Kalamazoo State Theatre Kalamazoo MI: January 25, 2003
Notable:
They start with an 8 1/2 minute jam, which is common these days. You can hear Kris feeling it and putting his all into the drum kit; as per usual for Kris. But it’s cool to think about this being one of his first shows with the band.
They break the jam down with some guitar riffs, changing the rhythm to match when they go right into Professor Wormbog. This version doesn’t have the Boyz2Men “zoom zoom zoom zaya” vocal section.
Brendan: “Kalamazooooooooo!”
It’s a full-band start to August. The first jam has some subtle Ten Years Gone (Led Zeppelin) teases. Ryan leads with an interesting bass line in the second jam. Joel starts some Ozzy tease with Crazy Train at a fast tempo matching the improv jam speed.
Get in the Van showcases Jake’s prowess on the guitar – the clean sound and precision soloing, awesome. Kris’ rim shots are killer too as Jake finishes up and they quiet the song into the ending. I love this song.
A standalone In the Kitchen, with no improv, but the closest to a complete song yet. The lyrics had changed to the final verses the last two performances, and this time the transition riff that Jake invented at the end of the C section is played for the first time.
JaJunk starts out mellow, and Jake plays something different this time with a guitar harmony that they don’t pay that way these days.
Space Funk Booty, solid.
A little banter before Water; Joel saying how great it is to be back in Michigan, “Great Lakes!”
Water is excellent; one rhythm flub in a complex moment, and Kris comes through with skill, not insisting on his rhythm, but instead flowing with some cymbal work to let it come together with the other band members leading. They get right back together.
The Water ending segment is beautiful. They adjust and drift it right into the beginning of All In Time.
Drum solo during AIT is. Great showcase of Kris’ performance during one of his first shows.
To open the second set, Hurt Bird Bath, this one is rather good, and it ends with an interesting finish, repeating the riff over and over, slower and slower, until they play a final finish as a band.
Example 1, mmm. Ex 1 has a nice jazz improv section with walking bass, complex rhythms from Kris, and piano solo sounds from Joel.
They jam it right into Fugazi’s Waiting Room.
There’s a jam labeled at All Things as a “jimmy stewart” which morphs into the classic Miles Davis tune It’s About That Time. So good.
They mix it in and transition into Glory, what a move!
Then it’s the classic Miss Tinkles Overture into Mulche’s Odyssey. These two are still married, not yet living as standalone songs and creating their own improv jams.
Still, great versions.
Soul Food I, a classic Jake tune, right into a stellar Hajimemashite, with feeling.
Then they go right into a slightly up-tempo Der Bluten Kat. Exuberant, if I may. After the classical segment in jam 1, there’s a beautiful bass-led jam with (Andy?) on weird synth, it’s kind-of crazy, and Joel is on the organ, which makes me think Andy and making those weird electronic sounds.
DBK jam 2 starts with a low, mellow, no-rhythm sound segment with guitar, keys, bass playing some ambient waves. Kris brings the hi-hat in to bring the jam some organization and they’re off again.
Encore: a classic UM cover, Led Zeppelin’s The Song Remains the Same.
Setlist from allthings.umphreys.com
Set 1:
Intro > Professor Wormbog, August[1] > Get In The Van, In The Kitchen, JaJunk[2] > Space Funk Booty, Water > All In Time
Set 2:
Hurt Bird Bath, Example 1[3] > Waiting Room, “Jimmy Stewart” > It’s About That Time > Glory > Miss Tinkle’s Overture > Mulche’s Odyssey[4] > Soul Food I > Hajimemashite > Der Bluten Kat
Encore:
The Song Remains the Same
Footnotes:
[1] with Ten Years Gone (Led Zeppelin) and Crazy Train (Ozzy Ozbourne) teases
[2] with Close Encounters of a Third Kind theme (John Williams) tease
[3] with Milestones (Miles Davis) tease
[4] with Woody Woodpecker theme (George Tibbles and Ramey Idriss) tease
Show Notes:
with Highway to Hell (AC/DC) and YYZ (Rush) teases before In The Kitchen
with Unskinny Bop (Poison) tease before The Song Remains the Same
Links to Audio and Apps
The Live Music Archive app (iOS) and the Taper’s Section app (Android) is a great way to find and listen to these shows. You can stream, download for offline listening, save favorites, and mark shows as already listened to. The app pulls all data directly from the public repository of live music recordings posted at archive.org.
