rippleish20 wrote:
I did everything through Bethel except for the NC and GA shows I thought all the shows were really good, in different ways. In depends a lot on the type of show you like (and to many people, song selection). I would divide the shows into two general styles, more laid back, totally jammed out shows (ie shows which have songs like Dark Star or The Other One at the core of them) and tighter, higher energy shows where the jamming was mostly within songs. I would put Pawtucket, Philadephia, and both Coney Island shows in the jammed out category and Canadaigua, Merriwether and Bethel in the other category. I thought Merriwether was the best of the less jammed out shows, but Bethel and Canandaigua were very close seconds. Of the jammed out shows, I would probably go with the first Coney Island, but I have changed my mind a couple of times. A lot of people seem to like the less jammed out shows. While I can understand this - these shows, again, had the most raw energy - I prefer jammed out shows and would ultimately have to go with one of them as being the best.
There is also the issue of sound quality at shows, which I believe influences peoples opinions. Some of the shows i saw, like Philadelphia, had mediocre sound. Pawtucket, on the other hand, had crystal clear sound.
Enjoyed your analysis. I thought the sound quality at CMAC was poor and I should have had great seats for sound. It was a great show the crowd was fantastic at that show but the vocals were way off and we couldn't hear anything but mumbles. That certainly influences the whole experience. Bethel, on the other hand, the sound quality was pristine. Of course musically the show was also outstanding so that puts it far above CMAC IMO just because of the sound issue.
