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| Goose @ the Fox Theater (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Over a two-night stand at Oakland’s Fox Theater, Goose returned to the Bay Area for the second time and once-again demonstrated that they are the jam band poised to take the crown. Playing to sold-out crowds on both Monday and Tuesday, they demonstrated rising confidence and a second-to-none light show that wowed all in attendance.
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| Goose @ the Fox Theater (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
They launched their two-night flight by opening with “Flodown” - a wild tour de force of rapid playing that takes the crowd on an out of control hayride with guitarist Rick Mitarotonda demonstrating his ability to launch solos with incredible speed and commitment to tone. “Jive II” a jukey jam had keyboardist, guitarist and vocalist Paul Anspach standing out with his work on organ, keys and synth and before concluding with Mitarotonda launching multipole huge solos surrounding the ending chorus of “Just a little bit goes a long, long way.”
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| Paul Anspach of Goose @ the Fox Theater (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
The band’s more psychedelic sounds were explored next with “The Whales” as Anspach strapped on his guitar and took a turn at lead vocals on a long version that saw the band break down into multiple funky jams. Both Goose vocalists are equally terrific and while Mitarotonda takes the majority of lead vocals, Anspach more than held his own on both nights. His upbeat and humble energy are heartwarming and have helped to really position Goose as one of the most “likeable” bands out there. Throughout both nights, Anspach made sure to thank the audience and the crew.
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| Rick Mitarotonda of Goose @ the Fox Theater (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Next up was an entertaining cover of Blind Melon’s “No Rain” delivered faithfully before finishing night one’s first set with a rollicking and upbeat “Lead the Way” (featuring Mitarotonda delivering a long and bluesy solo) and “Tumble” - which saw the song’s pace accelerate throughout to finish with a bullet train crescendo to roar into the set break with massive chants of “Goose” filling the venue. While Mitarotonda and Anspach garner much of the attention as the band leaders, the rhythm section of bassist Trevor Weekz, drummer Ben Atkind and percussionist, vocalist Jeff Arevalo were equally impressive at setting a quick pace while adding in lots of flavors to the songs – whether it was Arevalo’s percussion bringing a reggae tone or Weekz dropping big-time funk from his bass.
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| Goose @ the Fox Theater (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Goose announced their return to the stage for set two by coming out firing all cannons with a full throttle set opener of “Echo of a Rose” that many felt was the night one highlight. A soaring and drifting “Rosewood Heart” followed before easing into a reprise of “Echo of a Rose.” Anspach took the lead on “Rockdale” a song that saw him delivering keyboard magic and the band building and building until reaching another huge finish. “Madhuvan” – another fun one that sees the band’s pace at a gallop closed out the main set. The band emerged for the encore with Anspach donning his guitar and engaging the crowd “Hell Yeah on a Monday night! Thanks everybody for coming out…Love the Bay Area. Always so good to us…We’re so grateful. Who’s coming tomorrow?” to which a roar from most of the crowd filled the theater. Fittingly for the region, Goose chose Bobby “Blue” Bland’s “Turn on Your Love Light” to finish the party in Grateful Dead style with a two-guitar attack and Mitarotonda on lead vocals and drummer Atkind driving the song’s traditional rapid pace moments.
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| Paul Anspach of Goose @ the Fox Theater (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
After an electrifying first night, it would have been understandable for night two to be a lesser performance, but Goose raised the bar even higher with the best of the three performances I have seen from the band. Mitarotonda, wearing a “Bram Stoker’s Dracula” t-shirt, delivered an opening “Dr. Darkness” filled with a haunting New Orleans vibe with all its inherent wickedness and a vibe of danger as his solos with Anspach’s organ and keyboards underneath. After setting a sinister tone to the start of the night, the band changed direction with a slower, Rasta-toned “All I Need” where Arevalo percussion really stood out front in the song. “Lead up” a long powerful jam followed, before Anspach took the lead on vocals to bring a fun, jovial version of “Elizabeth.”
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| Trevor Weekz of Goose @ the Fox Theater (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Now four songs into the night, the audience had already been witness to a very impressive lighting display that only got better as the night went on. This band’s support crew deserves huge kudos as the sound is not only brought over razor sharp and crystal clear, but the light show is second to none. It’s a stadium style light approach brought into theaters and it was dazzling throughout both nights. The first set concluded with soaring versions of “A Western Sun” and “Yeti” with multiple light formations extending out into the crowd and bringing forth widespread “Goose” chants.
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| Goose @ the Fox Theater (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
They opened the second set with “Atlas Dogs” with Mitarotonda demonstrating excellent blues soloing while showing his impressive ability to create multiple layers of sound with speed and picking technique on his guitar. As his solo continued to gain steam and complexity, the rest of the band skillfully filled in depth and then brought the song to a quick end. An extended version of “Creatures” flowed into a full cover of the Moody Blues’ “Nights in White Satin.” It was delivered with both restraint and power with the guitar playing and singing cementing the song’s intended emotions. Goose added so many different nuances and their own spin on the covers that they did over the two nights and here’s hoping that they continue to perform their unique covers despite their mounting success.
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| Rick Mitarotonda of Goose @ the Fox Theater (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
To close out the Fox run, the band finished the second set with a trippy “Dripfield” that at the outset felt for several moments like it could have easily fallen into “Dancing in the Street.” They finished the set with Anspach and Mitarotonda showing their excellent ability to harmonize with each other on “White Lights.” Anspach had a lovely piano solo in the song before all hell broke loose as the band build up the speed and power of the song and the crowd reacted with the most dancing seen in those two days.
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| The crowd for Goose @ the Fox Theater (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
With venue curfew rapidly approaching, Anspach quickly led the band back on stage for the encore – skipping onto the stage. “Thanks everyone. This has been amazing. It feels so great to feel so much love here on the west coast. Thank you so much for supporting us. It means the world. We are so grateful,” he told the Fox audience. Goose finished with an encore of “Slow Ready” which - despite its name - took on an almost EDM flavor as the band played an incredibly quick pace before leaving the stage to massive “Goose” chant for what was likely their last Bay Area appearance in a theater of that size. Given their epic performances and audience devotion, it should be on to larger venues like the Greek, Frost or even bigger for their next time through the area.
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