The days are getting shorter, and the weather is cooling down. This can mean only one thing: both football season and fall tour are about to begin. Goose, the indie-groove jam rock band from Connecticut that has solidified itself as a heavy hitter in the music industry, kicked off its Fall Tour at PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, NJ, on September 1st, 2024. This Labor Day show had all the feels, including two new song debuts and a rare three-song second set. The band brought their A-game to this iconic fifty-six-year-old venue in the Garden State, despite not having performed since June 30th.
The band began the evening with the bubbly 'Flodown,' more commonly known in the community as a 'Flopener.' This high-energy tune was the perfect choice after returning from a two-month touring break. The mood mellowed momentarily during 'Mr. Action,' before ratcheting up again with 'Draconian Meter Maid.' Drummer Cotter Ellis sang and wrote this brand-new, first-time-played tune, that originally debuted with one of his previous bands, Swimmer. Percussionist Jeff Arevalo contributed guitar during this seventeen-minute heater.
Another raging guitar tune followed with 'Drive,' as guitarist Rick Mitarotonda showed no signs of rust after the break. This quickly gave way to the melodic 'Seekers on the Ridge Part I' > 'Seekers on the Ridge Part II.' This beautiful pair was short but always sweet to hear. They ended with 'SOS,' from their album Shenanigan's Nite Club, featuring a nice build-up on the keys by multi-instrumentalist Peter Anspach. Bassist Trevor Weekz drove this face-melting jam, including a funky breakdown of his own before Mitarotonda brought the music home. This sixteen-minute tune is definitely worth a relisten
Goose returned for set two and ventured into another new tune, 'Big Modern!,' sung by Rick Mitarotonda. A melodic opening gave way to a darker segment that flowed nicely into the chorus and eventually into a thirty-eight-minute jam. The band certainly showed up ready to play, as Lighting Director Andrew Goedde enhanced the experience with a masterful lighting display. The jam veered into ambient territory before firing up again near the end of this new jam vehicle.
'Feel It Now' was up next and included more ambient synth courtesy of Anspach. The show ended with a raging 'Madhuvan' that developed into an incredible work of art, incorporating the ambient elements that had been a part of the second set. This twenty-seven-minute jam ended the show with vigor. The band returned for an encore and played The Band's 'Don't Do It.'
Goose is back on tour and crushing deep jams. Catch them next at Saratoga Performing Arts Center in Saratoga Springs, NY on September 6 - 7. Tickets are available for the first night via this link. Please hop over to Goose's tour page for more details on the rest of their stacked fall tour.
Check out more photos from the show!
Set One: Flodown1, Mr. Action, Draconian Meter Maid2, Drive > Seekers on the Ridge pt I > Seekers on the Ridge pt II, Same Old Shenanigans
Set Two: Big Modern!2, Feel it Now, Madhuvan
Set Three: Don't Do It3
Coach's Notes:
[1] Flopener.
[2] FTP.
[3] The Band.
Set list via elgoose.net
