Just got home from work. Caught the set last night (makes it set #5 from TGOE).
I don't know, this is by far the worst I've ever felt after a Greg show. Here's the set:
First - no, they did not play Tainted Importance. The night was just,
weird. I do agree with the above that this is the most "refined" Greg has ever sounded live. Things were tight, and yes, as much as it pains me, Berry had great chemistry with the rest of the band. But, as "refined" as things were, they just lacked
soul.
Starting everything with a Galore song, even if it's a Greg Galore song signals a massive sea change for me. Even though they were over 30 minutes late to start I was so excited when Greg took the stage. But after 7 years of waiting, they don't start with Celtic Tango, Nordic Storm, or Arabic Ensemble... they start with Walkin' Shepherd? Bleh. They ended up starting with
three Galore songs (if you include the sing-along) and only played one of the original "Sounds" songs (which they added vocals too... wtf?)
Christopherson screwed up his surprise intro by playing a chord too early. Everyone saw him. He wasn't really "there" all night. He played fine, but honestly when he returned I think all Greg fans meant that after 14 years of waiting, we finally were going to see Tainted live - at the very least, maybe a new song?
We got neither. They played a "new" song from the album that's been around for 5 years. They played it great. All the musicians there are clearly great at what they do - but it felt rigid, over-rehearsed, and frankly like they were playing for a paycheck. That's not TGOE for me. I listen to them for their acoustic creativity and unpredictability. This? This felt radio friendly.
It all would have been saved had they played Tainted Importance (what fans have been literally begging for since 2004). But because they started a half hour late, it was cut. I'm starting to think they'll never learn.