It’s always a treat when jamtronica outfit Lotus returns to Colorado. With the band calling both Denver and Philadelphia home base, Lotus’ Colorado runs are treated as a triumphant homecoming, and certainly, this past three-night run was no different. On Saturday, the band teamed up with Slow Magic, selling out the Fillmore Auditorium in Denver, before heading west for two nights at Aspen’s intimate Belly Up on Sunday and Monday.

Saturday night’s performance at the Fillmore in Denver was an electric way to kick off their three nights in Colorado. As would come to characterize the rest of the run as well, Lotus frequently focused on older tracks from their catalog, integrating newer songs off their recently released album, Eat The Light, with grace and skill. Saturday’s first set was a throwback treat for older fans who were ready for Lotus to return to Denver proper. The night kicked off with “Suitcases,” a track off of fan-favorite, Nomad. The band then worked through a series of fiery older tunes, busting out “Space In Between,” an old track from the early 2000s that has seen relatively little play over the last ten years, before playing another Nomad track, “Travel.”

For the first set, Lotus was precise and patient, giving each song the proper space for exploration. The build from “Travel” to “Expired Slang” was similarly well-thought out, expertly building the energy of the song to a peak and bringing the audience along with them for the ride. In keeping up the high energy of “Expired Slang,” they then dropped a new tune to shake things up a little bit, the disco-reminiscent “Fearless,” which was debuted last year and appears on Eat The Light.  The highlight of this first set, however, was the last two songs, with “Sift” building perfectly into a pristine “Sunrain,” leaving the crowd basking in the delightful tune before set break.

“Spiritualize” At The Fillmore, video courtesy of Phat Beats 420

Second set opened with a resounding bass-heavy “Debris,” which then moved into Eat The Light’s “Sodium Vapor.” From that point on, the second set gained a momentum of its own, with a string of songs that had the crowd going off. “Plant Your Root” transitioned into “Spiritualize,” both older crowd pleasers. A cover of David Bowie’s “Life On Mars” fell in the middle of the tight “Spiritualize” sandwich, a glorious tribute to the man and the song that only entered their catalog last year. To close out the set, Lotus built on the audience’s excitement from the “Spiritualize” sandwich with “Kesey Seed” and “Age Of Inexperience” taking the slots of the final two songs. For the encore, the band left the crowd wanting more, with “Bush Pilot” and “Intro To A Cell” as a celebratory send-off.

Listen To full audio From Satuday’s show, courtesy of Cole Modelo

Setlist: Lotus | Fillmore Auditorium | Denver, CO | 2/17/2017

Set One: Suitcases, Space In Between, Travel > Expired Slang, Fearless, Sift > Sunrain

Set Two: Debris, Sodium Vapor, Plant Your Root, Spiritualize > Life On Mars > Spiritualize, Kesey Seed, Age Of Inexperience

Encore: Bush Pilot, Intro To A Cell

 

The first night of Lotus’ two-night stand at The Belly Up was a treat for fans able to make the trek up to Aspen. The Belly Up is already a venue that both fans and musicians love because of its intimate room, beautiful location, and long-standing musical history. Despite being sold out, the floor had plenty of dancing space, probably due in part to the temporary closing of I-70, the main highway leading from Denver to Aspen, in the evening, only amplifying the private feeling of the show, albeit for unfortunate reasons.

Sunday night was characterized by delicious extended sandwiches during the first and second set. A giant “Juggernaut” sandwich consumed the first set following a “Grayrigg” opener to start the night off right. “Juggernaut” moved into “Lucid Awakening,” which allowed the band to really indulge in a darker, discordant section before building the tune to a frenetic peak. “Marisol” then slowed things down with its mellow groove and nostalgic feel, and the crowd could only be described as blissed out for its duration. A favorite new track, “Anti-Gravity,” followed, building off the smooth vibe of “Marisol” before moving into “Contagion,” and then a huge return to “Juggernaut” to complete the sandwich and finish off the first set.

“Nematode”

“Nematode” followed by “Blacklight Sunflare” was a kinetic way to kick off the second set. The following song, “Lindstrom,” is a relatively new tune that debuted during Lotus’ space disco set a few days before Halloween last year in Buffalo. The song, which has only been played a total of three times, is a cover of the Norwegian DJ, Lindstrom’s, track “Ra Ako St” and definitely brought the spacey vibes to The Belly Up. “White Light Fadeaway,” another new track, kicked off a nonstop, extended jam sequence to close out the second set. “128” started off another sandwich before moving to older tunes, “Did Fatt” and “Future World.” This was a highlight of the run for sure, with the band really hitting their stride and the crowd beyond feeling it, before Lotus’ final triumphant return to “128.” For the encore, the funky new percussive number, “Pachyderm,” kicked things off and had the whole room getting down, before Lotus ended the night with “Gilded Age.”

Second set closer, video courtesy of Amit Shah

Setlist: Lotus | Belly Up | Aspen, CO | 2/19/2017

Set One: Grayrigg, Opo, Juggernaut > Lucid Awakening, Marisol, Anti-Gravity > Contagion > Juggernaut

Set Two: Nematode, Blacklight Sunflare, Lindstrom, White Light Fadeaway > 128 > Did Fatt > Future World > 128

Encore: Pachyderm, Gilded Age

 

Rounding out their Colorado run, the band went into Monday night’s performance primed and ready to throw down after the two magical shows preceding it. Lotus kicked off their first set with the uptempo “Middle Road,” which kicked off a non-stop dancey jam sequence that lasted for the majority of the first set and that gave the band space to show off their ability to work transitions like no other. After building into “L’immeuble,” its cascading riffs made way for a “Neon Tube” sandwich, with “Slow Cookin'” placed squarely in between part 1 and 2, a solid way to start the night. A new track off Eat The Light, “Suntan,” was dropped after the second “Neon Tubes,” providing a little taste of new material for the crowd, before Lotus closed out the first set with two final tracks, “Through The Mirror,” which directly moved into the feel-good “Shimmer and Out.”

The final set of their Colorado run was a heater, with the band holding nothing back to close out their third night. “When H Binds To O” started things off, getting the crowd in the groove with its ambient and spacious sound. Following this opener, Lotus kicked off another non-stop jammed-out sequence of songs. In direct contrast to “When H Binds To O,” the heavy confidence of “Lead Pipe” began to build up the audience’s energy, before bringing it back down with a smooth and laid-back “In The Bliss.” “In The Bliss” then built steadily into “The Opus,” a rare track with a gorgeous Rempel part that was busted out for the first time after a fourteen-year gap last month during their performance at the 9:30 Club.

“Molluskunk,” a massive track that’s known for its ability to get a crowd moving, followed after “The Opus.” Then, for the final two songs close out the second set, Lotus used “Move Too Fast,” a danceable new track, as a springboard into the classic fan-favorite, “Flower Sermon” to end the night. The Belly Up was buzzing as the band took a quick break before returning to the stage and starting the encore with “… And Yet They Fight” (though in the setlist for the night, it was written as “… And Yet We Fight.” Psychoanalyze that little change at your pleasure). To truly end the night and their three-night Colorado run, Lotus played the bubbly and percolating “Jump Off,” an apt send-off for the evening and the weekend.

Setlist: Lotus | Belly Up | Aspen, CO | 2/20/2017

Set One: Middle Road > L’immueble > Neon Tubes > Slow Cookin’ > Neon Tubes, Suntan, Through the Mirror > Shimmer and Out

Set Two: When H Binds To O, Lead Pipe > In The Bliss > The Opus, Molluskunk, Move Too Fast > Flower Sermon

Encore: … And Yet They Fight, Jump Off