City Bisco: Three Nights of Pure, Unadulterated Disco Biscuits

With the Disco Biscuits playing what has become an annual 3-night, early Fall run in Philadelphia, dubbed City Bisco this past weekend, loyal followers of the livetronica jamband were treated to a weekend full of gems from the band. On Thursday night, the group played the Trocadero Theatre, which had fans abuzz of the group potentially mirroring their famed 4/9/99 show at the Troc. Starting off with a jam into “Run Like Hell,” many eyes in the place lit up as the Pink Floyd jam vehicle was played into fruition. With a segue into “Little Shimmy,” those fans that were “in the know” began high-fiving, texting friends that weren’t at the show, and went bonkers once “Bazaar Escape” was played. If following suit, the Biscuits would have delivered a “Voices Insane” to keep things in line with the ’99 Troc show, but alas it was just a tease, as the group went into a cover of Frank Zappa‘s “Pygmy Twylyte” officially ending any potential full throwback set.

The “Twylyte” jam into Michael Jackson‘s “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough” was a full-on dance party. It was amusing, as a fan yelled “Play Michael Jackson!” before the show began, and whether or not they heard it, the band obliged with an instrumental nod to the King of Pop. The drop into “Cyclone” was a bit off, but the energy that the song brings was as palpable as usual, and an “Above The Waves” (ending only) brought a finish to a rather strong first set.

The second set began with the beginning section of “Above the Waves” which dropped into a welcomed “M.E.M.P.H.I.S.” that had everybody in the venue sharing their voices along with the band in unison. Anytime the beginning notes of “The Very Moon” are played, it is as if a collective inhalation of breath takes the oxygen out of the air for a brief moment, as all souls in attendance prepare to ascend to another realm. “TVM” is one of those songs that simply inspires; one of the better tDB compositions, in my opinion. Put a “Lunar Pursuit” into a “The Very Moon” sandwich, and you couldn’t have heard a complaint in the place if you tried. The beginning section of “I-Man” made some twists and turns back into “Run Like Hell” to end the second set. A “Munchkin Invasion” encore officially ended the first Biscuits show at The Troc in almost 14 years; and a successful one at that.

If there was a night that has to go down as “The Night” of the run, it would arguably have to be the Electric Factory show. From beginning to end, this was a heater of a show. A 22-minute, funky, spaced-out “Down to the Bottom” stirred the proverbial pot and brought the shake n’ bake to the E-Factory from the first note out of the MJ fakeout at the start of the song. Magner did his best Bernie Worrell during an equally jammed-out version of “Bombs” (around 7-minute mark) which led into a dark and dirty “House Dog” (ending only) with Barber shredding his way into the final chorus. A dub version of “Floodlights” brought smiles along with it, as it also gave everyone their first opportunity to give each other that “this is THE night of the run” look. The gyrating ensued with a strong first set finishing move of “We Like To Party>Down To The Bottom” which was followed by a much needed collective breath (and drink) by all in attendance.

“Story of the World” had a playful jam that eventually dropped into a filthy, inverted “Great Abyss,” followed by a rocking “Mr. Don.” The Biscuits allowed fans at home checking out the live stream to decide one particular song of the evening….and they chose wisely. What turned into a nearly 25-minute, segmented “Digital Buddha,” which segued back into “Story of the World” and came back out of the beginning party of “House Dog” was quite possibly the highlight of the show. Magner’s minor synth inflections are what makes this song what it has become….it’s that Deep Space Nine, trance ish that we, as Biscuits fans, have absolutely come to love from this band. With Brownie and Allen holding down the deep pocket (especially with those disco bass bombs from Brownie in “HDPF” back into “Buddha), Barber delivered that delectable tone that so many of us crave. As we all know, when Barber is on, the band is at their best. It is no secret to anyone, least of all the band, and on this night Barber took over.

A chant of “Allen! Allen! Allen!” before the encore was a nice touch by fans; it showed the appreciation that the rabid fanbase has for their Master of the Kit. He may be quiet from a vocal perspective, but he more than makes up for it with his drumming abilities, and that cannot go unnoticed. He is the machine that allows the band to go in a multitude of directions with their jams, all the while making it look ridiculously easy. An Allen-chosen encore of “Highwire” put the finishing touches on another memorable evening at the E-Factory. Their shows at this particular venue continue to impress after all these years; it holds a special place in Biscuits lore and will for many years to come.

Saturday night at The Mann turned out to be a 3-set special from the Biscuits, as Orchard Lounge suffered flight problems due to security issues in Chicago. So, as they always do, instead of a 2-set performance, we were graced with an additional set, though the first set would be played under their alter-ego moniker The Perfume which showcased alternate renditions of various songs from the bands catalog, including a “Frog Legs” that would be considered Devo-style. The portion of a 21+ minute dub-version of “Mindless Dribble” may have been standout of the set, though many could argue that “Wawa,” which is the Perfume version of “7-11” was the real bustout, and I wouldn’t debate that at all, it was super funky, and Barber’s guitar work was pristine. “Pilin’ It High(er)” kept its usual high energy, while the ultra-punk version of “Kitchen Mitts” ended the Perfume set in fine fashion. Overall, it was a great way to present the additional set.

The band went back to a traditional style for the second set, starting things off with an uber-noodly “Little Lai” that progressed into a “Caterpillar>Little Betty Boop>Caterpillar>On Time>Lai” sandwich, or rather Hoagie (we were in Philly after all), that was anything but standard. There is something about the opening segment of “Caterpillar” that does things to a crowd of Biscuits fans. It’s like “Oh, ok, time to get the fuck down now.” You get a nearly 15-minute jam, then they blow up your spot with none other than “Little Betty Boop.” Really? Yes, really. A most welcome addition to any setlist, the “Boop” jam was particularly memorable, seeing all members of the band firing on all cylinders, with some fast-paced, frenetic energy. Giving themselves (and us) a breather, we got a pretty standard “On Time” back into “Lai” to lead into the much anticipated set from “The Godfather of Disco” Giorgio Moroder.

Now, let’s set the record straight here. This was not your raucous DJ set, with intense energy, seamless transitions from song to song, the playing of remixes of other people’s songs, and so on and so forth. And if that was what you were expecting, than you weren’t going into this set with the right frame of mind. This was a set of music by a legendary producer (who is 74 years old, mind you) playing HIS hits….the songs that he created over the course of the last 40+ years. He is not a DJ by any stretch of the imagination, he is a producer. His resume speaks for itself: he has co-written and produced tracks for Donna Summer, Daft Punk, Blondie, Pat Benatar, David Bowie, Queen, and many more. He has provided songs for the soundtracks to Midnight Express, Flashdance, Top Gun, the Neverending Story, etc. The man is basically a music history lesson in his own right; and he played ALL the hits. My old ass had a great time dancing around, as did most of the people around us. However, there were some grumbling going on. The only issue I had was the sound was not loud enough, but that essentially was it. I knew what to expect, and appreciated every second of getting to see such a legend. And that’s all I’m gonna say ’bout that.

And then there was the “All Request” and final set of the weekend. Beginning with a spacey, standalone “Crickets” the set continued on from a “42” with a downtempo jam that eventually meandered its way into deep, dark, and heavy “Orch Theme.” Everytime I hear this track I feel the hero in some fantasy epic novel (a la Lord of the Rings) and am about to murk some enemies; instead, I just wind up getting down extremely hard. “Tempest” flowed out of the “Orch Theme” rather seamlessly, and was a nice fit at that moment. And then shit got silly with “Aquatic Ape” – you have to love that old-school Biscuits. It’s one of those songs that can be played at any time, in any situation, and it is beyond appreciated every single time. That led back into a “42” finisher, after which Brownie announced that the band would be playing its New Year’s run in Chicago and New York. “Helicopters” gave an official ending to yet another City Bisco, as well as leaving everyone with one last chance to expend their energy.

This weekend….well, in all honesty, all of 2014, has been a reminder of just how good this band can be once they find that comfort level playing with one another. I hate calling them simply a “jam band” because what the Biscuits do goes beyond that; they incorporate different styles somewhat effortlessly. Yet, at their core, they are one of the very few bands actually taking chances on their jams, and in turn “jamming.” It’s not contrived, no matter what you want to say. It is very clear that, yes, while it may be controlled, they are a band in full-on jam mode. You don’t play 90-minute, 6-7 song setlists (many of which are non-stop segues) without exploring and stretching each song to their maximum capacity . But that also comes from consistent playing and being in tune with one another, which this weekend once again proved to many of us the Biscuits are fully capable of. While there have been questions in the past few years of the direction in which this group was headed, with touring seemingly not an option, they have settled into their current state of being quite nicely, and appear to be having more fun now than in a long time. I don’t know about any of you, but I will gladly take a handful of multi-night runs throughout the year if they are played at the level in which they are currently being played at. This formula seems to be working out just fine.

– Chris Meyer

[Cover photo, along with photos 3 -5 courtesy of © Scott Harris / LIVE music blog, all other photos taken by Chris Meyer. tDB Baseball Card was given out at front gates of Mann Center upon entrance into venue]