Last weekend, the Connecticut-based jam thrill ride known as Goose doled out two solid nights of high energy and creativity to the Colorado Front Range. Making their way back to Fiddler’s Green Amphitheatre outside of Denver nearly one year after their debut run at the venue, the slimmed-down quartet brought everything fans have come to expect and more. From incredible performance quality to a clean and dialed-in sound, illuminated by a cutting-edge light show, the whole package had veterans and newcomers alike on their feet dancing for hours and, at the end, only wanting more.
On Friday, the night got rolling with a raucous welcome from the audience while Peter Anspach returned the favor with a quick snap from his Polaroid Instamatic and a verbal salutation. Settling into position, everyone hit the road under cloudy skies and cool temperatures with a nearly twenty-minute hot take of “Drive” that told everyone to buckle in because this was going to be a long, fulfilling ride. Edgy and funky, this one got everyone out of their seats from the start. Leaving the lyrics in the rear-view mirror, the initial improvisation turned gritty and bluesy and eventually found the unit spreading out and playing into the gaps. Returning to the verse at the ten-minute mark, guitarist Rick Mitarotonda led the band into the wild countryside, threading every turn of that winding road, finally hitting a colorful peak that elated the heart like sunrise coming over the Rockies as first light breaks the ridge.
Feeling it as much as the thousands out in front of them, the band moved directly into a new track off of their latest album Everything Must Go. “How It Ends” is another Mitarotonda-led tune that carries the signature reflective journey that dots the Goose catalog. This being only the fifth version ever played since 2024, the beginning was a little choppy, but got corrected quickly and ended on a fevered high note. Coming in at over ten minutes as a new song, Goose showed their willingness to take chances without the expectation of perfection.
Keeping the setlist moving, the debut of the Creedence classic “Suzie Q” slinked into slot three straight out of “How It Ends.” Mitarotonda shredded this one as Trevor Weekz belted the bass and Anspach pounded out the piano vibe. Drummer Cotter Ellis smiled infectiously from the beginning to the end. Although the middle was certainly energizing, the overall delivery was short-lived at only five minutes and left at least this listener wanting more. Conversely, it is always great to see this band take on tunes older than they are for the love of the era and style, keeping setlists fresh and having fun trying on new things.
Sordid story turned redemption, the Goose staple “Turbulence and The Night Rays” resumed the double-digit trend of the set. A standard version, this one kept everyone grooving nonetheless. This tune, like so many in their songbook, illustrates the vocal compatibility of Mitarotonda and Anspach’s harmonies that add another layer of quality that gives weight to this band as a phenomenon and not just a passing fad. The midsection to the finishing climb was tasteful, patient, and uplifting.
Following the non-stop fire of the set thus far, the band entered the waters of “Indian River.” Another staple in the catalog, this one that reads more like reggae than India, carried something a little extra special. For the first time in 298 shows, this one contained the rare Sanskrit verse, a set of additional lyrics pulled from the Bhagavad Gita, a sacred Indian text written in the 2nd century B.C., that translate to “That which pervades the entire body, know it to be indestructible; nothing can destroy the imperishable soul.” Although most versions tend towards the fifteen-minute mark, this one was no slouch at ten minutes, and for those in the know, the additional spiritual stanza signaled that the band was feeling just as special as those digging what they were laying down.
Segueing into the final piece of the set, the band shifted gears and took it to the jungle with the upbeat fan favorite “Animal” and certainly had the place swinging and singing along. Although first introduced in 2022, this one has finally found a home on the latest album. Five minutes into this beast, the band laid back and started building with Anspach’s piano and Mitarotonda’s delicate guitar work playing off each other. Weekz filled in the gaps, climbing from the low to the high and back again, lacing it all up with a great foundation and some sweet, sweet melody while Ellis kept everyone navigating the run with his precision timekeeping. At ten minutes, Mitarotonda began turning the groove upward, flexing and pulling, the rest of the band grinning and getting with it, happy to take the direction. The final ascension plateaued at four minutes of great interplay before returning to the head and sending everyone to set break on a high note.
Getting into the second set, the band opened with the good vibes of “Tumble.” This version hit the twenty-minute mark, continuing the jam precedent set in the opening frame. Lyrically, this one challenges the perception of adversity, stating that hardship is nothing more than another moment to listen and learn what life is trying to teach rather than being circumstantial bad luck without intent. It is nuggets like these that are found throughout the lyrics of the band that have certainly contributed to their rise within the jam-band culture. Musically, this one shifted a few minutes in and went from a poppy reggae vibe to a more Middle Eastern flavor, and Ellis’ syncopated skill just shined with all the changes. At six minutes, the place started getting bounced by the band and the dance-party switch flipped. Anspach clawed at the clavinet and Mitarotonda chopped the axe and worked the wah-wah. Ellis hunched over the kit like a troll, bobbing, weaving, and smiling like HE was sitting in the front row while Weekz stoically dripped the bubbly ooze from his fingertips. At fifteen minutes, the band pulled back on the throttle and turned to the effects, enveloping the crowd with a hypnotizing drone that left many swaying with eyes closed and ears wide open.
As the drone turned to ether, the spunky “Factory Fiction” relit the fuse on the dance party. This high-paced piece just runs the whole time and contains a multitude of changes. This one always gets a great crowd reaction with the lyrical references to “All the freaks wanna come at night” and “May the nighttime be your home,” and this night was no different. Although it was first introduced in 2016, this one has only been played twenty-four times, possibly due to its complexity, which certainly alluded again to how much the band was feeling on point. Also of note, this version contained “Low Rider” teases from Mitarotonda, which was a first for this piece. Finishing the lyrics at nine minutes, dynamic structure turned watery soundscape, filling the space with resonating echoes, tom fills, and cymbal washes under the crush of Weekz’s low rumble. Deep-sea exploration or the void of space, the band splashed around in the ethereal for multiple minutes, taking listeners on a trip inward and upward.
Leaving many holding their breath in the vacuum, the band eventually returned to atmosphere and morphed beautifully into a cover of Jim James’ think-piece “State of the Art (A.E.I.O.U.).” Like a hand in glove, the transition couldn’t have been more seamless and again illustrated the level that this band is able to bring in the live setting. Beginning with Mitarotonda gently belting out the first few stanzas with his eyes closed, guided only by Anspach’s piano chords, the vocals reverberated into the night and raised more than a few eyebrows at the conviction in his voice. Ellis and Weekz came in on point and rounded out the mix oh so sweetly. The closing push was red-hot and marked with a final punch and swell, finally finding the band pausing for its first breath after forty-two minutes of inspired playing.
Taking in the pleasures of the crowd and visibly feeling pretty good about the set so far, the quartet hit refresh and got back to it. Without any sort of drag in their conveyance, the band channeled another upbeat choice in “Echo of a Rose.” This one would contain a surprise center that would leave everyone very fulfilled. Wrapping up the “Rose” lyrics, the band bore down and Ellis took the reins, driving the four-wheeled engine through a short but solid take on the Talking Heads’ “Psycho Killer.” The reason? Although Goose has performed this one three other times in the past, this version carried some significance. On June 5th, 1975, the Talking Heads performed their first documented live performance as a band, and now fifty years later (and a day), the band seemingly wanted to honor their music and good name in front of an audience who certainly embraced the moment even if they did not catch the reference. With the (Heads) nod completed, Mitarotonda, Anspach, Weekz, and Ellis got back to business and resumed the jam that had segued them out of “Echo of a Rose.” Like a well-oiled machine firing on all cylinders, the band grooved hard, keeping everyone’s attention locked in. Somewhere between prog rock and electronica, Fiddler’s Green was the place to be on Friday night for those wanting to take in some of the best improvisation going these days. This second act of “Echo” would blow by in a little more than eleven minutes of unrelenting, blinding, and pulsing energy like some kind of beast consuming everything in sight.
Although the band could have walked away on that highest of notes, instead they moved back to finish the “Factory Fiction” they started more than forty minutes prior. Of note, not only did they complete the piece, but this would mark the first time in their setlist history that the tune would be split into two pieces in a set. Coming in at nearly thirteen glorious minutes, the coda packed a punch and was as strong as any other part of the frame—or the evening, for that matter. Starting off slow and thick and then pushing into power-chord country, it certainly seemed initially that the set closer was just going to go high and leave everyone awash in euphoria at its close. Instead, it did have all the typical makings of the big finish, but then resorted to major-minor dissonant interplay that sent the space on tilt for multiple minutes in a chaotic spin before finally landing the big finish, the perfect combination that closed out one hell of a wild ride.
With a short pause for the encore, the band returned and shared a very healthy and groovy “Arcadia,” sending everyone out of the venue on the good foot. Nearly seventeen minutes, this one bopped with a ton of energy, and even after two full, almost non-stop sets, the band played and sang with enough verve that they seemingly could have gone for more. This version afforded a breakdown halfway through and had Mitarotonda and Anspach bouncing off of each other with some sweet funk while Weekz laid it on thick and Ellis kept it all so very deep in the pocket, the rhythm section making it look so easy.
At the end of night one, those who chose to get loose with the Goose were not disappointed, and the band’s performance only proved to stoke the fire of excitement and anticipation of what they would share on Saturday.
Although Goose proved themselves more than capable of melting faces throughout the night, no review would be complete without huge shout-outs to those who make the band shine in the visual and auditory capacities. Lighting director Andrew Goedde knocked it out of the park Friday night and is certainly enjoying many new attributes on this tour and pushing them to the limit. The array of colors was dynamic, and his configurations made it hard to close one’s eyes out of fear of missing something spawned from his creative brain. Regarding the sound, the power couple of Sam Bardani and Eric Loomis had every note dialed in from the start. The separation and balance were discernible and no one player overpowered any other. The clarity with which the audio team delivered the magic that is Goose certainly received the “pro-style” stamp of approval for opening night at Fiddler’s Green. That stated, anyone who has followed Goose consistently knows that there is a significant team that goes into making the Goose experience and community what it is, and for all the unsung heroes who play their part in setting the stage night after night for liftoff, thank you for making this band and this world a better place to celebrate the experience of live music.
