Adventures In Amsterdam: Goose's Melkweg Show Receives High Marks

Two days off in Amsterdam can do wonders to acclimate you to being in Europe.

After successful visits to Paris and Cologne to begin their first-ever overseas tour, Goose visited the Melkweg in Amsterdam, Netherlands last night for a jam-packed show with some of the most adventurous playing of the run so far.

The venue, known in the jam band scene for the significant October 16, 1981 Grateful Dead show where the band played on borrowed equipment and busted out the first post-Pigpen “Turn On Your Love Light” and the July 12, 1996 Phish show where the local vibe may have been too much for them.

With Billy Strings playing at the Paradiso just down the street, the city was swarmed with jam fans, stopping each other on the street to say hello and ask which tour they were in town for. While the weather on show day was mostly overcast and there were bursts of rain, anticipation was high for the tour to resume after two nights off.

Goose played the “Oude Zaal” room at the Melkweg, a 700-capacity club laid out similarly to Washington D.C.’s 9:30 Club – though slightly wider. Every inch of space in the room was packed with eager attendees, with many less locals than in Paris or Cologne.

As has been the trend with shows so far, a later-than-ideal showtime and 11:30 p.m. curfew made for less music than we would have liked – though what they did play was an absolute blast.

The quintet took the stage to raucous cheers and eased into the night with an atypical psychedelic space jam. Reminiscent of the beginning of “726,” multi-instrumentalist Peter Anspach laid down a soft bed of electric piano to set the tone as the rest of the band worked beautiful textures around him. This would turn out to be a unique take on “Dr. Darkness,” a welcome shift from the usual brief dissonant intro. Guitarist ’s tone was absolutely pristine last night, and it was apparent from the first notes of his “Dr. D” solo that he was ready to get out there.

The fourth cover of Wes Montgomery’s “Switchin’” in 2023 came next, amping up the crowd even further with its earworm hooks and bluesy-jazz groove. Anspach attacked his Nord Stage 4 with an intense amount of energy during his solo, reaching higher and higher peaks while being egged on by the crowd and band alike. Drummer Ben Atkind sported an ear-to-ear grin as he bounced on his stool throughout the cover before Mitarotonda took control and hosed down the crowd with a series of powerful runs on his guitar.

Perhaps the only dip in energy last night was the beginning of “California Magic,” an appropriate ode to the city’s many coffee shop offerings. While the bluesy original is always a good time, the crowd was amped and clearly jonesing for some big jams – luckily, we were in for a treat.

When Goose starts playing “Wysteria Lane” in the middle of the first set, you know it’s about to throw down. The band rocked their way through the song and immediately opened up the jam space with a laid-back groove, Anspach taking a turn on marimba-infused piano as he and Mitarotonda danced around each other’s melodies. The quintet took their time with the Type I segment, exploding through excellent peaks that included a hint at the off-the-rails dissonant builds to come later in the show.

Mitarotonda confidently led the band into a major-key Type II space at the top of the last peak as the rhythm section kept the motor running. The guitarist had one thing on his mind – huge bliss peaks. Along with Atkind, he crafted a familiar Eastern-sounding jam for a minute before switching gears into a driving progression. Anspach drenched his percussive marimba sounds in reverb as Goose engaged in some rare full-band jamming – not led by one member, each contributing a perfect piece of the musical puzzle as the intensity began to grow.

Briefly hinting at “When the Saints Go Marching In,” Anspach began running his marimba through the rotating Leslie speaker (!) for a trippy and psychedelic effect while Mitarotonda began to solo. Bassist Trevor Weekz stepped forward with some higher-register melodies, adding to the uplifting theme as smiles stretched across the faces of the audience.

The momentum continued to grow with no sign of stopping as Goose hit a stride that had their foot to the floor for the remainder of the night. Arms raised, the crowd’s energy peaked at the same time as the band’s as gleeful shouts were heard across the room. Vibes were, in fact, high.

Coming down off the peak, Mitarotonda looked for a quick segue into frequent cover “Electric Avenue” to act as a landing pad. While I wasn’t totally enthused with the choice at first, my worries were quickly washed away as every single person in the room seemed to sing along to the popular song. While this was expected to be the usual fun rendition of the Eddy Grant song, Goose took the opportunity to deliver a tight segment of spacey and quiet music, breaking from their largely maximalist sound.

Weekz, Atkind, and percussionist Jeff Arevalo kept the pocket tight while Anspach and Mitarotonda patiently weaved melodies. Bright synthesizer lines twirled in the air around soft guitar riffs before the music was taken down even further in a theme akin to the beginning of an “Empress Of Organos” jam. The music eventually subtly built back up to the conclusion of the song.

“Everything Must Go” was tapped next and kept its alternate jam arrangement that was debuted at Red Rocks last month. Atkind drove this one with heavy tom work that informed an evil shift from Mitarotonda’s riffs. Guitar was king late in the first set as a series of peaks blew up the room.

Photo by Ryan Storm

The appropriately-chosen “Pancakes” closed out the first frame and saw 16 minutes of pure fire get unleashed by the band. While the aggressive music was right at the forefront, the real MVP of this one goes to lighting director Andrew Goedde. Coming from lighting outdoor amphitheaters and huge theatres earlier this year, he utilized his smaller rig with spiralling colors, a wall of light in front of the band, and overhead venue lighting to give an effect like we were inside a runaway freight train.

One hell of a way to close the first set.

“Silver Rising” was chosen to open the second frame and showcased Mitarotonda’s songwriting while Anspach’s newly-donned pink sunglasses added a comedic effect to the stage.

“Amsterdam Thatch” just felt right – and we all knew what was going to be the second set’s big centrepiece jam last night. Anspach’s clav began emitting a sound eerily similar to when you get a coin in a Super Mario game while Weekz growled in on the low end. This was bass heaven, and front of house sound engineer Eric Loomis had the room dialed in to perfection – every note was felt loud and clear through the floor and seemed to vibrate the very foundations.

Photo by Ryan Storm

Stripping “Thatch” down to bare bones, Atkind’s popcorn snare cut right through the driving mix as Weekz just continued to blow minds. After a few minutes of this, Mitarotonda initiated a shift into a soaring major-key peak that ripped back into the conclusion in fine fashion.

“Feel it Now” was made for a dance club in Amsterdam, and Arevalo’s bongo work echoed across the room as we all got down for the Anspach vibe – he was definitely feeling it then.

A quick-yet-dense romp through “Hungersite” saw the energy continue unabated through twelve minutes of aggressive playing that eventually fragmented into the synth-intro to a rocking “Animal” show closer, an excellent choice to send the crowd out into the Dutch night happy.

Goose in Amsterdam was an incredible night and shows that the best is still yet to come on their Europe tour with eight shows to go. Hopefully we have the opportunity to visit some venues with later curfews on this run, but an incredible time has been had at each stop so far.

Goose European Tour 2023 continues tomorrow in Copenhagen, Denmark. As long as the Wi-Fi checks out, nugs.net will provide a free livestream to subscribers.