Ween brought its touring year to a close with a Sunday finale at The Fillmore Silver Spring in Maryland. The one-off show just over the border from Washington, D.C. came following a two-night stand at The Met in Philadelphia, PA. For the 2021 closer, Ween included a number of rarities that were taken out of retirement over the past few months.
The show started with the first “Birthday Boy” opener since 10/15/16, per Brownbase, with Gene Ween (Aaron Freeman) sporting an acoustic and Dean Ween (Mickey Melchiondo) hanging onto his trusty Fender Stratocaster. Gene remained acoustic as Deaner said they were “easing into this shit”, with another easygoing composition in “What Deaner Was Talkin’ About”. The band continued to build up steam through takes on favorites “Chocolate Town”, “Tried and True”, and “The Mollusk”, until Gener finally went electric for “The Golden Eel”.
Shortly thereafter, Ween once again revisited “I Wuz Nuthin'”, played for just the seventh time after being revived on October 3rd in Las Vegas after 20 years, nine months, and one day on the bench. Interspersed between other classics including “Piss Up A Rope”, “Roses Are Free”, “Touch My Tooter”, “Tick”, “Buckingham Green”, and “Spinal Meningitis (Got Me Down)” were a pair of back-to-back rarities, “Cornbread Red” and “Can U Taste The Waste?”. The former was played live for just the first time back on October 1st (also in Vegas), whereas the second made its comeback on October 29th in Denver. It appeared the band couldn’t get enough of “Can U Taste The Waste?” as Ween reprised the song twice immediately after playing it.
Related: Ween’s Mickey Melchiondo Addresses Phish-Haters In Ween Fan Group
The rarities kept coming with “Boing”, which the night before in Philly was busted out for the first time since 1994. Relative rarities “Mononucleosis” and “Laura” came next before a gradual return to the more well-versed catalog with “Frank”, “Sketches of Winkle”, “Doctor Rock”, and “Your Party” The band had one last rarity left for the main set, with “Vallejo” making just its second appearance since 2001. Returning for the encore, Ween rattled off one for the guys with “Boy’s Club” before “Never Squeal”, featuring a drum solo from Claude Coleman Jr. sandwiched in the middle, closed out the show and the year for the New Hope, PA favorites.
Watch a full-show video of Ween at The Fillmore Silver Spring on Sunday and visit The Stallion Mang for individual videos. Ween’s next show is a three-night run at The Capitol Theatre in Port Chester, NY on February 18th–20th. For tickets and a full list of dates visit the band’s website.
Ween – The Fillmore Silver Spring – Silver Spring, MD – 12/12/21
[Video: The Stallion Mang]
Setlist: Ween | The Fillmore Silver Spring | Silver Spring, MD | 12/12/21
Birthday Boy, What Deaner Was Talkin’ About, Chocolate Town, Tried and True, The Mollusk, The Golden Eel, Baby Bitch, I Wuz Nothin, Piss Up a Rope, Roses Are Free, Flutes of the Chi, Awesome Sound, El Camino, Albino Sunburned Girl, Touch My Tooter, Tick, Seconds, I Play It Off Legit, Buckingham Green, Mutilated Lips, Spinal Meningitis (Got Me Down), Cornbread Red, Can U Taste the Waste?, Can U Taste the Waste? (reprise), Can U Taste the Waste? (reprise), Boing, Mononucleosis, Laura, Frank, Demon Sweat, Sketches of Winkle, Doctor Rock, Your Party, Vallejo
Encore: Boy’s Club, Never Squeal > Drums > Never Squeal