2007

October could be our favorite month to see live music, thanks in part to the temperate weather and full venue schedules. School’s finally back in session, leading most bands to play their own shows instead of the banding together for the shitty touring festivals that occur every summer. And the best part about October is that it peaks on Halloween, when bands pull out all the stops.

This week Grousing The Aisles looks at three fantastic shows from October, and then as an added bonus, we’ve rounded up links to Halloween show downloads from all across these United States. Be sure to read on after the jump to find links to downloads from Arcade Fire, Gov’t Mule, Ryan Adams and many more.

The Breakfast 10/27/2007 SBD MATRIX [MP3, FLAC, STREAM]:

Is it just us or does it seem like the unwritten ban on covering Phish songs has finally been lifted? The Breakfast celebrated Halloween by covering Lawn Boy in its entirety at their 9th annual Fonghoulish Freakout at the Higher Ground. Sure the vocals may have been a bit Bisco-esque, but The Breakfast showed incredible musicianship by nailing some of Phish’s most difficult passages with ease.

Photo and recording by Dave Pecoraro

Guitarist Tim Palmieri didn’t try to replicate Trey Anastasio’s tone. For instance, on Bathtub Gin, Palmieri played the solo using an envelope filter that made his guitar sound more like Jerry Garcia than Trey. Run Like An Antelope and Split Open and Melt featured some great interplay from all the members of the band including keyboardist Matt Oestreicher, who supposedly hadn’t heard any of Phish’s shit before starting with The Breakfast earlier this year.

Lawn Boy took up the majority of the show, but The Breakfast also played a number of their own complex compositions. The show started with a ripping jam that led into the Zappa-esque Buquebus (no Bangbus?). Other impressive originals included a heavy Food For Thought and the quirky Honey Butter. The gig seemed to gain major hippie cred points when Phish’s Mike Gordon came out wearing a mask to play bass on a bizarre cover of Gloria Gaynor’s I Will Survive — that seemed to excite the audience more than any of the Lawn Boy covers.

Kudos to The Breakfast for allowing Dave Pecoraro to tape the show so everyone could check out their version of Lawn Boy within 48 hours of the show ending. In less than a week his recording has been downloaded by over 4,000 people who have now been exposed to the power of a good Breakfast. Read on for more…

Halloween’s always a good time for a band to don a musical costume, and the Disco Biscuits knew their fans expected more than just a holiday untzfest for the highly anticipated show at The Orpheum in Boston. So the band complied and busted out the first Jamilia in four years and only the eighth-ever performance of guitarist Jon Gutwillig’s rock opera, Hot Air Balloon. The villagers rejoiced.

The Biscuits’ career resembles a rock opera in itself, and the band’s most rabid and casual fans alike are very much enjoying this third act, with the part of former drummer Sam Altman being played admirably by Allen Aucoin over the past two years. Reports from the Biscuits’ shows have been more positive than at any time in its full history, and Halloween at the Orpheum was certainly no exception.

Our friend and oft-collaborator Nathan Ingraham took in the evening’s festivities from the second row of the venue, and he gladly sent over some photos that captured the scene as well as he could given the enveloping darkness of it all. His gallery of 13 unlucky shots follows after the jump…

Set I: A Night On Bald Mountain* > Down To The Bottom, Jamillia, The Overture, Once The Fiddler Paid, The Very Moon > Voices Insane

Set II: Moonlight Sonata, Eulogy, Bazaar Escape > Mulberry’s Dream, Above The Waves > A Night On Bald Mountain > Above The Waves, Hot Air Balloon

Encore: Toccata and Fugue**, Therapy

*1st time played (Modest Mussorgsky); from Walt Disney’s “Fantasia”
**1st time played (Bach); from Walt Disney’s “Fantasia”

This edition of Leftovers reads more like an NFL injury report, but rumors were flying yesterday that Led Zeppelin would cancel their upcoming reunion gig. So we were a bit

As the title of this post implies, this one’s all over the board — another theme-less, seamless bundle of mismatched tunes from the home hard drive. It’s got everything except the tie that binds: jazz, funk, soul, roots, bluegrass, folk and even a splash of punkish pop. The first track comes straight from the newly released Harlem Experiment, the third volume from Ropeadope‘s acclaimed “Experiment” series. We’ll provide a quick taste, but the album really is a must-buy.

• It’s Just Begun: The Harlem Experiment — The Harlem Experiment
• Caledonia: Rick Danko & Levon Helm — 1/28/83 Portland, OR
• Jealous Guy: Donnie Hathaway — Donnie Hathaway Live
• Frankenstein: Marcus Miller — Silver Rain
• Cold Rain & Snow: Peter Rowan & Tony Rice — Quartet
• Roads: Reid Genauer — 7/6/02 Gathering of the Vibes
• Teddy Picker: Arctic Monkeys — Favourite Worst Nightmare

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THIS WEEK’S FRIDAY MIX TAPE