Gord was as usual an eccentric goof and a LOT of fun to watch. At one point he apparently said "I'm 40 and I'm still doing this shit?!" after executing a particularly agile feat of twisted limbs and teetering mic stands, then went off into yet another of many (incomprehensible) rants. Classic.

The rest of the band seemed fairly tight, energetic and 'into it', except the grimacing Johnny Fay who'd been having a lot of troubles with his kit setup.

Highlights:
GD leaping frantically after and between each line of Courage
GD pacing back and forth majestically during the first portion of Dark Canuck
Unplucked Gems -> Dire Wolf
GD going HOG FUCKING WILD during Fire In The Hole, among others
GD GD GD GD GD GD GD
Absolute stellar, dead-on renditions of Don't Wake Daddy, My Music At Work and The Dark Canuck
Some BEAUTIFUL lighting displays (I think the operator was sitting high atop the stage next to the actual gear ... at one particular moment the band were silhouetted against the left and right walls of the theatre in a kind of shimmering green wash, very intoxicating.)

Lowlights:
Too short
Predictable setlist
Fairly by-the-numbers takes on Little Bones, Lake Fever, some others
Subpar sound (considering I paid a lot of money and was seated close to the stage)
Some guy a few rows ahead making hand/body gestures in correlation to each lyric... this isn't an interpretive dance class, dude.

The crowd was pretty well-behaved (hey, it's the Jubilee) but I wish people would realize there are points in certain songs when you just have to shut up and listen. Filling every quiet moment with ear-shattering hoots and hollars is not my idea of showing a band your appreciation. I think they actually drowned out the music on several occasions.

Sam Roberts' set was very good and should make a pretty lasting impression, despite some of his 'pump you up' rock singer flourishes and making the mistake of asking a bunch of Prariefolk to sing along to the chorus, "S-O-C-I-A-L-I-S-M".

Also worth noting: I think they played an old Copyright album nearly in its entirety during the intermission -- reminds me I have to get around to picking that up one of these days. Very cool.

Anyhoo. 3/5 overall. Satisfied but not that heart-beating-in-chest, harrowing gig withdrawl symptoms of a truly great show.

I was about 5 rows back from the stage, dead center. I've been closer, but I have no complaints.

The first thing I have to mention is how much better the sound quality was in the Jube than in Skyreach. I realize that's to be expected, but it was really a night and day difference.

Sam Roberts was good - I'd seen a couple of "next big thing" type stories about him, but was not too familiar with his work. He puts on a great live show. The s-o-c-i-a-l-i-s-m chant was really kind of funny (I have to wonder how well it played in Calgary, Ralph Klein's stomping grounds)  Anyway, good set, energetic band. A solid opening act.

It must be noted that the crowd avoided the Hip chant *almost* entirely.. I think I heard it for about 2 seconds by a few drunkards
in the back. Well done everyone else.

The Hip put on their usual excellent show.

 Among the many moments that stand out:

- Gord thrashing around and watching his own shadows on the walls beside the stage
- after 100th Meridian, there was an enormous wave of crowd noise, which tapered off to near silence as the boys led into their next song (memory fails me here). Gord says quietly "And that's when the screaming stopped..."
- "This is called Don't Wake Daddy. I totally recommend taking your shoes off for this one"
- finally, Gord was OFF HIS ASS during the guitar bits of Fire in the Hole. Picture stobe lights flashing and GD straddling his mic stand, riding it like a bull, sort of standing up and twisting the whole business around behind and back under him... its tough to describe.
Dark Canuck kicks ass live. Dire Wolf as well. Use it up was good and Good Life was just beautiful.

Now, for the inevitable complaint section.

I don't know how many times I've seen this band live (lots!) and I've heard Nautical Disaster once. ONCE!!!
"WHO DO I NEED TO SLEEP WITH TO HEAR NAUTICAL DISASTER PLAYED LIVE??"

m.r.t. (99% blissed)

Downie and mates sizzle in Jube's comfy confines
By FISH GRIWKOWSKY, EDMONTON SUN FREELANCE

Hey, skinny rock boys: the Tragically Hip aren't ready to roll over yet. Instead, they played the very best set I've ever seen by a Kingston band, and that's something like eight times now. It was a dream night at the Jube, the lighting was trippy and three-dimensional, the Gord Downie factor was predictably insane. And the crowd of 2,700, from the first second of 2002's Silver Jet, were on their sneakers. You don't need a standing ovation when everyone's already standing. You do get one automatically, of course.

But the set, the choice of songs, was what really nuked all bad news, oiled the big chain. Geared at the art fans, the hosers alike, rare bones like Don't Wake Daddy, 100th Meridian and Gift Shop were stripped of flesh, reassembled under neon purple in an auditorium that many had graduated in, the best room in town for a bunch of guys who dance funny for a living. Even up on the second balcony, the rockers hung over. The vibe was pure, like Rush, but less cavernous, something familiar.

"I totally advise you to take your shoes off for this one," Downie smiled before Don't Wake Daddy, utter nonsense, sort of like the entire rock and roll industry. Which is why we love him so much. More poetry: "Wait till the screaming stops, reverberating down the hall - I never thought I wanted to hear that echo again." OK, why not?

Remind you of any lead singers of the Doors? Downie's a bit less pretentious, though, especially when he sang tunes like Little Bones or New Orleans Is Sinking, third song, just like at July's Stage 13 in Camrose. In fact, he also sang Music @ Work second at both shows, but who's keeping track but you and me? That's the one with those excellent words of support: "Everything is bleak, it's the middle of the night. You're all alone and the dummies might be right." Amen, brother, we are all alone.

Courage was another killer moment, as was Poets off Phantom Power. They just wouldn't stop spitting out the hits. But new tracks off In Violet Light were cleverly slipped into the gene pool, creating a new creature. The Dark Canuck, that's a good one.

And who's going to argue against The Dire Wolf? Is it you? I don't think so. It's a Good Life If You Don't Weaken, another bit of mortar between your favourites.

During Gift Shop, Downie seemed especially happy to sing "and if it's a lie, terrorists made me say it." Nice. Ahead By a Century is another from that era of post-Cobain confusion, sometimes spent meandering around Europe and getting ripped off by cab drivers. Well, that's what happened to some of us when Trouble at the Henhouse hit our inboxes. Maybe you had other activities. Chagrin Falls was another pleasant set list surprise.

You must get the idea by now. And look at that, the end of the page is coming, without much room to talk about the stilt walkers or Sam Roberts, the hairy new kid who opened up all strutty.

Fine enough stuff. Even at almost $70 a head, it was good. There's some advice I've got for the Hip, may they take it in stride: don't ever play a hockey arena again. The sound sucks at them and Downie's jumping and twitching and twisting and bobbing and poetry and facial expressions may as well be rumours there, like hints of victory from dusty hockey banners.

But here, in a smaller room, even people 26 rows back get to know what the pit photographers have known for years, that Gordo is from another planet we should contact more.

His secret's out again.