Coming into Chicago the day before, even extremely seasoned Happy Gigsters commented that the flight was one of the most turbulent they’d experienced in many a long year of touring. As the band checked into their hotel that afternoon the storm clouds gathered ominously. On the night as some of the band went out to dine the tornado warning sirens were going off and the city was engulfed in a huge storm. Despite the weather, however, the day off seems to have done the Crims a power of good and their first night in Chicago finds them extending the good work they’d managed on the second night in Nashville. Some of this may have been due to the crowd at Park West. Remember in the ‘70s when Chuckles Fripp remarked to a crowd, ‘I respond to enthusiasm’? Well, there was no shortage of that ingredient in Chicago.
The venue has often been hailed by Fripp and others in the band as being one of their favourite venues and when they take to the stage it’s easy to tell why. The room is buzzing with a giddy mix of anticipation and vast amounts of goodwill. It’s a lively performance here with more than a few missteps along the way but none which puncture the forward momentum which they quickly establish. Even the numbers which are well-known and well-travelled have a real bounce in their step. For example, take this especially fiery version of Indiscipline, strafed with Fripp’s splintering chords and Belew’s strangulated, wailing notes all juiced up by clattering detonations from Harrison and Mastelotto.
Belew's playing on its own is enough to get the adrenaline rushing, so by the time you add the others into that mix, something explosive really happens. The crowd at Park West are onto it in a second; several of the team - including band members remarked upon the crackling energy both on stage and coming off the crowd.
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