by Sean Reiter
The jam band mantle is there for the taking for Goose. Bringing a stadium-level light show into the SF Masonic on Wednesday, the quartet turned the venerable old concert hall from a concrete monolith to a Sphere-like scene with pulsating lights and extended jams added to their catalog.
The capacity crowd was driven into a frenzy multiple times through the combination of Phish-like jamming, EDM-style lighting and jam band songcraft. Through two sets that totaled nearly three hours, the band visited fourteen songs – taking the stage to “So Ready” off their latest album “Everything Must Go.”
It was visually stunning and the audio coherence of the now quartet (guitarist/vocalist Rick Mitarotonda, guitarist/keys/vocals Peter Anspach, bassist Trevor Weekz and recently added drummer Cotter Ellis) was terrific. The show dazzled on every level and – on this night – it seemed the band was determined to not take their foot off the gas pedal as Ellis held it to the floor even during the jammiest moments.
As someone seeing them for the sixth time, my only concern with the performance is to not let the musicianship overwhelm the music too much. Their new album is full of fantastic songs that they have honed on the road and the long jams – while thrilling – kept many of their best songs from being presented. As someone who leans more toward the Dead and Phil & Friends side than the Phish side of the jam band spectrum, my hope is that the band finds a bit more balance in concert performances to underline the songs with live extensions and not overwhelm the songs themselves.
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