Photo by Abby (Fox) Matthews

Last night, Connecticut jamband Goose rounded out the Colorado portion of their Dripfield Summer tour with a monumental sold-out debut performance at the Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colo.

The quintet–comprised of Peter Anspach, Jeff Arevalo, Ben Atkind, Rick Mitarotonda, and Trevor Weekz–took to the stage just before 8 p.m. MDT; fresh after a two-night run at Dillon Amphitheater in neighboring Dillon, Colo. cracked open “Hungersite,” one of the most popular songs of their 2022 LP, and tour namesake Dripfield. The audience was keen to echo Mitarotonda’s opening lyrics as they cascaded over the steps of the outdoor venue as the band locked into a grooving and improvisational jam. The band then slowed the tempo down on “Silver Rising,” fully taking in the crowd and string of events that led to the moment before them.

Enamored by the scene before them, Goose naturally turned up the heat with “Tumble,” during which Anspach and Weekz shined with brazen and methodical playing, driving the song forward like a Colorado locomotive through the Rocky Mountains. Next, Goose played “Seekers On The Ridge” with a refined solo from Mitarotonda and “Animal,” during which the crowd danced with carefree and untroubled fervor. To close the first set, they blissfully played their much anticipated and most streamed song, “Arcadia.”

During set break, the band didn’t leave fans just with the elation from the set that had just transpired; instead, they shared that for the first time, Goosemas, their annual holiday show in December, would be held outside of their home state of Connecticut – and, in fact, would take place in the Centennial State at the 1stBank Center in Broomfield, Colo.

Goose wasted no time starting their second set and jumped right into another fan favorite, “Arrow,” before they pivoted into some of their more indie inclinations with their debut cover of The National’s “Bloodbuzz Ohio.” It’s notable that while it was the live debut of the song for Goose, Mitarotonda performed the song with Bleachers at Newport Folk. They continued with another cover, this time with New Zealand-based seven-piece ensemble Fat Freddy’s Drop’s “Fish In The Sea,” before playing their song “Red Bird.” They gave another nod to New Zealand with “Milestone 2 (Skux Life),” a droning song by New Zealand-based film and television composers Samuel Flynn Scott, Lukasz Buda, and Conrad Wedde, which was featured in Taika Waititi’s beloved comedy, adventure Hunt for the Wilderpeople. Goose closed the second set with two favorites and mainstays from their growing catalog: a tempered rendition of “Slow Ready” and “The Empress of Organos,” which kept the energy high ahead of the encore.

After a brief break, Anspach took to the stage, took hold of the mic and thanked the audience and their crew before Goose laid out the final song of the show, “Elmeg The Wise,” leaving the crowd on an almost ethereal high note.

Goose will continue playing into the fall with a headlining tour followed by an eight-show run with the Trey Anastasio Band. Their next set will take place on Saturday with a performance at Brooklyn Bowl Las Vegas.

Watch a pro-shot video of the performance below:

Goose
Red Rocks Amphitheatre – Morrison, Colo.
Aug. 18, 2022

Set I: Hungersite, Silver Rising, Tumble, Seekers On The Ridge Pt. 1, Seekers On The Ridge Pt. 2, Animal, Arcadia

Set II: Arrow, Bloodbuzz Ohio*, Fish In The Sea+, Red Bird, Milestone 2 (Skux Life)^, Slow Ready, Empress Of Organos

Enc.: Elmeg The Wise

Notes: * The National cover/debut, + Fat Freddy’s Drop cover, ^ Moniker cover/debut