Just got back from ROMP.
As it was last year; fantastically run and the organizers deserve congratulations.
Question: why is there now this overbearing trend by which bands that are rightly known for their virtuosity have decided to be more of a "jam band" other than just play songs!
I've wanted to see Greensky Bluegrass for a couple years and was really looking forward to it. Don't get me wrong, these cats are all great musicians. But, basically their ENTIRE set was nothing but these drawn out "jam"pieces, a la Phish. GSBG has a bunch of great "songs" that I, and the others that attended with me, truly love (Old Barns, Tuesday Letter, Bottle Dry, etc.)...they didn't do a single one of them; not one!
Punch Brothers-same song, second verse: the entire 1st half of their set were these utterly non-melodic, dissonant technical exercises. Don't get me wrong-when they did do the couple of traditional BG pieces, there were INSANE. But, I was disappointed.
The better balance was actually The Deadly Gentlemen. They did a good job a creating a balance between showing casing their unvarnished musicianship while still playing songs.
To be fair, I've never been the guy that could sit around and listen to Davis or Coltrane "push the boundaries" for hours on end.
I enjoy short showcases that are intended to highlight the unbelievable skill these guys have but, first and foremost, I come to hear songs! Am I wrong?
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