long story short, we got right up front after 1 song (jesse played jude law solo, and the band launched into seventy times 7 and it was all over from there), and there we rocked for a good 2+ hours. that was nearly 7 years ago. a lot has happened since then. i had traveled to follow this band up and down the east coast since then. i saw them 5 times in one year. i saw them in a 250 person bar. and then i didn't see them for 3 years. i lucked into these tickets, i had a serious issue with how the promoting company ran ticket sales and i randomly found someone in florida who was gracious enough to sell me the tickets at face value as opposed to the giant mark-up all over the internet.
and here i was. back at that same spot. years later, with different people and they were playing deja front to back much like they did the first time i ever saw them. and it was just as emotionally enticing. even without being upfront for the first few songs, i still couldn't help but belt my longues out to the lyrics of the first few songs. we made a plan to press to the floor during jaws theme while quiet things was being played (we had seen the previous setlists and knew we were in for a front to back deja ahead of time). so we did just that. and i found myself 3 rows away after one chorus.
it really was great to hear some of the more "deep" cuts from deja being played live again. i almost long for the days where jaws and "the boy who blocked" were concert staples. even though the latter is more emotional, i still feel that jaws is one of their most high-energy live songs. back in the 2006-2009 era, which i think most long-time fans will consider the golden age of brand new live shows, these songs were common place; and you were greeted with such great moments as a modest mouse ending to "blocked shot" or a great live intro to "jaws" or even an extended jam to "tommy gun." never the less, the passion was there, and the mood was amazing during these songs. the only fault i have comes from jesse saying "i'm going to fool you by playing an acoustic song with an electric guitar and an acoustic emulator pedal." it did NOT do thhe sound justice. granted, i love the sound of a good chunky clean guitar sound, but him coming out and trying to make a point of it didn't sit well with me.
regardless, the deja set pressed on, and it was really spot on. every song sounded damn near great. and then we came to the song i was most excited for............"good to know......" why this song? because out of 13+ shows, i had only seen this one twice. and both times, it was the highlight of the show. the first time at the ballroom, it featured vinnie throwing his guitar into the rafters and barely catching it by the neck. two years later, they're in toronto with thrice for the best show i had ever seen them play, and vin rolls around on the floor playing the solo on his back. it was just two amazingly awesome sites to see. so the solo's coming up and i find myself saying "ok vin, let's see it." now, vin is one of my guitar inspirations and he friggin shredded all night. he has a certain way of attacking the neck of a guitar that seems so enthusiastic yet effortless.........but..........it didn't come forth on this song. my eyes were fixed on vin yet jesse stole them. jesse was stoked tonight. the whole show, he rocked out. and it was a cool site.
there was zero, yes 0, derrick sherman. a LOT of ben homala. but no derrick. i found it kinda odd, but regardless, they sounded fine without. the deja set closed with play crack, obviously, and it sounded great. vin's back up lyrics have definitely changed. most likely due to his smoking patterns, but the deeper granier sound is a great compliment, nonetheless. so we move on, to noro. no one recognizes the lead except for myself. granted, i spied the setlists prior, so i knew it was coming, but jesse went out of his way to say "this song is for the guy who knows what's coming" and pointed to me. it was kinda cool, regardless.
so they ripped through a set of their last two albums. i was almost nervous they would quit after "you won't know" like they did at a previous show this tour, but i couldn't worry about it too much. it had been a while since i had seen "you won't know" live, and it's really just as high-energy as it's ever been. and for them to jump right into another song after was excellent. i have to admit, the times where the band was rocking out the most were without a doubt during the devil and god songs. they were straight raging during most of them.
so sink ends, and as the previous setlist had shown, i figured we had "jesus" left and it was curtains. but jesse turns to the band and throws up 7 fingers. and we get that old first album classic. after the first chord, you see vin mouth "oh my god." see, the ballroom is stacked seating, each level gets higher and higher. i was 3rd row at this point, but turned around and saw the whole damn place erupt. it was a truly cool site.
all in all, it wasn't the greatest brand new show i had been to; those are reserved for those late 2000's shows such as the grog shop in cleveland or arrow hall in toronto; but this show definitely fits in my top 5.
setlist: (with jesse's guitars, for the guitar geeks like myself out there. vin played 2 mustangs the whole show)
deja. (black jazzmaster, half step down)
noro (black tele, standard)
gasoline
vices
luca (black jazz, half step down)
degausser
you won't know
bought a bride (blue jazz, half step down)
sink
seventy times 7
jesus
