The Disco Biscuits Rock Gem & Jam Festival

Photo Credit: Tara Gracer

Over the weekend, Gem & Jam Festival returned for its 16th annual showing, rejoining a flock of enthusiasts, craftspeople and the biggest names in jam and livetronica on the hallowed soil of Tucson, Ariz.’s Pima County Fairgrounds. On Saturday, Feb. 3, The Disco Biscuits headlined the festival’s second day with a thrilling two-hour set that highlighted the band’s innovative perspective and technical expertise. With total segues, a bust-out and teases galore, the group’s first Arizona performance in ten years went above and beyond expectations.

The Disco Biscuits’ Gem & Jam performance followed an intrepid total segue format, blending each of the set’s 8 cuts together into a continuous exhilarating medley. After an opener of the fan-favorite 2006 track “Caterpillar,” the band’s performance of “The Deal” included a tease that presaged its bust-out of Hallucinogen’s “Gamma Goblins.” Performed only 8 times since its 2006 debut, this deep-cut cover came as a salute to longtime fans and showed the group at peak performance, featuring a whopping 42 teases to flex its citational prowess.

The band continued with an inversion of the progressive fusion odyssey “Above the Waves,” followed by “Lakeshore Drive,” “Dino Baby” and its latest offering “No Recollection,” staged for the third time since its debut at Jan. 26 outset of the Why We Dance tour. To conclude the set, the band returned to “Caterpillar,” fittingly bookending a set heavy on its trademark idiosyncrasies with a select from its breakthrough 2006 album The Wind at Four to Fly.

The Disco Biscuits returns to the stage tonight to kick off its three-show run at Belly Up in Aspen, Colo. From there, the group will barrel on for thirteen shows across the country, building to the release of its highly-anticipated rock opera Revolution in Motion on March 29. For tickets and more information, visit discobiscuits.com/shows.

The Disco Biscuits

Gem & Jam Festival – Tusco, Ariz.

2/3/24

Set: Caterpillar > The Deal+ > Gamma Goblins^* > Above The Waves# > Lake Shore Drive > Dino Baby > No Recollection > Caterpillar

Notes:

+ w/ “Gamma Goblins” teases

^ w/ 42 teases

* Bust-out of “Gamma Goblins,” last played on 7/10/21 (152 shows)

# inverted