LIVE UNO

Sandwiched between a nine second introduction and a conclusion that is twice as long, the band performs two of their lengthiest pieces- as one complete track. Knowing their work from the studio albums, this can be a trying experience, perhaps undertaken only by those who can endure (or better yet, actually enjoy) extended, rambling, semi-psychedelic jams. There's a steady and ever-reliable bass, straggling drums, a wah guitar doing a respectable job on rhythm, and a slide guitar more or less handling the lead. As with their studio albums, the two guitars are very dirty, often with one doing one thing on the left side of the mix and the other doing something quite different on the right (kind of like American politics, yes?), some of which works and quite a bit makes one begin to reach for the stop button. Ultimately, it's thirty-seven minutes of waiting for things to be over, and this time, there are no redeeming moments of brilliance like "Dirt" to salvage it. At several points throughout this, I could almost hear a middle-aged father shouting out to his garage, "Turn that racket down!" Fans of repetitive jams- come and feed. Everyone else is fairly safe to move along.