In the belly of the beast in Manhattan’s financial district, Ween arose to break the shackles of corporate servitude to deliver its fans a two-and-a-half hour reprieve from the rat race at The Rooftop at Pier 17. Eschewing any major bust-outs or too many moments of heavy Brownness, the five horsemen of the Boogpocalypse instead opted for a straight-ahead rocker.
Thursday’s New York City show manifested itself as a Gene Ween (born Aaron Freeman) setlist through and through with the ebullient frontman taking centerstage on “Take Me Away”, “Touch My Tooter”, “Gabrielle”, and a timely dose of Brown on “The Stallion pt 1” early on in the program. Guitarist and Brother in Boog Dean Ween (Mickey Melchiondo by birth) certainly got his licks in, as well, offering up his “Piss Up A Rope” country kiss-off to keep a light, bouncy mood through the first ten or so numbers.
Ween – “The Stallion Pt 1” – 9/14/23
[Video: The Stallion Mang]
Considering the venue’s scenic riverfront location, Ween did not shy away from the nautical references. The many maritime melodies began with the sea shanty “She Wanted To Leave” (Three men is all they were / Three men out at sea / Three men came aboard my ship and took my true love from me). More aquatic anthems would follow throughout the show including “The Mollusk”, “The Golden Eel”, “The Argus”, “Polka Dot Tail”, and more. It was one of those situations where one realizes just how many songs Ween has about the ocean (horses, too).
Ween – “The Golden Eel” – 9/14/23
[Video: The Stallion Mang]
Ween – “Polka Dot Tail” – 9/14/23
[Video: The Stallion Mang]
To that end, several other “suites” of related songs revealed themselves. After Gener took up his mandolin for “Ocean Man”, the song that introduced many a Millennial/Gen Z fan (including this writer) to the joys of Ween when it was featured during the closing credits of 2004’s The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, Deaner acknowledged that they were just about required to follow it up with “Loop De Loop”, the instructional shoe-tying tune they wrote for the original SpongeBob TV series.
Elsewhere in the show, Gener crooned “Squelch The Weasel”, one of the numerous moments on Thursday when one could hear a pin drop among the sold-out crowd. Following the somber GodWeenSatan ballad, Dean pointed out (quite likely untruthfully) that there was a request from drummer Claude Colemane for the “other weasel song,” “I Gots A Weasel”, making its first appearance since March 18th, 2023.
Ween – “Squelch The Weasel” – 9/14/23
[Video: The Stallion Mang]
Ween – “I Gots A Weasel” – 9/14/23
[Video: The Stallion Mang]
On the bust-out front, the band didn’t dig too far back into the bowels of Boog but Dean Ween did say that they took “Mister Richard Smoker” out of time-out for the first time since night two of the Atlanta run on September 15th, 2022. Toward the end of the main set, GodWeenSatan stomper “Old Queen Cole” showed her face for the first time since Gener’s birthday on St. Patrick’s Day in Las Vegas earlier this year.
Ween – “Mister Richard Smoker” – 9/14/23
[Video: The Stallion Mang]
After closing out with the friendly thank you note “Your Party”, Ween took a brief encore break ahead of the breezy New York rooftop venue’s stiff 10 p.m. curfew. When the band returned, however, Gene Ween was conspicuously affixed with a large Band-Aid between his eyebrows. With what appeared to be blood visible on his hand, Gener powered through a (possibly fraudulent) injury in a move reminiscent of self-mutilating punk heroes like Iggy Pop. Contrasting that move of absolute metal (regardless of its authenticity), Ween closed out the evening with the gentle sing-along “Drifter In The Dark” moments before the clock struck 10 and our carriages all turned back into pumpkins.
Check out some fan-shot videos from Ween at The Rooftop At Pier 17 in New York City courtesy of The Stallion Mang. The band’s tour continues tonight, September 15th, in Providence, RI. For tickets and a full list of tour dates head here. Revisit Live For Live Music‘s nightly coverage of recent stops on the tour: Chicago | Madison | Newport.
Ween – “Frank” – 9/14/23
Setlist: Ween | The Rooftop At Pier 17 | New York, NY | 9/14/23
Set: Fiesta, Take Me Away, Touch My Tooter, Gabrielle, The Stallion pt 1, Light Me Up, Piss Up A Rope, I Don’t Want To Leave You On The Farm, She Wanted To Leave, Roses Are Free, The Mollusk, Frank, Learning To Love, Big Jilm, Mister Richard Smoker, Suckin’ Blood From The Devil’s Dick, Even If You Don’t, Object, The Golden Eel, Spinal Meningitis (Got Me Down), The Argus, Polka Dot Tail, Vallejo, Pollo Asado, Ocean Man, Loop De Loop, Buckingham Green, Ice Castles, The Final Alarm, I Don’t Want It, Tried And True, Squelch The Weasel, I Gots A Weasel, Wayne’s Pet Youngin’, Old Queen Cole, Stoker Ace, Your Party
Encore: Drifter In The Dark