I’m gonna do you one better…check out my pull from Cycles headlining The Lazy Dog!
After a fantastic night of music in Fort Collins, Cycles did everything one better…more jams, more collabs and an even bigger encore! Getting things started with “Something In The Water” the band seemed shot out of a cannon. As Michael Wood started the count, Tucker hit on the two with a rumbling bass riff that commanded the start of the song. Patrick’s effects were in full force with loops galore and delayed palm muted riffs. The middle part of the song has this dark break down that reminds me a lot of the break in Tool’s “Bottom”. A dark, droning segment that eventually evolves into a brighter jam aided by the big sky reverb. Next up was a take on the Weather Report’s “Teen Town” which featured lespecial drummer Rory Dolan on percussion. The night was filled with help from the boys from lespecial who opened up the show. During the Primus classic “Jerry Was A Race Car Driver” we saw Rory again, this timing doing his best Les Claypool vocal impression (which was pretty spot-on). We’d see all of lespecial in the encore for “21st Century Schizoid Man” as well. Another notable sit-in was Neal “Fro” Evans from Dopapod sitting in for “One Better” in yet another nod to the bass virtuoso Les Claypool. Being a trio, I’m always impressed with Cycles‘ ability to fill sound and sound much bigger than they are. But in the same vein, them being a trio accommodates most any sit-in without cluttering the sound.
In addition to the awesome sit-ins, there were several improv highlights. Cycles is great at mini-jams; moments in “Music For Free” and “One Better” show a compact jamming style that can launch into a quick journey through jam space before bringing us back down to Type I territory. There were also some bigger improv moments like the show opening “Something In The Water” and the always proggy “The House”. The biggest jam moments came in an epic “Hang It Up On The Wall” which featured a “Voodoo Child” jam and the encore’s “The Auditorium Door”. If you were at Hodi’s the night before and witnessed that epic “Vacation” you were probably hesitant to leave early and you would have been rewarded with a fantastic jam out of one of my favorite new Cycles tunes. Never miss an encore!
Cycles | 2018-01-25 | The Lazy Dog, Boulder, CO
One Set: Something In The Water, Teen Town (Weather Report)[1], Music For Free, Twilight, The Store, One Better[2], The Mess, Toy Pony, Hang It Up On The Wall[3], Green, Jerry Was A Race Car Driver (Primus)[4]
Encore: The House, The Auditorium Door, 21st Century Schizoid Man (King Crimson)[5]
Show Notes: Lespecial opened the show.
[1] “Teen Town” featured Rory Dolan (Lespecial) on percussion.
[2] “One Better” featured Neal “Fro” Evans (Dopapod) on drums.
[3] “Hang It Up On The Wall” featured “Voodoo Child” (Jimi Hendrix) teases and vocal quotes.
[4] “Jerry Was A Race Car Driver” featured Rory Dolan (Lespecial) on vocals and percussion.
[5] “21st Century Schizoid Man” featured the members of Lespecial and contained “Crosseyed and Painless” (The Talking Heads) teases.
Thanks to Cycles and The Lazy Dog for being cool with taping/sharing shows. Go see live music and tape your bartender! #spacetapes
LINK: https://archive.org/…/Cycles2018-01-25.AKG.P170.AUD.SBD.Mat…
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