photo by headylife
I thought I’d honor another anniversary on the site today. This one is especially timely, as it played a key role in the creation of this site. Today marks the 10-year anniversary of the Disco Biscuits pivotal show at the Trocadero in Philly. Although 4/9/99 is a great show in its entirety, there’s a particular song segment that requires the most attention on this site: “Above the Waves > Basis for a Day.”
4.9.99 “Above the Waves > Basis for a Day” (workout edit)
I can’t exactly remember when I first heard this song segment — probably sometime in 2000-2001 — but it played a huge role in my interest in this band that unfolded in the years to follow. It also marked a key point where I started listening to Disco Biscuits live recordings during my workouts. The pure energy and exhilaration of their concerts can be employed perfectly as a fist-pumping soundtrack for a great cardio or weightlifting workout.
Even after so many years, this song segment still gets me totally fired up. The outro of “Above the Waves” is dark and meandering, providing plenty of energy and enough musical exploration to keep you enthralled. But it’s the last couple minutes — as “Above the Waves” fully morphs into the ending of “Basis for a Day,” — that really make this thing tick. It has single-handedly possessed me to drop into an all-out sprint on several occasions.
As the band delves into the happy, major chord jamming of “Basis,” they proceed to boost the energy level in gradual steps. As they build up the momentum towards the high notes that mark the peak of “Basis,” guitarist Jon Gutwillig drops an all-out guitar assault, shredding out the song’s ending as if possessed by some guitar demon that won’t let him end it until everyone in the Trocadero is dripping in sweat.
As with other song segments, I’ve spliced these two songs together and edited them down to the meat of the improv for workout efficiency. Hopefully, these tracks inspire other folks to hit that peak sprint on their next run.
For the entire 4/9/99 show or the unedited tracks, head over to the Live Music Archive.
Also, don’t miss Rich Steele Chrfis Killian’s interesting concoction from this same recording. He spliced together the beginning section of “Basis for a Day” (which was transitioned to another song) with the ending jam posted above to form what he calls a “Bionic Basis.” As it turns out, the “Bionic Basis” is also great for workouts: get it here
