Over the years, Fugazi played just three gigs on Ian’s birthday, April 16. This recording presents the second of these birthday shows, the day Ian turned 31 years old, 22 years ago today, with the other two concerts having taken place in 1988 and 2001 respectively.
Still, the unfortunate fact of the matter is that, on this particular occasion, Fugazi finds itself in front of some individuals who feel a 5 dollar concert ticket not only entitles them to express gratuitous insults right off the bat, but also to throw a shoe at Ian a couple of songs into the set to add to their sense of fun and merriment.
“Is this some bizarre ritual?”, Ian asks by way of introduction and before even having played a single note. "Has it gotten to the point now where we don’t even need to have music anymore for people to become beach balls? You know I think that leads us to one… Wait, man. What have I done? I have done nothing yet. I’m an asshole? Do you want your money back? Get the fuck out of here. You don’t come in here and call me an asshole.“ The tone is set.
After some more verbal pleasantries, the band eventually launches into the set at full tilt and manages to get only 3 songs in before the shoe incident, after which Ian decides on the only sensible thing to do. A 5 dollar bill serves as a full refund as Ian personally singles out and escorts an obstinate knucklehead to the door.
Fortunately, the course of events significantly changes for the better soon after, as the band busts out a tremendous performance which includes highlight renderings of Shut the Door, Latin Roots, Instrument, Exit Only, Give Me The Cure (notice how Ian adds to the mood by refraining from playing guitar during Guy’s first couple of lines), Returning the Screw, Long Division (the guitars beautifully catch some reverb here), Runaway Return, Promises, the spontaneous little jam leading into Repeater or Two Beats Off.
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All in all, the set list is quite varied and draws from all available albums, as well as from the In On The Kill Taker record that would see its release about two and a half months later.
Further, it is worth mentioning that the performance presented here played out at another remarkable location, the Bomb Factory in Dallas, Texas. According to the website of the venue, "In the early 1900s, the building was used to manufacture Ford automobiles. During WWII, the building was used to manufacture bombs and ammunitions for armed forces, hence the name, ‘Bomb Factory’. In the mid 1990’s, the building was converted to a music/event venue and hosted bands such as PHISH, Radiohead, Dave Matthews Band, Sonic Youth, The Ramones, INXS, Nine Inch Nails, and Fugazi at their peak. Utilizing only the existing foundation and walls, the complete multimillion dollar redesign will make Bomb Factory Dallas’ premier Live Music Venue.”
The sound quality of the recording is really good in my book, as it has a certain rawness to it and as such seems to tie in perfectly with the mood at hand. Also, note that Joe discernibly shines through most of this show (cf. Joe #1, Shut the Door, Shut the Door, Instrument, Returning the Screw, Long Division or Promises), driving that bass, laying it out thick, finger lickin’ good. The only drawback being that the show is incomplete, as Stacks cuts off untimely.
Either way, I will consider this great recording another gift to the world, for which I sincerely thank the gentlemen in the band or anyone involved in making it happen. And a Happy fucking Birthday to you, Ian.

I did not attend this show, but I can attest that this is a very entertaining show to download. The Shoe stuff starts right off the bat and sets the tone for the rest of the set. Worth the $5! Don't throw shoes at people folks.

I remember this show too! Blue 5 dollar tickets, hot as hell, shoe-dude. They played 'Kill taker' songs before the album had come out, so they were pushing a little newer and weirder sound without the benefit of a primed audience. This was also before Bedhead became a national act, and it was one of their first big shows. I remember thinking 'WTF?? These guys aren't hard!" , only to be taken in by their wall of sound. Looking back I appreciate how much Fugazi and co supported and pushed new acts like this. They were constantly pushing to recognize the bigger picture, while taking up only a humble corner of it.

I can't believe I go to this link and the first thing I see are comments about the shoe incident. Great stuff.

My word, this was an amazing show. The first Fugazi show I'd ever been to. They left me wordless. I am amazed by the recording quality, too!

I was at this show as well and vividly remember the shoe incident. I've always had a great respect for the band and the fact that they appreciate and protect fans who just want to come out and enjoy a night of great music. I also remember that the crowd actually sang happy birthday to Ian.

I was at this show. My memories: loud as fuck...my ears rang for a day afterward; Ian jumped into the crowd and gave a douchebag his $5 back and led him to the exit b/c the guy threw a shoe at him. I believe the guy was also yelling for them to minor threat songs the entire time (prior to being kicked out). The next time fugazi came to Dallas, Ian recalled this night as being his bday and was bummed when, after the show, he went to a cafe that was still open and a little girl in line in front of him stared at him and said he was mean--he didn't say anything to her before that moment--she said he was mean based solely off of looking at him.