Search - Widespread Panic :: Another Joyous Occasion

A hit...with a few misses

05/24/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Picked up the new Panic CD yesterday, and was pretty impressed. As a whole, this recording is a departure from their previous live effort, Light Fuse Get Away. DDBB adds a lot to tunes like Weight of the World (which I can't imagine without the horns) and Superstition, but I think it gets to be a bit much, as evidenced by a muddled Beehive Jam.The band sounds terrific, as we've come to expect. Jojo's keyboard work impresses, especially on Superstition, while the flow between that and Fishwater could not be smoother. JB sounds great, and as usual, one might think about taking bets as to when we may start seeing sparks shoot out his throat when he screams.It's nice to see a live album that doesn't mirror a "greatest hits" release, as so many other live albums do. Having seen this tour last year, the finished product stands as a good indication of Panic shows in general.One thought: if you are not already a Panic fan, try buying "Everyday" or "Space Wrangler" first. Then, go see a few shows. I would imagine that Another Joyous Occasion falls easier on the ears of the Panic veteran, as opposed to someone jumping right in."

A jam band without a lead guitarist?

WaltSnipe | Austin, Tx United States | 06/06/2000

(3 out of 5 stars)

"When I unexpectedly stumbled upon this CD the other day, it looked like a no brainer. The Dirty Dozen Brass Band! They could make a Rickey Martin medley sound good! I even thought there might be shades of (gasp) The Band when they recorded live albums with mighty horn sections. Then I listened to it, and couldn't help feeling disappointed. The Dozen, of course, kick ass--though they could have been mixed a little more to the front. And the ... rhythm section is outstanding. Come to think of it, everybody is pulling their weight more or less except the lead guitarist. This is where the jam falls flat. If you're going to have a jam/improvisational band, and especially if you're going to extend the songs even further for a live album then, darn it, you need a lead guitarist! One that can play blue notes...you know, bend the strings a little! Have that feel! Throughout this album, the lead guitar playing is very pedestrian--it sounds like the way someone plays lead when their hands are cold. Sluggish, just trying to hit the notes at all (with intonation, style, and flair straight out the window). I'm not a Panic fanatic, so I can't really say if this guy sounds like this all the time (my memory tells me that earlier albums had better lead playing than this), but I have to say that on this disc he just doesn't cut it. Frankly, it's not even close (example--half way through the opening medley). It's a real shame, too, because an agile, firey blues picker could have lit the flame under this burner. As it stands, though, some serious Anglo-itis dampens what could have been a classic combination. Too bad. I'll just go listen to "The Last Waltz."ps. this is where the "second generation Dead bands" fall flat--the Dead had a strong underpinning of blues, jazz, bluegrass, etc. to run their rock jams through. Widespread (and, to a much greater degree Phish) does not, and the results can sound sterile (especially Phish--mucho technique, and all the soul of an ECM release....)."

Pretty Solid

WaltSnipe | 05/13/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Don't feed the troll folks... anyway, this is a pretty solid CD. I get the feeling that WSP wanted to release something different from their previous amazing live release, Light Fuse Get Away. So, they're releasing a recording of them playing with the DDBB. Certainly a big departure from LFGA, which I would call mostly high-energy pyrotechnics that are a good sampler of WSP's songs. As a result, the album is pretty solid, but not as smoothed out as the other live album. I liked most of it pretty well, although for some reason Beehive Jam I just find irritating. It gets too atonal, then jumps off-pace and drags drags drags. Maybe on repeated listens... still a good album for fans of the group, not what I would start with though...I'd recommend Til The Medicine Takes if you like studio stuff more, Light Fuse Get Away if you're a live person."