Matt's high hat accents are bursts of energy early
in Why Go. It's a hard hitting opener, with everyone sounding good. Ed's voice
pops a bit once but nothing to distract from the raw energy. This is one of the
best versions of MYM I've heard. The intro guitar work sounds interesting and
tight tonight. Mike's effects work wonders during the song, most noticeably in
the intro and outro. Corduroy effortlessly follows in good fashion. Ed's vocals
are mixed just right for me in terms of levels. Mike goes absent for about 10
seconds around the time of the second verse. It’s less noticeable on speakers
than headphones. The reworded bridge sounds great. Ed's soft, melodic vocals
are gorgeous. I love that melody in the
bridge now. Matt's cymbals have a nice "ping" to them (probably his
Ride cymbal). Being at the show, these opening songs just felt so right. The
energy was heavy and where I was at in the balcony, Mike and Ed were very high
in the mix compared to my other shows I've seen. It was simply awesome sonically.
Mike's solo in Corduroy is just that as well. Having Brain of J and Faithfull
at this point in the setlist and back to back, I was in Yield heaven. Ed's
vocals hold mostly strong for both. This flow is interesting, energetic, and
feels like it possesses a darker edge tonally. I had heard all these songs
before, but was completely into the show; as if absorbed by the music. Mike and
Stone's guitar tones for Faithfull are thick, crunchy, and upfront.
Ed greets the audience after Faithfull, and notes
what a beautiful place Hampton is. I didn't get to see the city much while I
was there, but my father and I were in awe of how gorgeous the Hampton Coliseum
was on the outside. It's an awesome venue and has such an interesting feel. The
inside was fairly dark, looked older/retro (it is), and had that legendary feel
to it. It was historic in its own nature, and is incredibly intimate at around
9,000 capacity. The sound was crystal clear in the balcony. I could separate
each instrument and feel their power. A feeling I'll always recall as utmost
sincere.
The next stretch of songs works incredibly well
together and creates superb flow. I Am Mine is introduced with a story similar
to as it's told on Cville 13, for obvious reasons of importance. This version
is quality, especially from Matt. The added snare drum accents from Matt give
the song some added urgency and tension. Moving into Jeremy immediately after
is mid-tempo flow at its very best. Doing so creates that hard, darker edge
that is established through that kind of flow, Porto Alegre 2011 is another example.
This was my father’s third show seeing PJ with me, and the first time he heard
Jeremy. It was great to see him enjoy it. The crowd seemed into it as well.
Stone is well up into the mix towards the end of the classic. Smooth set flow
continues moving into Setting Forth-NFY-Even Flow. Interestingly, this was the
only time NFY was played this tour, and it was a wonderful version. It's tight,
and features a haunting Modern Girl tag. Ed brags on the crowd’s singing.
Jeff's grooves are infections in Even Flow, Stone creates some
interesting/scratchy effects, and Matt's solo is potent with a hint of tribal
work. Although it's a live staple, this is an exciting rendition of Even Flow
with a lot of passion. While a "hits heavy" section as Daughter
follows, the show retains its edginess with two excellent tags. The first I
don't recognize, "Gonna survive, gonna get through" but it's
reminiscent of the often haunting 2000 tour tags that I have missed so dearly.
Not to mention, we receive an It's Ok tag. I had never heard it before, and
this was my 8th show. Some of the guitar work in it is a little off for just a
few seconds, but never atrocious and they fix it quickly. After some of the
songs that were to come later in the set, it was most needed for me,
personally, to hear this tag. Ed again compliments the audience's singing and it
being a good room for it.
Ed dedicates the next one for the teachers out
there. Long Road is played mid set, and shocked me to the point it took me a
few seconds to realize what it was! I recall Ed's vocals filling up the room,
complete with depth and clarity, and a vast amount of passion. It's a slightly
harder version of the tune, as Matt is mixed highly and his tom toms sound
deep. It gives the song extra power, and worked even better live in person. He
adds extra beats on the snare drum, making the bridge sound much more driving
than normal. What a way for me to hear this gem for the first time live!
Without pause, we head into Wishlist. To me that's an example of a well-crafted
setlist transition, simply magic. Listen to Matt's soft snare roll at 3:30 to
transition from one section to another in Wishlist; it's that subtle work that
gives me chills. Mike's delicate riffs during the outro are elegant too. I
might not be in the majority on this one, but Long Road-Wishlist-Sirens is just
a perfect melodic trio. Ed improvs some of the lyrics, sounds into the song
100%, and his vocal melodies are wonderful in Sirens. His falsettos are not as
harsh and he sings some parts differently. It results in a more powerful
version to me. Matt adds some extra hits too coming out of the bridge that adds
excitement to the live staple. This section of softer numbers here in the main
set has been striking. While some will consider it nothing but "hits
heavy,” the performance and flow are stellar and worthy of much praise.
Ed notes that the next one is a request, a good one.
When Habit started, I rocked out hard. It was a first for me to hear live, and
greatly appreciated. It holds up better in a live setting than on boot,
although it's probably one of the slightly better versions I've heard from the
last ten years of boots. The guitars are a smidgen off at times to me but still
retain an appropriate punky, trashy kind of flavor. GTF calms us down some
afterwards. Lukin-RVM concludes a wonderful, driving main set. Lukin was yet
another first for me to receive live and was so fun to have it before RVM.
Mike's spacey riffs on the jam in RVM are sweet! Matt adds a couple of the
tribal like hits for good measure. I adored this main set and it holds up on
bootleg nicely, well representing the show.
I decided last minute, after hearing Bruce had
cancelled his NC show due to the law that was passed there, to get tickets for
this show. I had a feeling PJ would do the same and Raleigh would be cancelled.
Therefore, Hampton was my insurance policy just in case that occurred. I was
sitting in the parking lot at the Hampton Coliseum having a few beers with my
pops, and received the email notifying the cancellation of Raleigh. I was only
disappointed for a moment, selfishly, then I became utmost appreciative that my
favorite band had made the right decision. As a result, I was more pumped for
this gig and felt the band had done the best thing. Listening to Ed address the
decision live that night was clearly challenging for him because they did not
want to cancel, and you could see the sincerity in his eyes and hear it in his
voice. I Am A Patriot is one of my favorite covers, and to hear it that night
in an effective spot (after his speech) in the set was a highlight. Much like
his speech, Ed’s vocals sound passionate and rich. In the bridge of SBM, Ed has
a moment where he messes up. "Clarence, you let me down man! He's jealous
of that fuckin guitar!" Cock measuring Ed's uke, Clarence, against Mike's
big white guitar is hilarious; as is hearing Ed quickly singing through SBM to
figure out where he is at in the song. It was a priceless moment. They were
having fun that night, lots of smiles, and seemed to enjoy the crowd (as Mike
noted in a Rolling Stone interview recently).
When Ed sang, "It's going to be ok,"
during an evocative version of Come Back, I broke down emotionally. For
personal reasons, it's the most challenging song in their catalogue to hear. It
was a cathartic and emotional moment for me. Come Back is more beautiful and
powerful live than I could have imagined. Mike's guitar was prominent in the
mix and the notes hit me like a ton of bricks. Sad was a surprise and Ed nailed
the lyrics. The static that has been plaguing the 2015 and 2016 boots is
somewhat prominent on Sad here. It's unfortunate because it's a tight, active version.
Ed's voice is strong, and Mike sounds awesome with tasty guitar effects. The
only truly rough sounding play tonight is on LB due to Ed missing much of his
guitar work and lyrics. He was trying to get a guy out of the crowd who was
being a knucklehead. Live it didn't sound as rough, but on the bootleg it is.
Maybe Stone was concerned at that moment too, as his playing is ropey, while Ed
just stops. Maybe the worst version of LB I've heard, it never gets back on
track energetically and Ed's vocals are fairly weak in the last bit.
Ed starts a sing along with the crowd after LB and
has some fun with a guy in the crowd who looks like he might cause trouble. He
didn't, but just had that look apparently to Ed (jokingly); it was another
funny moment in the show. In My Tree is played as a request, and not originally
on the setlist. The static/clipping in the audio mix is more distracting here; the
only song where it's truly discerning. It's bathed all over Ed's vocals and is
a bit harsh on the ears. However, it is a terrific rendition of the No Code
number. Ed's vocals soar with power, Matt’s drumming is impeccable with extra
fills and snare hits, and Jeff sounds amazing. I recall at the show thinking
how good and groovy Jeff sounded on that one. Breath is given another play, two
nights in a row! Both versions are good, the solo/jam is quite spirited on this
one from all. Jeff, again, is just on fire on Breath. His bass lines had me
humming them afterwards. Ed essentially gets the lyrics right, I think one word
was missed and mumbled. Breath-DTE-Porch are a perfect trio, they flow right
into one another energetically. Ed struggles a tad in DTE, but Mike (the riffs)
and Stone (that solo) are on fire. Porch rocks hard with its extra solid solo.
Jeff and Stone are killing it with infectious riffs galore. Matt adds some
slick, yet subtle, double bass work to good measure. Aside from the version of
LB, which really wasn't the band's fault, it's a lively first encore and
probably one of the longer ones of this tour. The main set is stronger and
tighter, but this encore does have an intriguing, almost randomness about it.
Possessing some unique song choices and placements, along with robust
performances, it has a nice feel to it. The play on LB does distract somewhat,
but is understandable to protect the crowd. To illustrate one reason why the
band means so much to me, it was emotionally overwhelming for me at the time
hearing Come Back. The power of the band's music is dense, true, cathartic, and
simply an absolute power live.
Ed thanks an audience member for his new favorite
hat, which I believe said “Sanders/Warren 2016” on it. It is wonderful to hear
Ed say, "Feel the Bern!" Small Town, played to the back of the stage,
gently guides us into the final stretch. Ed's voice sounds relaxed and kind of
reminded me of the 2005 vocals and boot sound. Mike gets on the microphone to
address great advocators and organizations being represented in the crowd.
Inside Job is dedicated to them. I'm not sure if the guitars are 100% accurate
throughout, but being the first time played since 2013, it sounds really,
really good. Stone and Mike are upfront in the mix, while Jeff's subtle bass
notes are still deeply felt. Having Inside Job late in the set like this works
wonders, and makes the song feel even more like the epic it is. Ed's vocals are
strong, and seeing Mike with the double neck guitar live and playing such a
passionate tune left me in awe; yet another emotional experience felt at this
gig for me. Inside Job-Black combo just doesn't get any better. Two heartfelt
songs back to back, played with the utmost care and showcasing Mike's
abilities, are well beyond the price of the MP3 alone. Matt's drum fills and hard
hitting dynamics are breathtaking. He is firing on all cylinders during this
play on Black. Coming out of the solo, listen to Mike's spine tingling riffs, they’re
poignant. "We belong together" tag is played as well.
Alive naturally follows, accompanied with more
inspiring work from Matt. Build up drum patterns, fills, random open high hat
hits, and being mixed very well, Matt's drumming is ear candy. I appreciate
having his cymbals being mixed at a level that is appropriate and less bright
than 2013/2014 where they became a tad distracting and too brash. I believe he
was using different cymbals this tour, as I noticed at the gigs. They sound
darker, smoother, and more subtle. RITFW features a tight, heavy, and thick
sounding intro. This audio mix brings out some of the best in these songs that I’ve
heard in a while! Stone's solo is simply sick. Double bass from Matt on the
outro of RITFW had me head banging, plus he adds several hits on the high
pitched tom/timbale that he used this tour that everyone seems to love. I don't
think I've heard a version of the classic cover that rocks any harder than this
and it gave me chills. To immediately follow that up with a somber Indifference
is a jolt, but in an effective manner. Having been blessed to hear it twice in
a row, with Greenville before it, I couldn't ask for a more fitting conclusion to
this emotional show for me. If encore one lacked just a little bit due to a
ropey LB, encore two more than made up for it. The performances in encore two,
especially from Matt, are truly powerhouses.
What will probably be written as the black sheep of
the incredible 2016 tour, Hampton is an underrated gem, in my opinion. Being
overly hyped beforehand and played on the night of a largely controversial
decision, I believe Hampton was almost destined, if you will, to be jaded in
the minds of some before the show even began. However, the gig was utmost
fulfilling for me all around. The boot reinforces that view for me and brought
back every feeling I had in person. Aside from the issue in LB and some
noticeable clipping in the audio on Sad and IMT, I had a fantastic experience
listening to this bootleg. Encore one lost me a tad with those couple
aforementioned problems, but the main set and encore two are fantastic showings
from the group. Matt is playing the best I have heard him since probably 2000.
His drum work is more tribal, energetic, and vigorous. The flow of the Hampton 2016
boot, notably in the main set and encore two, is quality. The method by which
the set is crafted and the songs are arranged is almost consistently well
thought out and brings out the best in the song selection. In a word, this
bootleg is “dynamic,” in both its set flow and its powerful performances. For
me, an emotional show which I’ll never forget.
-Marcus