It's Tour Time Again
By Jake Vigliotti
April 3, 2002
It's time for a new tour. That annual rite of spring that DMB fans await, with the hopefulness of... well, hopeful that they'll hear something they haven't heard in a long long time.
So what can we expect from this tour? If the past in any indication (and it
usually is), we can all look forward to something new, something out of nowhere,
and some guests we don't expect to see.
Lets look forward to some of the following... drum roll please...
-- Less Everyday songs (Horray!!)
The band usually skips songs that they played in "heavy rotation"
from the prior album. You'll still hear Space Between (as a 1st encore song)
and When The World Ends, and the occasional I Did It. The thing
that helps is the songs are all quick, so they'll replace some
previous songs played to break up the 20 minute ones.
-- More "Lillywhite" songs (Horray!!)
This new album will be Lillywhite intensive, so Raven, Sweet Up and Down,
Busted Stuff, and Kit Kat Jam should be seen often.
-- The same crop of non-album songs (OK...)
Granny and JTR will be played live for sure, but I wouldn't bring my
Help Myself signs just yet.
-- Signs equal teases, not full songs (Darn)
Dave has made it quite clear during some IEM recordings that all
signs do is piss him off. Captain will be played full, b/c it's
going to be on the new album, but Pig, Blue Water, Spoon, and any
other song that you don't hear in the first few shows probably ain't
going to be brought out by a sign.
-- The return of... (Booyea!)
It seems like ages since we heard Dancing Nancies on a regular
basis, doesn't it? I'm thinking, more Nancies, Last Stop, and
Lover Lay Down, and less Rhyme & Reason, Stay, and Too Much.
Just a hunch.
-- Did they just play that (Hun?)
Expect one unexpected cover. Long Black Veil, Cortez the Killer,
Waste, and Ain't It Funny How Time Slips Away kinda came from
Left field. If there is any hint to what it might be, I'd guess
country (seems Dave's big on that now). If I get a vote, I'd
love a little Superstition by Stevie Wonder, but doesn't everyone
want their own vote?
-- The "Pattern" (Double Darn)
So, which show did you see last year, the BEF...>Bartender, or the
Recently...>Digging? The same thing will happen this year. After
the band figures out which songs are working live, they'll fall
into a pattern. Still, DMB has never played the same set twice,
and they won't start this year, but you'll see it as the year
progresses.
-- Same openers (no big deal)
#41, Two Step, Warehouse, Stone, and JTR will open 99% of the
shows. The occasional Billies, Grey St, and maybe even an
Ants will rear their collective heads. Only a few short years
ago, Seek Up opened every show, and Ants closed them, so
a 5:1 shot ain't that shabby.
-- Special guest... (WOW)
Someone will stop by for a show. Maybe Trey, Maybe Santana,
Maybe Warren Hayes, Maybe Issac Hayes. Some show this year
will feature a guest that will floor the crowd. I know it's
random, but history has shown that the larger the city, the
more likely the random guest. MSG should hope for the best.
This has all the markings of being a powerful tour. Most fans are familiar with the Lillywhite songs, so the energy should be even higher than the past two tours, which will help the band.
And don't forget to try out the set list game.
Feel free to use these helpful hints to assist you in you picks.
But don't come griping to me if none of em come true.
The views and comments expressed in this article do not necessarily represent those of antsmarching.org.
