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Did you attend this ZPZ show at First Avenue in Minneapolis?

Dweezil and the band love reading your reviews.

Please do not post in this thread if you did not attend the show.

Mikey
Zappa.com Webmeister

have a wonderful 2008 usa/europe tour dweezil see you in bridgeport and westbury.

I get to be the first to review-yeah. I saw zpz at First ave. last night. I never had the opportunity to see Frank before he passed. I'm here to tell you that Frank had nothing on this band. Dweezil and the band put on a concert that absolutely blew me away-especially considering that a couple of the band had colds. I have cancer and this show moved me and healed me in many ways. This was probably the best concert I have ever seen and I have seen many and was a drummer for many years. You played some of my very favorite tunes and you were tight, tight, tight. The song selections were great: Sheik Yerbutitunes, Joes garage tunes and the other songs were fantastic. Especially with Dweezil playing the feedback on songs that were overdubbed on the records. I understand you not playing Watermelon in Easter Hay-we both would have cried. I was amazed how cramped you were on that stage and pulled it off. I am so grateful that I had a chance to hear these songs live. Joe Travers was on fire as was the beautiful woman playng sax and keys at the same time was fantastic-all played well. IF you have a chance to see this show-SEE IT! The crowd was hot and rightly so because this was music at it's finest. I can't say enough about how good this show was. Dweezil's smile said it all. First shows of a tour are either great or bad-and this was great. Thank you for doing this tour. If I live long enough I will most definately try to see you again=find a bigger venue next time and please come back to the Twin Cities. Feel free to write me back if you have a second.
Best regards,

Jim Pocock

I can hardly think of the words to describe how awesome last night's concert was at First Avenue in Minneapolis. Man, oh man ... what a fantastic show by an amazing group of musicians! I've seen pretty much everybody, including those that are considered to be some of the best rock and roll guitar players (J Page, Clapton, SRV), and I have to say that Dweezil blew them all away! Seriously .... that show was so smokin' hot that if it weren't for these insane gas prices I would be in my car right now heading to Omaha and St. Louis to see it again. I'm not kidding ... these musicians are so accomplished and so spot-on that it was just sick! I was fortunate enough to see FZ himself twice and the ZPZ band would certainly make ol' Frank proud. I also personally loved the set-list, which featured a lot of fantastic material from the late 1970's through the mid-1980's, including an entire blistering suite of music from "Joe's Garage." Absolutely among the best, most tight, impressive rock and roll shows I have ever seen, and I've seen 'em all. Both FZ's music and the ZPZ band are so far ahead of their time that they're really in another realm all together. Anyone who might say that they're not impressed by the ZPZ show is simply showing their own musical ignorance. What a jaw-dropping experience that show was. THANK YOU, Dweezil, for keeping Frank's music alive and for bringing this concert to us. I honestly can't wait for the opportunity to see you again, so I'm hoping that you continue to bring this show around. A huge "thumbs up" to everyone in the band, you did a fantastic job. Rock it!

It is our great fortune that the First Avenue venue in Minneapolis allows minor children to accompany their parent for an 18-plus show. My kids (Brita - 16 and Sam - 15) were beyond thrilled when I told them not only did I have tickets, but they were able to go with me! I can honestly say all three of us had a dream come true last night seeing ZPZ!

And it was beyond amazing! How can anyone listen to what they play on the radio these days when music like this is available instead? Dweezil surrounded himself with some fantastic musicians, all of whom were obviously inspired by the music they were playing, and incredibly tight with it. And what a joy to see Dweezil himself with such a deeply felt smile on his face, knowing he was bringing us this amazing intricate and sometimes intimidating music, yet with the attitude not of anything resembling arrogance; instead one of "yeah, isn't this great we ALL get to share this?"

At several times, the man about my age (44) in front of me turned his head in wonder towards my son, age 15, who knew the words and licks of the songs better than anyone around us, and was belting them out proudly. And afterward, both kids thanked me for always having music like this playing in the house as they grew up, and how they wished their friends could also understand. Following this was a funny discussion about "Evelyn A Modified Dog," whose likeness I proudly display in my kitchen (done in watercolor by Sam, back when he was about eight, standing right next to Brita's finely done scrawl of "Ship Arriving Too Late..." in ballpoint pen/lined paper).

As I said, one of our dreams-- a lofty one at that-- has been realized now, and I know for all three of us, it's an experience we'll always treasure and never forget. Thank you so much for coming to Minneapolis!

Mike Bliss

This is the third time I've seen ZPZ play in MN and everytime I came away thinking this is the best band I've ever seen. And so did the people I saw the shows with. This time I was with my family and my best buds. The venue was great, the sound was great. We got down about 8 people back from the stage, about where I was @ 10,000 lakes. That makes things very intimate. I'm sure that Dweezil, Ray & Sheilla where smiling directly at me (insert smiley face here). I really liked the new playset, lots of Sheik har Booty and Joe's Garage. And to do G-spot tornado for an encore! I thought that song was suppose to be un-playable by human beings. Only synclavers and other advanced digital beings. You guys keep coming to Minnesota and I'll keep coming with friends (some of who are new Zappa fans) and my kids and Frank's music will continue on through the generations.

It was one of the best shows I have attended.

I guess I can mainly attribute this to the fact that I never was able to see Frank live but this gave me a chance to experience the only thing that can could ever come close.

I knew every song instantly and the most pleasant surprise was the Joe's Garage 'Mini Suite'. While I have always referred to that album as Zappa 101 for they uninitiated (it was the one that hooked me) it was so fantastic that the emphasis would be on acts 2 and 3! Fantastic.

The band was fantastic. Ray made me feel better about not having seen the real McCoy, but Joe Travers was sensational. The love and dedication to the material is unmistakably evident in his performance of every song from every era.

I realize that this was the first show of the tour and the only criticisms would be:

- The vocal mix was rather low and slow to react for Dweezil's Frank-isms.

- There was also a particular frequency during guitar solos (5k?) that was a bit out of control at times,

but that just nit picking in'it?

Bottom line I had a fantastic time listening to some of my favorite music done by a fantastic band.

This was the second time for me here in Minneapolis and I was astounded again! I thought the last show was fantastic but the new show surpassed it! The band was phenomenally tight and the individual musicians were spectacular, each and every one. Dweezil’s new gear and heightened skill makes him one of the few people able to say “I’m turning into my dad” with pride. My only regret is the nearly 3 hour show; I want all Zappa, all the time.

I truly enjoyed last night's Minneapolis show, even with Dweezil's low voice output....at times the club's PA was faulty? This show held mounds of meaning for me... My only Frank show was @ the Denver Pop Festival in June of 69...so last night was a "mature" return to my musical roots as a young concert goer.... WOW! I received tingles upon hearing Dweezil's solos... Only bad thing was it ended. I am fortunate however and will be @ the Lincoln in Raleigh on this Friday the 13th.... my son and I will attend together.
We will be gettin our "groove" on... see ya soon and Thanks to all...
george burrows

What a fantastic show! I got there late, here's the set-list from my arrival:

1. Don't Eat the Yellow Snow
2. St. Alphoso's Pancake Breakfast
3. Sharleena (the original version, according to Dweezil)
4. Pygmy Twylyte
5. Idiot Bastard Son
6. Cheepnis
7. Joe's Garage
8. Wet T-shirt Nite
9. Outside Now
10. He Used to Cut the Grass
11. Packard Goose
12. Cosmic Debris
13. G-Spot Tornado (played flawlessly)
14. Willie the Pimp

What else did I miss?

I did not have a pen so I couldn't keep track of the songs, but 3 more that I remember are City of Tiny Lights, Bamboozled by Love and Broken Hearts Are for Assholes. For some reason I can't remember if Father O'Blivion was played. I think it was. All I can remember for now.

My thoughts on the show. I have seen Frank twice and ZPZ twice. My opinion is that the first ZPZ show was better all around. The sound was better and the song selection was more varied. The talent of the band in this show was better than in 2006. If i had to rate all the Zappa related shows I have they would be:

ZPZ 2006 Orpheum: 10+, Everything was superb!

Frank 1981 Northrup: 9, Watching Steve Vai doing summersaults on stage was worth the price of admission!

ZPZ 2008 First Avenue: 8, The talent here was beyond reprose, but the poor sound and unvaried setlist took it back a few notches

Frank 1987 Northrup: 7.5, Frank seemed very uninspired. They were having some band problems during this time frame. Very short show.

Another review I read had stated that Dweezil was one of the best guitarists around. I would agree whole-heartedly. Simply amazing. His use of the Dyna Flangers as mentioned in DZ's blog post was a major improvement in the tone and overall experience.

DZ, GZ and company, keep it coming. I will continue to attend for as long as you want to entertain us. Simply the best entertainment for the money. PERIOD!

I thought the sound was pretty good. Have you seen other shows at First Ave.? I've seen other shows there with worse sound.

As for keeping track of the set-list, I used the Memo Pad function of my cell phone

For context, I've been listening to Zappa for a solid 5 years and this was my first time seeing Zappa plays Zappa.
It feels redundant for me to say this, but, the show was amazing and a wonderful way to kick off the tour. First Ave' is not my favorite venue (e.g. the poor sound quality), but when the band took the stage, I instantly forgot about the cramped conditions and the X'ed out hippy chicks dancing next to me. The set list was just what I wanted: The Joe's Garage medley was awesome and G-Spot tornado was, as user Toad* said before, "played flawlessly". Cosmik Debris finale and Willie the Pimp encore, could I have asked for more?
The band was remarkebly tight for an opening. Dweezil seemed to be glad to be back on stage and his playing seemed to reflect that. Ray White was a real treat--such charisma and energy! It's a shame there was no Illinois Enema Bandit. Pete Griffin did not go a song without smiling and his bass was spot on. Billy Hulting provided a great Zappa backdrop, while Jamie Kime really came out of shell during the last half. It was very fun to hear Aaron Arntz tickle, and, though not as Bozzio as Bozzio, Joe Travers never missed a beat. In my opinion, it was Scheila Gonzalez who stole the show; the audience was cheering through her entire sax solo on Cosmik Debris!
Great job to everyone involved, something tells me Frank is looking down and smiling.

Another addition to the setlist.

They opened with a 1 minute snippet of Eye of the Tiger and then a guitar solo I has not familiar with.

I agree with everybody else that G-Spot Tornado and Willie the Pimp were the highlights of the show.

I hope they keep it up.

you can hear the 6/6 show over at thetradersden dot org