Live in Atlantic City

Thankfully, 2011 had a lot less intensity and noise than 2010 (this release is much easier on the ears than the Wrigley release), but it’s still a lot and not really my cup of tea. There are some real high points—SEEK UP is one of the better post-Roi performances, WAREHOUSE is fantastic, KILL THE KING never should have disappeared, HANDS OF GOD in 2010 and 2011 was awesome, and the run from TOO MUCH through HALLOWEEN is strong—but they’re outweighed by the over-electrification of songs like GRANNY, DITCH, ONE SWEET, DIVE IN, RAVEN, SO MUCH, and ANTS (poor ANTS!). Really what it comes down to, at least to me, is some of their catalogue handles the heavy electric vibe well, but a lot of it doesn’t. It’s too bad because the vocals and playing are generally really strong. I won’t rush back to re-listen.