsenal at his disposal, and he certainly made the most of it.

The set really got rolling with ‘F. Word’ and didn’t let up until the closing ‘Tokyo’. Even though I didn’t hear one tune I’d consider a “favorite”, the set was awesome nonetheless. This is a perfect example of “how they played” trumping “what they played.” I mean the boys were hitting on all cylinders, the crowd’s energy was off the charts and we had plenty of room to boogie coupled with a great view of the stage.

Oh, but that was just the beginning.

The second set got off to an astonishing start with an out of nowhere ‘Surr > EB’. Obviously, this is a favorite of mine. Not only did I never expect to hear this combo, but by no means did I think they’d open a set with it. I’m sure I was not alone in this feeling. And by the way, this is exactly how you open an epic set.

As the opening sample in ‘Arigato’ states, “Now what the fuck do you want?” We want it all, and we certainly got it. The bumping funk of ‘Arigato’ yielded to a perfect change up number in ‘WMIOD’. From there the party really got started (as if it wasn’t already). ‘Aimlessly’ brought the house down as it always does. I have to admit though, at the time I didn’t really hear Herbie Hancock’s ‘Nautilus’ in the middle of ‘Aimlessly’, but something tells me it was more of a tease than a true “sandwich.”

Technicalities aside, what happened next is not anything I expected STS9 to pull. I’m sure you’re already well aware that I’m a setlist geek, so I’m not one to hand out segues, transitions or whatever you want to call a “>” lightly. Well per my own handwriting the boys strung together the final four songs like I had never heard them do before. For all the great things that Sound Tribe is capable of, transitioning is not an area where the chose to excel. I say “chose to” because I know they could do it more if they wanted to, they’d just rather leave it to the Disco Biscuits.

Well the ‘Abcees’ was phenomenal, not quite on the level of the recent Metamorphose Festival version in Japan (8/25/07), but the best version I've ever witnessed. I figured ‘Moon Socket’ was coming sooner or later, but not this early, and not out of another tune. The ‘So It Goes’ that came out of ‘MS’ was very fitting and another well placed change of pace song. What came next was the topper though. ‘SIG’ led into a completely reworked version of ‘You Don’t Say’, and dare I say it was the best ever.

When the music stopped the crowd erupted, and I do mean erupted literally. Teri and I just looked at each other like, “What just happened here?” It’s really that feeling that only STS9 can give you. That all enveloping feeling of being inside the music with everyone in attendance. The band knew it, the peeps knew it and I have no doubt that the rocks knew it as well.

The encore was almost not necessary, but two songs were fitting after such a blockbuster performance. I can take or leave ‘Circus’, but ‘Tap-In’ was an absolutely perfect way to close things out. I’ve heard better versions of ‘Tap-In’, but this one didn’t need to be the best ever, it just needed to do what it does…and it did.

9/8/07 – Morrison, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheatre (25th show) listen
I: Breathe In, Be Nice, One a Day, From Now On, The Rabble, Instantly, Peoples
II: The Unquestionable Supremacy of Nature, Mischief of a Sleepwalker, Lo Swaga, 1103, Move My Peeps, Rent, Open E
E: Life’s Sweet Breath, Orbital

I’d be remiss if I didn’t give a shout out to our missing third amigo who decided to pass due to family obligations. Gotta respect a man with priorities, but that doesn’t mean you can’t rub it in a little….which I’m sure my writing is doing a fine job of.

Anyway, this is the only show I’ve already been able to listen to again, and it’s another top notch effort for sure. What I noticed most about the first set is how much better it was than I remember, but there’s a reason for that.

Since this was going to be our last lot scene for a long while, we decided to get to the upper north lot at three. From there we hung out all day in the Colorado sun and headed in for the show at nine again (yes, we skipped the openers both days). The difference is I decided it would be a good idea to run to the bathroom before they started. BIG mistake. Since Red Rocks is cut into a mountain, heading up and down to get places is like…well…climbing a mountain.

So I headed down and came upon a huge line. Crap, no time for that. So I headed back up, the entire amphitheatre mind you, and used the facilities up top. I kid you not, it was a full workout. So by the time I got back to the general area where Teri was, not only could I not find her, but ‘Breathe In’ was already mid-way though. Luckily for me Teri spied me when ‘Be Nice’ started and we were reunited.

The problem was that while I was gone our prime area had been infringed upon to the point that we no longer had room. So we headed off to the far stage right at the end of an aisle for the rest of the set.

Problem #2 was that my mind was not on the music like it should have been until about mid-way through ‘From Now On’, which is probably my favorite slow number that STS9 does. I didn’t even realize they were playing it until mid-way through. That’s how mad/distracted/tired I was. I mean, this is highly unprofessional behavior for someone with my concert going experience (probably well over 300 total shows).

Anyway, after ‘FNO’ brought me back into a good space, the quirkiness of ‘The Rabble’ got me into the groove and all was well. The ‘Instantly’ I had been waiting on all weekend hit next and the transgressions of the beginning of the set were all but distant memories. A thick 15 minute ‘Peoples’ closed the set out in style, but I needed a change of scenery.

While the Glitch Mob was delivering the second best set break I've ever heard live (The Crystal Method 10/31/05) we headed up to the top of the amphitheatre for set two, not only for more space, but for a different vantage point as well. It worked out well on both accounts. We were afforded a much wider view of the Denver area at night and had a whole aisle to ourselves to dance. There’s something to be said when you can kick your legs and swing your arms with reckless abandon to the sounds of your favorite band.

Anyway, ‘TUSON’ is a great way to open a set and I had been expecting it since we heard it sound checked. The rain started to fall during ‘Mischief’ but that really didn’t negatively affect me like it did some. While I don’t think it was the high point of the run musically, the ‘Lo Swaga, 1103, Move My Peeps’ run was definitely the most fun I had all weekend. Particularly ‘Move My Peeps’ which had me boogieing like I was 20 years old again.

For some reason the rain that was falling during ‘Peeps’ added to the experience and shined the Tribe boys in a whole new light for me as well. As in they didn’t let the elements affect their performance, but rather played along to the wind and rain using them to add to the overall experience. Let me tell you, after the Dead, Phish and maybe String Cheese I don’t know of any other bands that can pull that off.

The end of the show was pretty standard and saw us in the bathroom during ‘Open E’. The encore was certainly the best of the run with Murph saying “We’re going to slow it down for you before we take it back up again.” I called ‘LSB’ and looked like a genius to the few people around us in the know. In the interest of full disclosure, I heard them working on it during sound check. I mean what better way to close out a run than ‘Orbital’? I sure don’t know of one.

Thus ended the STS9 weekend on the Rocks. Big picture wise I like how keyboardist David Phipps is taking the reigns more by leading the band into jams when things get loose and the opportunity presents itself. I felt like he was the unsung MVP of the weekend.

Other than the semi-storm that moved in late Saturday, the weather was perfect. It’s hard to say which venue is better, Red Rocks or the Gorge, now that I’ve been to both. Since they tie on natural beauty, I’d lean to the RR for sound, because I don’t think the Gorge can touch that. But when it comes to a scene, being able to camp on site at the Gorge is something RR will never have.

I know that the Rocks was only half full for STS9, but I hope that they make this an annual event. My suggestion would be to hold it over Labor Day weekend every year. That way they could play the fan club show on Thursday, then play the amphitheatre Friday through Sunday, allowing people to fly home on Monday. One can dream anyway.

*Note: all song statistics courtesy of Brad.