Extremely sturdy show. Really cool that they're striking the balance between old and new on this one. My highlight is definitely Spacebird -> Cyclone.... SHEESH! The rest of the show was extremely consistent, save for the Cyclone outro. HOWEVER, that jam is still a feat in and of itself. First of all, it's insane that they can so casually run a 90-minute set with no pauses.
Further, their penchant for patience is clearly growing. Longtime fans of this band know that "downtime," i.e., the search for the pocket, can turn south pretty quickly. This critique is laden with irony; the only reason downtime exists is because this band spends so much more time improvising than do their peers. Anyhow, as they leave cyclone territory you can hear the uncertainty surrounding the approach to APoA.
The way they completely de- and re-materialize the jam is so deft and so masterful. They are clearly locked in, listening and adjusting rather than panicking and flailing (or even simply not caring about a missed swing and pulling the ripcord) they slowly find their new plan of attack - complemented wonderfully by magner's "falling icicle" arpeggios. I just coined that term but I feel like you'll know what I mean when you hear it.
Anyway. dragons don't eat onions, yo semma ne sam, tree alien tree, bee four el
