April 2, 2008

Higher Ground · South Burlington, VT

14 songs9 segues3 sets

Set 1House Dog Party Favor★* > Air Song★* > House Dog Party Favor* > Spacebirdmatingcall* > House Dog Party Favor*

Set 27-11 > Floodlights > Svenghali, The City* > Air Song, Little Lai > Caves of the East > 7-11

Footnotes

House Dog Party Favor - After riffing briefly on the House Dog “countdown” theme it’s clear this will not be a standard affair. Magner leads with a light and airy piano line that keeps the jam floating along. As they switch gears quickly, things get jazzier briefly until a familiar melody is introduced. After playing on the theme for a minute or two they drop into Air Song.

Air Song - Allen comes out of the gate strong, leading the jam on the e-drums. Magner’s choices in patches fit the mood perfectly in the downtempo section of this jam. Jon’s playing is minimal and in the pocket and Marc holds down the groove, but Allen and Magner are the stars of this segment. Shortly before 12 minutes Magner comes in with a sweeping synth line that changes their course. The intensity and tempo of the jam increase as Allen continues to go to town on the edrums. As the tension builds and the melody changes, it's evident that they’re heading back into House Dog “countdown” jam territory.

House Dog Party Favor - Segueing back into the House Dog countdown from Air Song they execute the peak with ease. After the Sanitarium section of the song, the jam stays within the confines of a standard House Dog second jam for a few minutes. Magner then brings in the signature Spacebird melody, and while this segment is not exploratory, the transition into SBMC is smooth.

Spacebirdmatingcall - Using “choral” patches, Magner gives the beginning of the jam an angelic feel. They don’t take much time here, however, as the unmistakable driving beat of House Dog (2nd jam) takes over.

House Dog Party Favor - Powerful and dramatic, Magner soars early on this House Dog ending and Barber brings it home. Broken up into three pieces, this is one of the more creative uses of HDPF in 2.0.

Setlist data from the Biscuits Internet Project (discobiscuits.net).