Theme from the bottom review - 9-21-99 - Pima County Fairgrounds, Tucson, AZ

Date: Sun, 18 Mar 2001 23:56:56 -0500
From: Harryman harryman@bellsouth.net
To: dan@archive.phish.net
Subject: Theme Review: 9/21/99
 
9/21/99 Theme From the Bottom
 
        I have decided to skip the one I planned on reviewing next (7/21/97) on
grounds that I need to get a stopwatch, and once that is accomplished,
it will be done. This version I wanted to review because of the odd
setlist it occurs in.
 
09-21-99 Pima County Fairgrounds, Tucson, AZ
 
1: Poor Heart, Sample in a Jar, Split Open and Melt, Drowned, I Didn't
Know, Get Back on the Train, Birds of a Feather, Theme from the Bottom,
Golgi Apparatus (1:09)
 
2: Carini -> Bug, Strange Design, Vultures* -> Limb by Limb, Will It Go
Round In Circles, Dirt, Run Like an Antelope (1:16)
 
E: Reba*, Bold as Love (0:24)
 
*Unfinished.
 
Maybe it's just me, but this setlist strikes me as odd, like a 20 minute
Drowned followed by I Didn't Know. Anyway, on to the review.
 
Theme kicks in with Fishman at 0:04, followed directly by Page. The band
is in at 0:25. Standard opening, with "I feed from the top" at 0:48.
"Pantomime mixtures" at 2:09. The vocals and playing are right on in
this one, at 2:36, Trey's "I slip below" line now has an echo on it,
which they lose at 3:00 with the "So I ask you why". Trey's lines are
crisp and clean, every note seems to be perfect. 3:47 brings with it the
nice little crescendo building. 4:14 Trey lets go and the jam begins in
earnest. Nice long notes and bends from Trey, particularly the feedback
laden one at 4:44-45.
Trey's playing in here is in between subtle and aggressive. It is
absolutely beautiful. Nice staccato playing with particularly nice
passages around 5:20. By 5:39, Trey is back to the long notes and the
excellent bending. Very Harry-ish lines at 6:20-6:30 in particular, and
some more around 6:38.
Crescendo at 7:18 signals the delay loop drops that are present in most
versions from 98 on. The delay looping begins at 7:38. Nice delay work
by Trey from 7:38 to 8:52, "From the bottom, from the top" at 8:56. Page
had made himself known around 8:36. 9:21, Trey comes back for the ending
crescendo which builds immediately at 9:45, and ends in a wall of noise
at 10:12, with Trey doing some delay/feedback chords. The feedback goes
away at 10:22, and the song ends at 10:32 and there are two seconds
until Golgi starts to end the set.
This show is a fine one, and the Drowned shouldn't be missed. The
beautiful playing by Trey in this Theme is also top-notch, but again, it
is the ending that kind of lets me down. I still have to give this one a
very subjective B+ for the emotive intensity provided by Mr. Anastasio.
Thanks for Reading.
Peace,
Dave
Hopefully will get to 7/21/97 next and then back to 95 for 11/29/95,
which also has a very nice Slave w/ Bela Fleck!



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