Live Trax Vol. 23

I consider Luther College to be a near-flawless performance with a flawless setlist, so this show is a tough comparison. That said, I love the sound of the tour, so I went in thinking any release would be a welcome one. Alas, I think the best part of this show is the dialogue, which is absolutely top shelf. But the first half of the show is absolutely brutal IMO. A fiery, A+ passion intro to WAREHOUSE gives way to an otherwise mediocre performance, with Dave repeating the first verse and his voice being all over the place. He flubs the lyrics again in #41. NANCIES is great; there should be a petition to get this going as a Dave and Tim E1. IS CHICAGO is a trash song, or at least a trash cover. Tim using his guitar as a drum on MONKEY is an interesting take, but very distracting to me. The show picks up with WHAT WOULD, which is a highlight. From that point through TWO STEP, with the exception of HOLD ME DOWN, is a strong run and my favorite part of the show. Then it’s back to some flubbery with SEEK UP and SAY BYE. ANTS is a great closer, but the encore leaves a lot to be desired for me. Overall a forgettable release.