Goose

 "Is it time to shed our weapons yet, my friend?"

Genres: jam band, alternative rock, pop rock
Recording decades: 2010s, 2020s

Lineup:
Rick Mitarotonda - guitar, vocals
Trevor Weeks - bass, vocals
Peter Anspach - keys, guitar, vocals
Cotter Ellis - drums, vocals

Quintessential album: (TBD)
Favorite album: Dripfield

I suppose it's best, before I go on at any length about Goose, to first take a detour through the likes of Phish, The Grateful Dead, and every other major jam band that probably influenced them.  But I have neither the time nor the patience-- and besides, it's not like I ever claimed to be well-versed on these matters.  I'm just a guy who stumbled onto "Borne" one day by accident, and now here we are.

Goose are an American jam band from Connecticut.  I could probably stop right there without losing too much information, but we're already here, so I'll blather on.  Goose are a jam band with a number of studio albums and a monolithic archive of live shows, much in the vein of the Dead (or, hell, King Crimson), so there's no shortage out there.  Thing is, listening to a jam band in the studio versus in concert is, essentially, listening to two different bands.

First, the pros.  Whether they're playing in the studio or onstage, the sound is often big and smooth and luxurious without being bloated or overbearing, and that takes work.  Listening to a Goose performance often evokes in me a feeling of being in a penthouse above the coast at sunset, and who doesn't love that?    Their vocal hooks range from average to exemplary, but I've never not felt welcomed and embraced by lead singer and guitarist Rick Mitarotonda's vocals.  It's clear that Goose have taken from the best of classic rock and psychedelia, with even some modern pop and soul thrown in, and that eclectic mix ensures that there's always a solid platform for some tasty solos and breakdowns.  The music is always pleasant, always feeling like the soundtrack to some good fortune in life, and I won't deny the instrumental prowess displayed by this band for a moment.  They've clearly studied their craft well, and I'm proud to say I've heard a lot from them.

Now, for some of the negatives.  Diehards can crucify me for this, but I say if a band is going to jam for 20+ minutes on a single groove, it requires more dynamism than Goose will typically deliver.  No, you won't usually hear this on the studio albums, but a live improvisation often consists of repeated guitar solos in the same chord progression, or the same mode, for too long without veering into somewhere we haven't already been.  Yeah, I know: "it's about the groove, man"... but there's no sincere spiritual awakening in it for me.  

Yet, at the same time, the shorter studio album equivalents don't often have the same inimitable energy as a live performance, when the music can breathe more in a spiritual sense as well as a structural one, so we're left with a mild conundrum that follows me every time I listen to any Goose recording.  I guess we have to digest both and come to an equalizing epiphany for ourselves, and I'm fine with that.

Lastly, not that I can hold this against the band, but devoted Goose fans are an obnoxious bunch.  Like almost any other jam band these days, the diehards are going to skew toward the spoiled hipsters who think they've had some heretofore unheard-of awakening during some stupid acid trip; and while I can't blame the band for that directly, I can't deny that the vibe of the music does somewhat align with that type of personality.  But because Goose have also managed to pump a lot of new life into the dying husk of classic-style rock music, indulgent jams and all, I'm more than happy to give them a pass.

Albums:
Moon Cabin
Shenanigans Night Club
Dripfield
Everything Must Go
Chain Yer Dragon
Big Modern!