Fugazi's second night at the RPM Warehouse in Toronto during the fall 1993 tour. They visited four Canadian cities during that stint and stayed in Toronto for a double feature. The show's intro has Ian telling about his guitar troubles and some patrons answer rather unpolitely which leads to some funny counters from the band. Facet Squared then thunders out of the speakers in the anthemic way that's always so delightful.
The sound is pretty typical of the era. Very good in general, maybe a just little bit muddy with the low end. There's just enough nice shimmer on the cymbals, snare and guitars to counter the boominess. Very powerful recording that represents the unified Fugazi aural assault very well. There's some distortion caught on tape during the loudest moments but it's nothing too bad. It actually gives angry songs like Smallpox Champion and Great Cop a cool, noisy edge. No complaints about the added effects, delays etc. either.
The band starts the evening with a great flow of rockers. A massive Reclamation is an early highlight with its extended intro. Rend It almost stops before it even really begins due to stage diving but Ian's scolding works and a powerful display of the song follows.
Repeater gets the usual awesome, explosive performance surprisingly early in the set and is followed by Two Beats Off. The latter gets a really special rendition that's superbly dynamic and heavy. The song's hypnotic, slowed down first part contrasts magnificently with the hastiness of Repeater.
Ian and Guy are very connected this night. This is felt in the fiery mid-show row of classics starting with Suggestion, going through a rocking Margin Walker and ending with Waiting Room. The call and response vocalization of those early tracks work especially well here.
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23 Beats Off makes an appearance and it's a delight not only because it's a rare beast but because it's such a wonderful composition. The chords in the verses sound so huge here. A seamless transition to Cassavettes is sure to put a smile on the face. KYEO brings the main set to a close with a bang. Said song is one of the rarest from the fall 93 tour with its mere five renditions.
The band comes back for the encore and once again attempts to have a friendly chat with the audience, only to be met with displeased yelling and frivolous commentary. It's all good fun though and the band proceed to leave everything on the stage with amazing renditions of Great Cop, Public Witness Program and a huge, heavy, noisy Shut The Door where Ian and Guy squeeze all hell out of their guitars. To contrast, the instrumental early version of Fell, Destroyed ends the evening peacefully.
No problem recommending this tape. A complete, steady recording that has an above average sound quality all the way through. Some very special song renditions and a few rare tracks appearing make this entry all the better.
1. | Intro | |
2. | Facet Squared | |
3. | Sieve-Fisted Find | |
4. | Reclamation | |
5. | Rend It | |
6. | Repeater | |
7. | Two Beats Off | |
8. | Interlude 1 | |
9. | Suggestion | |
10. | Margin Walker | |
11. | Waiting Room | |
12. | Interlude 2 | |
13. | Smallpox Champion | |
14. | Returning The Screw | |
15. | Interlude 3 | |
16. | Dear Justice Letter | |
17. | Interlude 4 | |
18. | 23 Beats Off | |
19. | Cassavetes | |
20. | Interlude 5 | |
21. | KYEO | |
22. | Encore | |
23. | Great Cop | |
24. | Public Witness Program | |
25. | Shut the Door | |
26. | Outro |
Please Note: Available recordings have been mastered to correct for volume shifts, drop outs, etc. but some sonic anomalies will still exist, especially early in the set when the mix is being settled. The band has rated each show for sound quality and set the general price of a download at $5 per show. If you have a different price in mind feel free to utilize the alternative pricing option.
There's an extra track in the download: track 26 is 'Fell, Destroyed Instrumental' and track 27 is 'Outro'.