Jam-veterans moe.  played a three-night run in their hometown of Buffalo, NY this past weekend at The Town Ballroom. The nearly sold-out run brought moe.rons together from across the country for the band’s first performance in Buffalo since 2016.

Night one presented attendees with a solid performance filled with a mix of fan-favorites. moe. has a tradition of rotating which band member writes the setlist for each show, and night one was written by guitarist Chuck Garvey. The performance opened up hot with “Tailspin”, one of the band’s go-to energizing originals got the crowd up and moving with wild dueling guitar solos and fun sing-along lyrics.  “Skrunk” followed, along with a somewhat older moe. tune, “George”, followed by the Jim Loughlin-sung “Don’t Wanna Be”. What came next might have been the highlight of the first set–a “St. Augustine” sandwich with a really tasty 18-minute “meat.” segued delightfully in the middle.

Related: moe. Announces 30th Anniversary West Coast Tour

After a set break, the band returned to the stage and opened the second set with another moe. classic, “Not Coming Down”. The song generated cheers from the audience, most of whom sang along to every single word. A song from one of moe.’s most notable albums came next with “Wormwood” from the 2003 LP by the same name. “Wormwood” had a nice groovy flow, showcasing the guitar-work and smooth rhythms the Buffalo quintet is known for. Another fan-favorite, “Akimbo”, came next, followed by the nostalgic and warm “Letter Home”, with the latter being a perfect fit for a homecoming show with the lyrics, “My home, my heart, my best friends.” “Skitchin Buffalo” trotted out next, marking just the seventh time the band has ever played the song live, followed by “Puebla”, which segued into a killer “Brent Black” for the set closer. moe. exited the stage for about five minutes and returned for an 11-minute, face-melting encore performance of “Downward Facing Dog”, sending the crowd home buzzing.

Check out a video clip of the set one opener “Tailspin” below.

Stream the entire first night from moe.’s performance The Town Ballroom below.

moe.  – The Town Ballroom – 11/19/2019

[Audio: Brian V.]

On Friday, the performance mapped out by guitarist Al Schnier started with bassist Rob Derhak‘s “Prestige Worldwide”, a song inspired by the comedy film Step Brothers. The band busted right into the rarity “It”, which led into another Derhak tune, “LL3”.  A jammed-out “Bearsong” came out swinging, led by Loughlin. “ATL” came next, followed by moe. wrapping up set one with one of the band’s most beloved songs, “Recreational Chemistry”.

The second set was a wild ride, starting strong with “Hi & Lo”, followed by a cover of Pink Floyd’s “Breathe”–marking the fifth time moe. has ever performed the song. The band jammed through a “Kids” sandwich with a “Down Boy” slid in the middle before the second half of”Kids” segued into another Pink Floyd tune with “Time”, which itself flowed right back into “Breathe” reprise. The music continued into an always-anticipated “Farmer Ben”, with its jam being a real treat thanks to some subtle Grateful Dead teases thrown into the mix. The set closed with a raucous “Timmy Tucker” followed by a one-song encore of “The Ghost of Ralph’s Mom”, a tune which moe. hasn’t played in almost a year.

Watch a fan-shot video of moe. performing “Dawn Boy” and “Breathe” > “Kids” from Friday night below.

moe. – “Breathe”>”Kids” – 1/15/2019

[Video: Mike Maciunski]

moe. – “Down Boy” – 11/15/2019

[Video: Mike Maciunski]

The final night of the run on Saturday featured a setlist written by drummer Vinnie Amico, and started off with “Along For The Ride” and “Big World”. “Rickey Marten” came next, segueing into “Y.O.Y.” from 1997’s Warts & All Vol. 4. Set one continued with another fan-favorite, “Kyle’s Song”, into the groovy, bass-lead “Crushing”. “Mar-DeMa” from 2010’s No Guts No Glory album was next followed by one of moe.’s most popular and frequently played songs for the set closer in “Buster”.

Set two opened with “Tubing The River Styx” into “The Pit” and then right into a newer song, “Dangerous Game”. The highlight of night three was an elegant “Silver Sun”, followed by “CalifornIA” into “New Hope For The New Year”, and “Jazz Cigarette”. The set closed with another moe. classic, “Rebubula”. moe. encored the final night of the run with “Spine Of A Dog”.

Watch a fan-shot video of “Mar-DeMa”>”Buster” below.

moe. – “Mar-DeMa” > “Buster” – 11/16/2019

[Video: Mike Maciunski]

For more information on upcoming tour dates for moe. head to the band’s website.

Setlist: moe. | The Town Ballroom | Buffalo, NY | 11/14/19

Set One: Tailspin > Skrunk > George, Don’t Wanna Be, St. Augustine > meat. > St. Augustine

Set Two: Not Coming Down > Wormwood > Akimbo, Letter Home, Skitchin’ Buffalo, Puebla > Brent Black

Enc: Downward Facing Dog

Setlist: moe. | The Town Ballroom | Buffalo, NY | 11/15/19

Set One: Prestige Worldwide > It > LL3 > Bearsong, ATL > Recreational Chemistry

Set Two: Hi & Lo > Breathe# > Kids > Down Boy > Kids > Time > Breathe reprise# > Farmer Ben* > Timmy Tucker

Enc: The Ghost Of Ralph’s Mom

Setlist: moe. | The Town Ballroom | Buffalo, NY | 11/16/19

Set One: Along For The Ride, Big World > Ricky Marten > Y.O.Y. > Kyle’s Song, Crushing, Mar-DeMa > Buster

Set Two: Tubing The River Styx > The Pit > Dangerous Game, Silver Sun > CalifornIA > New Hope For The New Year, Jazz Cigarette, Rebubula

Enc: Spine Of A Dog