Show Review - Orebolo 2/8/24 Port Chester, NY

Set 1: Lead the Way, Elizabeth, Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright^[1], Turbulence & The Night Rays, Not Alone^[2], No California^[3], Spain^[4], Dim Lights, So Ready

Set 2: Turned Clouds, Arrow^[5] > Where Is My Wild Rose^[6], Hot Tea, Mad World^[7], New Speedway Boogie^[8], A Western Sun, Arcadia

Encore: Arise

Coach's Notes:
    [1] Bob Dylan. FTP.
    [2] FTP as Orebolo.
    [3] Ilsey Juber. FTP.
    [4] Chick Corea. FTP as Orebolo.
    [5] Unfinished.
    [6] Chris Thompson. FTP.
    [7] Tears For Fears.
    [8] Grateful Dead.

Acoustic shows always have a special vibe to them – but last night’s Orebolo was something truly special.

The trio, comprised of Goose members Rick Mitarotonda, Peter Anspach, and Jeff Arevalo, took the stage at the legendary Capitol Theatre for the first of three nights – a significant feat for many reasons. Goose was headlining the same room less than a year ago, while I had seen Orebolo perform at the tiny Garcia’s as part of an Osiris Media interview during the same run – though I suspect they could have filled the Cap then. This weekend also marks the largest headlining Orebolo shows to date and their first three-night stand at the same venue.

Everything aligned as the band took the stage around 8:15 to a relatively quiet room – I will say that the chomping was not nearly as bad as I was expecting but had a huge presence in between songs, making it difficult to hear what the band was playing next until Mitarotonda began singing.

The show began with a gorgeous rendition of “Lead the Way,” a perfect way to introduce people to the live Orebolo sound – many in attendance last night were attending their first in-person show. Mitarotonda patiently built to a nice peak in the jam before handing the baton off to Anspach’s sole lead vocal of the night on “Elizabeth.”

The debut of Bob Dylan’s “Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright” became an immediate welcome addition to the catalogue – joining “Shelter From The Storm” as two incredible covers that suit Mitarotonda’s vocal so well. “Turbulence & The Night Rays” picked up the pace a little bit and had the crowd singing along before the long-awaited (at least for me) Orebolo debut of “Not Alone.” Ever since this beautiful ballad was performed by Goose at the Cap last March, I have been lobbying aggressively for it to make the jump to the acoustic setting – and it more than delivered with its poignant and emotional lyrics.

A left-field cover of Ilsey Juber’s “No California” came next, a song unfamiliar to pretty much everyone in the room given its 2023 release – but Mitarotonda is clearly a fan and dug into the upbeat-yet-moody vibe of the song. I definitely look forward to hearing this one again. Anspach took a second to shout out Arevalo’s upright bass work after the song, as well as call attention to newly-christened Goose drummer Cotter Ellis, who was in attendance last night. The packed house gave Ellis a resounding cheer amid the classic “GOOOOOOOOOSE” chant – an amazing welcome to the community.

The most surprising song of the night was a cover of Chick Corea’s “Spain” – not a song you usually hear in a setting like this, but the three musicians crushed the cover before Mitarotonda led into one of the most beautiful songs in the catalogue, “Dim Lights.”

One of the few songs to be Orebolo-exclusive, there was nary a dry eye in the house by the time they kicked off the energetic “So Ready” to close the first set.

Set 2 began with the uptempo acoustic arrangement of “Turned Clouds” before we were treated to some jamming within “Arrow.” The song transitioned nicely, unfinished, into Chris Thompson’s “Where Is My Wild Rose” – at this point I’m convinced that you could give Orebolo any song on the planet and they’d absolutely crush it.

“Hot Tea” was a surprise call – only having been played by Orebolo once before in December 2021, where Arevalo had to figure out the chord changes on the fly. Last night’s version was the improvisational highlight of the night, hitting into some nice major-key play reminiscent of last summer’s big Goose version from Portland. “Mad World” made its first acoustic appearance that didn’t emerge out of “Creatures” ahead of a groovy “New Speedway Boogie,” an especially appropriate cover choice given the room – another amazing singalong moment from last night.

“A Western Sun” saw the crowd grow incredibly quiet for the beautiful ballad, to the point where you could nearly hear a pin drop during the final verse. Kudos to those in attendance last night for making it easier to enjoy the music!

An “Arcadia” set closer and a perfect “Arise” encore ended off night one of Orebolo at the Cap – likely the strongest two-set performance of the band’s short history to date.

I cannot wait for the next two nights, because they will no doubt find ways to tug at our heartstrings and unveil new takes on familiar songs. It may not be Goose, but it’s pretty damn amazing.

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