December 31, 1999
Theater of the Living Arts · Philadelphia, PA
25 songs9 segues5 sets
Set 2Pilin' It High, House Dog Party Favor > Pomp and Circumstance > The Wedding March > Hail to the Chief > Helicopters★*, Spaga★, The Very Moon★ > Voices Insane
Set 3Akira Jam
Set 4Magellan, M.E.M.P.H.I.S. > House Dog Party Favor, News from Nowhere, Straight, No Chaser, I-Man, Little Shimmy in a Conga Line
Encore 1Nughuffer*
Footnotes
Akira Jam - The beginning of the track is all Mauricio. It is hard to say exactly when the band joins in, but by 5:15 you can clearly hear Magner and Sammy. Magner and Mauricio together create quite an interesting sound (a portent of things to come), and they craft a haunting theme. The theme comes to a head around the eleven minute mark. Magner plays these haunting descending synth lines, and around this time Mauricio leaves and Brownie takes the stage. The jam enters a more blissed out passage as the dust settles. At 14:15 the mood shifts considerably darker, and a loud cheer indicates that Barber has taken the stage (he can be heard shortly after). A total musical breakdown follows. The mood of the ensuing theme is almost playful. Barber plays around on a vaguely eastern sounding scale, and Magner's synth effect is reminiscent of a sitar. This theme begins to give way to another around the 24 minute mark. It's more focused and traditional sounding, and more somber. Around 28 the theme breaks down again and Magner comes back with the sitar-esque synth briefly. The jam develops into something of a good-natured, lumbering beast. It builds up to a small peak around 32 and then breaks down again. The theme that develops here is determined and forceful, and the Helix teases around 35:30 only add to that mood. Barber is on a mission. Another breakdown at 37:40 and Sammy immediately lays down a short-lived dub line. Some chaos (and another Star Wars tease from Magner?) and then a very gradual build. Elements of dub and rock in the ensuing build to the first "real" crescendo of the Akira Jam. Barber from 43:20 on is magnificent. Breakdown at 45:40 and the jam goes into space. The jam moves toward more mellow territory around the four minute mark of the second track. Some incredibly patient, focused, triumphant jamming develops over the next four minutes. After another breakdown the jam that develops is a weird mix of chaotic and frenzied (from the rhythm section) and pleasantly peaceful (from the melody). The mood shifts, and the jam becomes more purposeful and cinematic, and builds up to another energetic peak. Breaks down again, with more hints of dub until Sammy starts going all over the map. It settles down around the eighteen minute mark, and, like many themes on the second track, is vaguely sinister and very purposeful. Around 22:30 the band settles into an actual dub theme. It is totally demented, the epitome of what some call "pirate trance." The band keeps the mood and momentum as they transition back into more typical trancefusion. One last breakdown just shy of thirty minutes. The final buildup is slow, more patient and restrained than you might expect given the eventual destination. It hits a lull then begins to build up around 37. The key change comes very smoothly, and the climb up to theBasis peak is patiently arduous. The GAYFM section is the most extended version yet. It breaks down into a blissful groove and slides smoothly into the second peak.
Setlist data from the Biscuits Internet Project (discobiscuits.net).