The Disco Biscuits played their first of three shows at Chicago’s Riviera Theatre on Thursday night. Last night’s second set was a three-song affair, while the first set contained just five songs.
Guitarist Jon Gutwillig, keyboardist Aron Magner, bassist Marc Brownstein and drummer Allen Aucoin kicked off their first full show of 2020 with a cover of Frank Zappa’s “Pygmy Twylyte.” The band embarked on an electronic-tinged jam that way heavy on synth before dropping into an expansive “Rock Candy” in which the band varied tempos and explored multiple soundscapes. After the 34-minute pairing that started the show, the Disco Biscuits dug in on “Electric Slinky,” a song debuted in November during the McKees Rocks run. From there, Bisco capped the set with standalone versions of classics “Magellan” and “Morph Dusseldorf.”
“Nughuffer” got the call to open set two last night in Chicago. The first “Nughuffer” since December 9, 2018 and just fourth since 2016 included remarks from Brownie about Illinois legalizing cannabis at the start of 2020. Marc also pulled off impressive dance moves before he started singing the song. The nearly 20-minute opener was followed by the beloved “Crickets.” The Disco Biscuits hit a huge peak in one of the first movements of “Crickets,” patiently worked through jams in different keys and eventually settled in on a partially-composed section performed at some of their recent Tractorbeam concerts. At one point, Brownie put his bass behind his back and focused on synth.
The frame came to a close with “Clocks,” a song penned by Gutwillig originally known as “This Sample Has A Name” before a reworked version was debuted in Richmond last November. Last night’s show ended with a “Home Again” encore. The Disco Biscuits return to The Riv on Friday and Saturday nights. Live streams are available via the band’s YouTube channel. Watch pro-shot video of Thursday’s concert below:
Both Gutwillig and Brownstein appear on a new episode of Osiris podcast Inside Out w/ Turner & Seth. The guitarist contributes to the episode’s intro and discusses a new song he wrote, his Touchdowns All Day podcast and the excitement he has over the current state of the Biscuits. Brownie then sits for an extensive interview with host Rob Turner in which the bassist weighs in on the new era of tDB’s Tractorbeam project, Phish bassist Mike Gordon‘s influence, his relationship with Gutwillig, his appreciation for Aucoin’s drumming, the wealth of new material the Biscuits have and more. Listen to the entire episode below:
https://simplecast.com/s/01fa165c
Setlist (via tDB FB)
Set One: Pygmy Twylyte -> Rock Candy, Electric Slinky, Magellan, Morph Dusseldorf
Set Two: Nughuffer, Crickets -> Tbeam (Reconnect) -> Clocks
Encore: Home Again
