Show Review - Goose 6/7/25 Greenwood Village, CO

THE MYST ENDING

Goose returned to Fiddler’s Green Amphitheatre last night in beautiful Colorado to close out their Rocky Mountain run the way that they usually do – with a special night loaded with treats, pocket of excellent improv, and amazing flow.

After an exemplary first night with one of the best second sets in recent memory, the band picked up right where they left off to kick off the Saturday first set with “Your Direction.” The airy song proper gave way into a peppy jam segment reminiscent of “Welcome to Delta,” guitarist Rick Mitarotonda hanging on his wah pedal as he has been so fond of this summer.

Peter Anspach’s bright piano work buoyed the early first-set improv as the band hit a breezy peak before downshifting into some dark minor-key play. Drummer Cotter Ellis kept the pace going with a steady pocket as things got tense and dissonant, bassist Trevor Weekz emphasizing a repeated phrase alongside guitar and piano for the extra-deep pocket before Mitarotonda cued the ending of the jam and lit into “Torero.”

Working their way expertly through the dual-lead guitar composed section, Goose dropped into the song’s moody jam as Mitarotonda set some reverse loops. While not the longest or deepest, “Torero” continues to prove its worth as a great vehicle for the amazing music that comes from two-guitar Goose – and it was an excellent choice as the second half to an amazing 30-minute one/two punch with “Your Direction.”

No normal three-pack of openers to be found here.

The crowd went wild for “My Mind Has Been Consumed By Media” next, Ellis fronting the fast-paced Talking Heads vibe as Anspach peppered in wild computerized sounds from his OB-6 synth before the band cooled things down with “A Western Sun,” breaking the streak of songs debuted since the last Colorado run ahead of a romp through “Rockdale.”

Rather than extend the improv from that song, Mitarotonda led the band through a fiery peak before segueing, unfinished, into “Dustin Hoffman” for what would be the highlight jam of the show.

The steady funk pocket courtesy of Ellis and Weekz has been approached a little bit differently by Mitarotonda and Anspach during each of the three plays on this tour, and this time the two musicians opted for a more textural approach. Anspach set a floaty synth drone while Mitarotonda hit some rhythm guitar, the former then infusing some moody reverb clav into the space.

Ellis added in one stop/start moment for a cool angle on the jam as things progressed, Anspach gradually transitioning into some melodic work including some slick “Thatch” teases as Mitarotonda turned on his digital sauce effect.

Goose has sometimes struggled a little bit with breaking out of a funk pocket like the “Dustin” jam, but they had no trouble escaping into Type II space last night as Ellis loosened up his groove and Anspach returned to piano as the band drifted into a beautiful major key.

Mitarotonda went back to clean playing and began to cultivate some circular riffs that Ellis immediately matched with his signature rolling beat, Anspach joining the fray on some incredible active interplay that is such a hallmark of Goose’s current improvisational development but has largely been absent since the first night of tour in San Francisco.

Languishing in that gorgeous zone for a while, things eventually came back down to earth and hit a transitional space, the quartet beautifully taking their time before segueing into the first “Running Up That Hill” of 2025, much to the delight of the crowd.

Coming to an end before too long, the band emerged from the space with a four-chord jam that sounded eerily familiar, but hadn’t been heard in quite a long time…and I’m ashamed to admit how long it took me to clue in to what was happening to bring the first set to a close.

After being unfinished for 17 consecutive versions over a year and a half, Goose brought the ending of “Into the Myst” back last night in a HUGE way, closing the first set with an incredible explosion and release of energy that many diehard fans had been waiting for.

Returning for the second set, Mitarotonda introduced Ellis as “Booby Cancun” before ripping into “Big Modern!” to kick things off. “Modern” has really emerged as one of the most consistent jam vehicles in the Goose catalog over the course of its 2025 run so far, though last night broke the song’s streak of 20-minute versions that stretched back to Milwaukee.

Embarking at a brisk pace thanks to Ellis, Mitarotonda and Anspach wasted no time before beginning to build into a celebratory motif. Marimba piano and Weekz’ insistent playing supported Mitarotonda’s soaring leads through an incredible sustained burst of energy.

Coming down from the peak, Ellis pivoted into a pulsating disco beat as the band set up the first “fast:slow” since its debut in Mexico last month. The newest addition to the “So/Slow Ready” family felt well-practiced and tight, continuing the great flow of the set and kicking off the absolute party vibe that would dominate the next 40 minutes.

Just as we saw on Friday night, this new untz-style of jamming Goose has been leaning into seems be clicking really well for them, and the amazing energy of the “fast:slow” peak was infused heavily with that vibe thanks to Anspach’s aggressive arpeggiator and synth work.

Post-peak, the band rode the wave directly into to “Creatures” intro, Mitarotonda executing the segue FLAWLESSLY. The band shrugged off a brief flub as they tore through the song, adding some amazing extra mustard to the space-out before the final chorus. Dark, evil, sounds are MORE than welcome here!

Weekz’ bass died right as the jam was kicking off, forcing the other three musicians to cover and start the jam in a driving dark mode as opposed to continuing the disco vibe. Diving headlong into a tribal jam with incredible work from Ellis, Mitarotonda dirtied his tone and proceeded to obliterate everything in his path.

Normally, a motif like this will show up in “Creatures” as a way to build tension in between the disco-fied peaks (see 5/27 in San Francisco), but we were treated to several minutes of sustained, gritty shred before the band downshifted and led into the always-reliable late-set call for a raging “Sinnerman.”

Wrapping up 58 minutes straight of nonstop energy, Goose closed their final set in Colorado with the debut of “Jed Stone,” an old Vasudo track that many longtime fans have clamored for the band to introduce for years. The tender ballad is a more than welcome addition to the rotation and will hopefully become a staple in the shows and tours to come.

For the encore, the band opted for “The Empress of Organos,” eschewing the predicted (by me, at least) return to the ending of “Big Modern!” in favour of an all-too-brief excursion into a pounding, evil jam before concluding the exuberant song to bring the show and Fiddler’s run to a close.

They prove it every year, but Colorado Goose is a special event and should not be missed by anyone with the ability to attend – whether it’s big jams, song debuts, bustouts, or any other special thing they can throw in, the band will deliver in their home away from home.

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The band continues their trek east with two nights in St. Louis on Tuesday and Wednesday. Tune in via livestreams exclusively available to nugs All Access subscribers.

Watch our live Day After Show recap of last night on Always Almost There today at 4PM ET!