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| Where will the Big Wu be playing next? |
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[9/17/2010]
Ames, IA
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[9/18/2010]
Franklin, MN
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[10/30/2010]
Aberdeen, SD
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[10/31/2010]
Fargo, ND
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[11/25/2010]
Minneapolis, MN
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| Extra! Extra! Read all about the Big Wu's recent appearances. |
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[7/11/2009]
Geneva, MN
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[7/10/2009]
Geneva, MN
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[7/3/2009]
Minneapolis, MN
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[6/18/2009]
Minneapolis, MN
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[5/23/2009]
Geneva, MN
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Whenever the Big Wu is in the news, we try to track it down and post it here. However, this doesn't happen without help! If you know of an article we're missing, please let us know by sending us a note.
THE BIG WU | 11.10 | MADISON, WI
5/4/2004
Read Article
Author: Dan Gutof
Author: Jambase.com
Heading east from their home state of Minnesota, The Big Wu played to 2 sold out crowds of 900 or so at the venerable Barrymore Theatre in Madison, Wisconsin. After an unseasonably warm Saturday in November, the crowd packed into the Barrymore for the second of two triumphant shows.
The Big Wu, featuring Chris Castino and Jason Fladager on guitar, Andy Miller on bass, Al Oikari on keyboards and Terry VanDewalker on drums, returned to the Barrymore for their 2nd sold out 2-night run of 2001. With them they brought their infectious brand of rock, folk, country, and psychedelia.
The first set opened with a new Castino original, "The Makebelievers." Following in the Wu's strength of solid songwriting with interesting and meaningful lyrics, "Makebelievers" has become an instant favorite among the hard core Wusters who travel great distances to see their favorite band. This was followed by another Castino original, "Elani Queen of Afghanistan." Following the events of September 11, many of the Wu faithful thought this song might be dropped from the rotation because of its sensitive nature. According to Castino, he wrote this song actually about 4 years ago while sitting in his car and hearing a report on public radio of a woman in Afghanistan who had risked her own life to fight the oppressive Taliban regime and fight for women's rights especially. Seems especially appropriate now.
One of the Wu's most impressive jam vehicles came next in "Southern Energy." When a song like this is only the 3rd song of the night, the crowd already can feel the band at full force. Fladager was at his best on this multi-layered piece. This song starts softly with some sweet harmonies and then goes off into an extended jam that can go from soft and sweet to hard and exploding off the stage. The hard rocking "Pinnacle" came next and this time it was Castino's turn to shine as a soloist. In the style of "Iko-Iko," "Shoot the Moon" was next. Fun lyrics and lots of space to open up make this one always a crowd favorite. Next came the first cover of the evening, "Garcia's Ruben & Cherise," and despite a couple of flubbed lyrics, was played well in the style of Wu. A new Fladager original "Recipes" came next. This one is a bit of a departure for The Big Wu with somewhat silly lyrics ["Don't eat too much paste, or you're gonna waste it"]. Almost sounds like it could be a Ween song. Miller's white-boy-funk-ode to his hatred of the Green Bay Packers, "50:1," came next, sandwiched around the funky instrumental "The Chicken." The first set closed appropriately with "U.S. Blues."
Second set began with what has probably become the Big Wu signature song, "Minnesota Moon." With a country flavor enhanced by the keyboard virtuoso Oikari, this song has a real Little Feat feel to it. "Jazz 88," a VanDewalker original about a local St. Paul radio station (with great jazz and the best traffic reports in the twin cities), has certain duel guitar lines that are very Allman-esque and lends itself to opening up the jam. Aaron from Sweet Potato Project, an up-and-coming Minneapolis jam band, sat in on acoustic guitar for a rousing rendition of "Gibson Girl." A few other highlights included the southern fried rock of "Bloodhound," the multi-textured mood piece, "Save Our Ship," and the goofy lyrics of "Kangaroo" (with "Ride Mighty High" sandwiched in the middle).
For the encore, the Wu came out and dedicated the first song to Ken Kesey who had passed away earlier that day. The Dead's "Brokedown Palace" was the perfect choice and gave us all a chance to reflect on the life and influence of this incredible man (Fare you well, Merry Prankster). They capped off the evening with a rousing rendition of "Texas Fireball" whose hard rocking beat was the perfect complement to the sweet, slow Brokedown.
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