Encore shmoncore. They played an amazingly beautiful flowing piece of music, is how I see it. How you define the different parts of the show is irrelevant. They are so focused and their energy is remarkable. They take a piss break/breather part-way through every show (intermission), and that is essentially it. Anyway.

I've been so bloody happy since seeing this show. What an exhilarating, moving, inspirational, spiritual, and just plain fucking fun experience. Saw 'em in Calgary and Edmonton and at Bonnaroo this tour, and I'm fairly certain that this was the tightest overall. I appreciated the further developments with the visuals (as an added bonus), and all of the intros/preludes/extended jams are so great. I thought the sound was done so well. Keenan could be heard quite well. Clearly the band doesn't intend to showcase his voice as this principal part of the music, but rather as just another instrument. Or at least I could make out what he was singing from the seats I had. The sound will of course differ at various areas of the arena. Many seem to think that night after night, the sound guy is doing a crap job. I would have to disagree. It's nice too that the sound system in that place doesn't sound like ass (like it's blown) like the arena in Edmonton.

As for the crowd, the response was sufficient, not overly joyous per se (it can be difficult to properly articulate various screams of appreciation when you're fuck high, for instance). However, I was very happy with the people that went. There was quite a lack of drunken, indiscriminate bullshit, as in yelling during the songs (I didn't hear any of the usual ceaseless "MAAAAAYYNAARRD!!!!"), nor was shit thrown at them. I like to think that friendly folk come with the territory. There were a couple of boos when Maynard requested (with a please) that no flash cameras be used during Wings/10,000 Jours. I guess that ruined the concert for them. Which is a shame, 'cause they played really well.

They all kicked a lot of ass. I thank them for coming all this way to play their hearts out, balls to the wall. I think my brain took in multiple days worth of stimuli, though it felt as though the whole thing lasted five minutes. In short, I enjoyed their unfettered art much, and it did something positive for me. That's all I got.

Oh, and I'm seeing them again this Saturday, and I still consider it to be a sort of "once in a lifetime experience".