Show ticket courtesy of Greg Dunlap

Fugazi, Aragon Ballroom, Chicago, IL USA 9/3/1993 (FLS #0575)

While Fugazi would include the city of Chicago to their tour itinerary on 9 different occasions between 1988 and 2001, sometimes even playing back to back shows at the Oak Theatre (May 1993) or, later on, at the Congress Theater (May 1998 and June 2001), they would play the Aragon Ballroom just one time, and from what I gather, things did not go off without a hitch. 

Interestingly, in a March 18, 2009 interview by Mark Prindle for Rebel Noise, Ian MacKaye recalls:

“[...] we played at this place called I think the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago, and at that time there was these 'T' barricades. Are you familiar with that? It was a giant room that held 5,000 people, and the barricade was shaped like a 'T,' so you had the horizontal bit in front of the stage, but then right in the middle there was a barricade that goes straight down dividing the 'pit,' so to speak -- or the 'crowd,' if you prefer -- into two. But then you had to bring in even more security people to be in the middle slot. And we argued and argued about it, but the fix was in. The security people were connected, insurance rates drove up costs, and everything was just creating this insane confluence of things that jacked the cost of the show higher and higher and higher. I couldn't get them to waive it, so finally I said that I insisted that we include in the budget 100 balloons and a can of helium. And the guy was like, "What? What are you talking about!?" And I said, "If you're gonna have such a draconian set-up, and since when people are entering the room that's the first thing they'll see, it sets a contrary tone. So as a form of protest and an absurdity, I would like to soften it by having balloons tied to it all the way around." They did it! But I was just spitting in the wind, because that night we just got banged. We had 3900 people at that show, and we made less than the guy that drove the forklift. That's the risk we took by working percentages.”

Still, even if it turned out to be a mere one-off experience, the history of the Aragon and history of the band are now forever intertwined, for better or for worse.

According to Wikipedia, “[c]onstruction [of the venue] was completed in 1926. The Aragon was designed in the Moorish architectural style, with the interior resembling a Spanish village. Named for a region of Spain, the Aragon was an immediate success and remained a popular Chicago attraction [...].” 

And from the looks of it, this place is massive.

Photos courtesy of the Chicago Architecture Center

The architectural layout might explain why the band pretty much came out swinging, firing on all cylinders, and steamrolling their audience.

As a result, this recording and entry in the live series surely is an interesting one, and one well-worth visiting, in spite of just a handful of small drawbacks, such as minimal cuts in between songs, some low end rumble, or Joe (very unusually) being out of sync for a couple of bars during an otherwise crushing version of Public Witness Program.

Two Beats Off surely is a highlight here, as are Brendan’s rim clicks closing out Sweet and Low and the set.

For a more in-depth review of the performance, I will refer to the words below by Antti Väärälä.

“The stars are really out tonight.”

Fugazi back in Chicago, touring the brand new In On The Killtaker album. This time they hit the historic Aragon Ballroom, having played two back to back shows at the city's Oak Theatre a few months prior at the tail end of their spring 1993 tour of the US. Aragon tends to get a bad rap for its acoustics, and admittedly the sound of this recording feels somewhat boomy and a tad out of balance, quite possibly because of the room's characteristics. I would still rate the sound as very good, because nothing feels unpleasant, and all the elements are audible and distinct.

Now for the show itself. Don't think the crowd's enthusiasm would be diminished because of the two big Oak Theatre shows just a little while back. In fact, the audience welcomes the band with open arms and there's a great atmosphere right from the start. Ian opens the show with funny remarks about the stage height, urges people to refrain from crowd surfing, and off we go into the anthemic Smallpox Champion.

The band is on a hot streak to say the least. The initial flow is filled with fiery performances, my highlights being the absolutely stunning duo of Facet Squared and Walken's Syndrome. Still, I gotta give big credit to how the flow goes from Merchandise to a surprisingly early appearance of Blueprint. This genius move does wonders to really lift the atmosphere through the roof.

Instrument and Rend It form an intense and heavy pair, as both Ian and Guy hold nothing back in their respective performances. The mid-set classics follow in the same vein, with Waiting Room being one of the hardest rocking versions of the song I've heard so far. The list of red-hot performances could go on and on. But I have to give a special mention to the final four tracks heading to the encore as they are vibrant Fugazi punk rock at its absolute finest. Public Witness Program's exceptionally high intensity causes Joe a few slips, but the onslaught of Great Cop more than makes up for it. Tonight's Two Beats Off is the epitome of the "Picciotto Cool", and a totally infectious Repeater shakes all the leftover energy off the room, fueled by a wonderfully jarring intro jam by the whole band. Listen to the big singalong during the bridge, and you can't help but join in for the insane partying of the final explosion. Cheered back to the stage, the band continue the jams with the same level of excitement. Admittedly the flow is a bit uneven going from Cassavetes to the calm of Long Division, and then back to a very rocking Runaway Return, but that is only a microscopic gripe, as all the performances are top notch. Promises takes the evening to a close with Sweet and Low in a sure-fire fashion, where it all just feels like a big, inspired jam session.

Not only were the stars really out, but they also aligned for this evening at the Aragon. Essential addition to any Fugazi collection, this entry delivers the band's live experience at its most enjoyable and then some. Strong performances, great flows, a tangible atmosphere - it's all here. And with a pleasing enough sound and a steady quality throughout it's very easy to rank this as one of the finest entries on FLS I've encountered so far.

The set list:

1. Intro 2. Smallpox Champion 3. Merchandise 4. Blueprint 5. Facet Squared 6. Walken's Syndrome 7. Interlude 1 8. Reclamation 9. Latin Roots 10. Interlude 2 11. Instrument 12. Rend It 13. Interlude 3 14. Waiting Room 15. Give Me The Cure 16. Suggestion 17. Interlude 4 18. Public Witness Program 19. Great Cop 20. Two Beats Off 21. Repeater 22. Encore 23. Cassavetes 24. Long Division 25. Runaway Return 26. Promises 27. Sweet and Low 28. Outro

Photo © William Bradley

Fugazi, National Guard Armory, Columbia, SC USA 2/7/1993 (FLS #0494)

(Words below submitted by Antti Väärälä)

Fugazi in Columbia, South Carolina to test-drive new tracks and just to have good old fun. This is the band's third visit to the city, and they would return once more on the tumultuous tour of 1996. This show takes place at National Guard Armory of Columbia, which is located adjacent to South Carolina University in the city. The armory was established in 1905, so this is another historic locale for the band to tick off the list. Closed from official use in 1964 as a new, modern facility took over the duties, the armory remained a place to host events.

Ian opens the evening with a long disclosure about the band's day. The venue had a few surprises for them upon arrival, and they were forced to improvise some security measures. As in flipped tables forming a makeshift barricade. Both Ian and Guy speak up in a serious tone to make the audience understand the unstable situation. Let's see how the events unfold.

The recording sounds quite good, and its best feature is how well it emphasizes the band's power and the feel of the room. No element drowns out and the mix balance is okay. Joe's bass has a nice, dirty clang and ring to it. Brendan's snare cuts through, and the interplay between the kick drum and bass is prominent. At first the overall sound feels muddy and a tad distant. This is possibly because of the room's character, not being built for rock concerts. In the end the sound turns out quite pleasing as the recording draws you in with its energy.

First part of the show finds the band taking pauses between songs to warn the crowd about the awkward barricade. The performances are good, but feel separated and a bit careful occasionally. The security issue must have been a major disruption at first. Still, we get a magnificent rendition of Joe #1 as the opener, and an atmospheric flow to Exit Only. The bass rumbles in a beautiful way and both guitars hit some nice variations.

Stacks is an interesting listen not only because of the song's fantastic angularity, and how it always sounds so inspired. This time Joe steps in to do the backing vocal for the chorus. Guy mentions earlier that he has "a little voice" so Joe gives him a breather. Very convincing performance by him and the whole group.

Burning is a great addition to this entry's tracklist. The atmosphere is sparkling, and Guy performs his vocals with a peculiar feeling. It seems he's under the weather, but it gives his voice an interesting edge and he goes all out regardless. Burning was a bit of a rarity on the winter 93 tour with only four performances, so it's always a delight.

The whole mid-set row of oldies is a show highlight, as the energy is high and atmosphere through the roof. Guy's nasty grit in his voice makes Margin Walker rock that much harder. And check out the screaming singalong from a thrilled patron on Bad Mouth. Exhilarating!

The final trio of tunes is a splendid bunch of anthems. Requests for Long Division can be heard during the show and the song gets an ecstatic response when Ian finally starts the riff. Guy then leads a stirring Rend It to close the show. He may have some troubles this evening, but it doesn't affect the powerful performance at all.

The show pretty much flies by, clocking in just over an hour. There's a hard curfew approaching and the band hits a "fucking bullmarch" as Guy puts it. Consequently the banter is scarce but good-humoured throughout. The audience is ardent, and rather cooperative about the barricade situation, at least after a few grave warnings. Even the crowd surfing seems to keep at bay. And once the sound draws the listener in, this turns into a very interesting and an easily recommendable entry. 

The set list:

1. Intro 2. Joe #1 3. Exit Only 4. Greed 5. Interlude 1 6. Blueprint 7. Interlude 2 8. Stacks 9. Public Witness Program 10. Interlude 3 11. Instrument 12. Sieve-Fisted Find 13. Reclamation 14. Interlude 4 15. Smallpox Champion 16. Returning the Screw 17. Burning  18. Interlude 5 19. Waiting Room 20. Margin Walker 21. Bad Mouth 22. Interlude 6 23. Turnover 24. Long Division 25. Rend It 26. Outro

Fugazi, Flex, Vienna, Austria 9/26/1999 (FLS #0933)

(Words below submitted by Antti Väärälä)

“Another show from one of my favorite runs on FLS finds the band for the fourth and final time in Vienna, Austria. This is the only time the band played the Flex nightclub, the earlier gigs took place at Vienna Arena. The recording's intro cuts straight to Ian's last few words from his opening remarks and then we're promptly taken to the music.

Usually the recordings from this era sound at least very good, but this tape right here is one of the excellent ones for sure. The very first moment is a bit of an aural thriller for me as the mix takes a few seconds to settle, but wow, when it does, it's one of the best I've heard so far. Very detailed, rich and the whole stereo field is fully utilized. The drums sound massive here, as the guitars are evenly laid out on the sides and Joe's bass is balanced in the middle.

The band marches in with the aforementioned, steadily growing Ex-Spectator instrumental, and onwards with the End Hits duo of Break and Place Position. A good flow is clearly taking place, but then something unnecessary happens during Birthday Pony. A stage diver basically ruins the really cool performance, and the show stops completely for a few moments. The band continue but the mood of the show is somehow different. Luckily some of the energy is back with great performances of Latin Roots and Merchandise.

A local desperately tries to address the crowd before an atmospheric Promises. I guess the rowdy behaviour continued despite the band's efforts. Concentrating on Brendan's drumming is highly rewarding here as he really goes to town with his tricks and there's some nice coloring added from the soundboard.

Unfortunately the recording starts to suffer from some occasional yet annoying digital snapping. On a stereo it's not so bad but with headphones it got to me. This is worst during softer songs, ie. Argument, Floating Boy, Closed Captioned etc. It's a pity since the performances flow really well, and the mix is fine throughout.

Target has a funny remark from Ian addressing the people not clapping, and what ensues is a great and energetic performance of the song. The following Reclamation is equally strong. The band is on a nice streak here as one song flows into the next in a classic fashion.

Apparently the problems with some attendees are over as the band continue on to play a massively long set with two encores. The digital snapping/crackling is momentarily gone after they come back for the encore, and this makes the really tender performance of Long Division such a delight to listen to. Unfortunately the audio starts to occasionally suffer again from KYEO onwards. Like I said, it's not so bad that I would rate the recording less than excellent but can get on one's nerves with repeated listening, depending on the equipment.

I recommend this show for the overall great sound, long setlist and many cool performances. Perk up your ears, and you can listen how the band handle the unfortunate events during Birthday Pony. There is a 47 minute video of the show up on Youtube, where you can watch how Ian tries to perform the song while derailing a stage dive, and the ensuing aftermath.”

The set list:

1. Intro 2. Ex-Spectator 3. Break 4. Place Position 5. Interlude 1 6. Birthday Pony 7. Latin Roots 8. Merchandise 9. Turnover 10. Interlude 2 11. Promises 12. Rend It 13. Argument 14. Burning 15. Interlude 3 16. Waiting Room 17. Target 18. Reclamation 19. Floating Boy 20. Recap Modotti 21. Closed Captioned 22. Number 5 23. Public Witness Program 24. Five Corporations 25. Encore 1 26. Last Chance for a Slow Dance 27. Long Division 28. FD 29. Facet Squared 30. Do You Like Me 31. KYEO 32. Arpeggiator 33. Encore 2 34. Oh 35. Bed For The Scraping 36. Blueprint

Photo © by Scott Beacher

Fugazi, Masquerade, Atlanta, GA USA 12/17/1999 (FLS #0958)

(Words below submitted by Antti Väärälä)

“Fugazi in the middle of the short but sweet 1999 December US tour. This is the last time they would visit the city of Atlanta, and the venue is once again the Masquerade. Established in 1989, Masquerade originally housed for 27 years in its North Avenue location inside the historic Dupree’s Excelsior Mill. The venue became a rather popular tour stop for a wide variety of acts in need of a smaller, more intimate setting than arenas or big ballrooms. Masquerade welcomed Fugazi for a total of seven times over the years.

Ex-Spectator fades in and thus we miss any opening remarks. Instead we're treated to a great sounding recording where the mix settles relatively fast. This tape is another powerhouse showcase of Brendan's drumming. The drums sound fantastic and command the stereo field. The vocals are a bit low on volume occasionally, and the mix loses the wide stereo field feel (doesn't go full mono) for a few tracks towards the end of the main set, but otherwise this is a fine recording.

The band hits an energetic flow right away. Highlights include an intense Do You Like Me and a massive Reclamation. The first interlude has the band jamming on a cool riff that I suspect is one of those "link tracks" they must have a million in the archives.

During Birthday Pony we can listen how Ian handles a potential stage diver. Luckily the other guys are able to keep the groove going in the meantime, so there're no big disturbances to the flow.

The show moves forward and one highlight is an inspired rendition of the new track Oh. The double drumming gives it a really nice dimension, as is always the case whenever Mr. Jerry Busher joins the band on stage. We almost get a great flow from Oh via Recap Modotti to Closed Captioned, but instead get some fun banter from Ian as he comments on a few patron's behavior. A guaranteed mind-blowing moment follows when Closed Captioned's amazing ending jam flows seamlessly to the groove of Burning.

Promises grinds to a complete halt due to some rowdy behavior in the crowd. Fortunately the band gets into full flow mode afterwards. Floating Boy again feels like an awesome live jam and moves seamlessly to a sweet Long Division. Interestingly the last moments before the encore break are filled with Fugazi "hits". A real crowd pleaser then, and a delight to listen to. It's uplifting that the atmosphere in the room seems to be much better now. Personal favorite Number 5 gets one of the strongest, double drum-fueled treatings I've heard so far.

The encore offers both tenderness and energy. Argument starts with an introduction from Ian and it's cool to hear a little insight from the man himself. Arpeggiator acts as the goodbye track and the drum duo of Brendan and Jerry gets to shine brightly once more.

Another nice and full recording from the era where the setlists covered the whole repertoire. Easily recommended!”

The set list:

1. Ex-Spectator Instrumental 2. Break 3. Place Position 4. Greed 5. Do You Like Me 6. Reclamation 7. Sieve-Fisted Find 8. Interlude 1 9. Birthday Pony 10. FD 11. Interlude 2 12. Merchandise 13. Oh 14. Recap Modotti 15. Interlude 3 16. Closed Captioned 17. Burning 18. Interlude 4 19. Promises 20. Floating Boy 21. Long Division 22. Blueprint 23. Waiting Room 24. Interlude 5 25. Number 5 26. Encore 27. No Surprise 28. Argument 29. Target 30. Interlude 6 31. Instrument 32. Interlude 7 33. Arpeggiator

Ticket stub courtesy of John Mulhouse

Fugazi, First Avenue, Minneapolis, MN USA 8/12/1991 (FLS #0379)

(Words below submitted by Antti Väärälä)

“I could really just write "get this, get this now" and nothing more. This tape is that good!

The band start off by bashing out a very punk rock instrumental of Facet Squared. Then it's onwards with a glorious flow of rockers and, with the great mix provided, you can just drown yourself in early, heavy Fugazi.

The mix is wide, clear, huge and warm. Every instrument has power and the vocals cut clearly through. And the drums...oh boy, you could really just concentrate on the details of Brendan's playing and admire his crazy chops. The drum set is panned beautifully in the stereo field and every element has it's space.

It's hard to even pinpoint highlights since the whole set here basically just gels so well together. There's a sweet showcase of yet to be released Last Chance For A Slow Dance that merges into a strong Promises. And I gotta mention Suggestion. The crowd sings along, the groove is perfect... and the performance is influenced by a certain show opener, which brings a whole another aspect to the performance. A soulful Give Me The Cure is another one of many highlights.

Turnover unfortunately has the intro cut probably due to a cassette flip.

What initially caught my eye about this show was the low number of interludes. And my hunch was right - there are no fights and almost zero time wasters. It's just a big Fugazi party all night long! There are many moments where you can hear the crowd sing along and it's just glorious.

The evening draws to a close with explosive encores, Repeater being the insane highlight. I can only imagine the amount of fun everyone was having. The cassette runs out and Waiting Room cuts off in the end which is a pity.

Like I said earlier... get this. Get this now.”

The set list:

1. Intro 2. Facet Squared Instrumental 3. Exit Only 4. Merchandise 5. Sieve-Fisted Find 6. Reclamation 7. Last Chance for a Slow Dance 8. Promises 9. Margin Walker 10. Suggestion 11. Give Me The Cure 12. Interlude 1 13. KYEO 14. Interlude 2 15. Turnover 16. Styrofoam 17. Interlude 3 18. Long Division 19. Runaway Return 20. Shut the Door 21. Encore 1 22. Two Beats Off 23. Repeater 24. Reprovisional 25. Encore 2 26. Burning Too 27. Waiting Room

Photo © by Davey Blackburn

Fugazi, Mad Monk, Wilmington, NC USA 3/20/1996 (FLS #0767)

(Words below submitted by Antti Väärälä)

“Second show of the 1996 US tour, as Ian mentions in the opening remarks. The band start off in fine mode, and with personal favorite Exit Only making an appearance right away, I couldn't complain. 

The mix settles in during the first few tracks and is really good when it does. I would actually go ahead and rate this recording ‘excellent’. The sound is really in your face, but there's some nice air especially in the drums. And oh man, do Brendan's dynamics, chops and little tricks shine here. 

Highlights for me are an angry Birthday Pony, really punk-rock Margin Walker and Joe's heavy and shouty, statement-like By You. There's some trouble with stage divers, and there's some people yelling a lot of garbage to the band, but luckily nothing so bad comes up that it would interrupt the great flow of tracks. 

A sincere and slow Forensic Scene merging into a groove-laden and atmospheric Promises is pure delight. And as Promises flows seamlessly into an early Pink Frosty instrumental, it's nothing but Fugazi at it's finest for me. 

Joe and Brendan have a cool jam going into the encore. It's moments like this that make me think about the hours and hours of recordings that must exist of the band just jamming. The guitars indicate Smallpox Champion coming and off we go into one of the best versions of the song I've heard. 

I very much enjoyed this show and highly recommend it. Lots of entertaining flows from one song to the next, and the mix is full of details. I only wish they would have played a few more songs. 

I especially enjoyed listening to Brendan on this one. He seems to be on fire this evening and you can hear him yelling behind the kit, ie. on Song #1. Great stuff!”

The set list:

1. Intro 2. Exit Only 3. Merchandise 4. Downed City 5. And The Same 6. Target 7. Birthday Pony 8. Margin Walker 9. Reclamation 10. Interlude 1 11. Caustic Acrostic 12. By You 13. Interlude 2 14. Bed For The Scraping 15. Forensic Scene 16. Promises 17. Pink Frosty Instrumental 18. Encore 1 19. Smallpox Champion 20. Song #1 21. Interlude 3 22. Do You Like Me 23. Great Cop 24. Outro

Photo © by Dave Fisher

Fugazi, Phoenix Theater, Toronto, Canada 7/19/1998 (FLS #0863)

(Submitted by Antti Väärälä)

“First gig on Canadian soil in the summer of 1998. Apparently the band had some bad experiences while crossing the border which leads to a kind of cranky but energetic start. And I love the first part of the show with the pair of Red Medicine bangers right at the beginning. Especially Back To Base which to me works so much better when it's early on in the set. Personal favorite Exit Only makes an appearance so no complaints here.

There's a great flow of slower numbers next but unfortunately some guitar tuning issues mar the experience from Closed Captioned to Recap Modotti. Luckily an epic Burning saves the situation!

There's some pretty wild use of added reverb here and there. I would have preferred the mix mainly as it is - very clear with a big drum sound. The vocals and Ian's guitar are prominent on the front and kinda drown out Guy's guitar and Joe. What makes my day though is the totally excellent drum mix. And as a huge fan of Brendan's drumming I'm pleased to say listening to his playing here is a total blast. Check out ie. a super tight trio of Place Position, Facet Squared and Do You Like Me. Facet has a small structural bungle (not by Brendan) but no mind because the grooves and fills are mind-blowing.

All in all a very good listen that suffers a bit from the occasional wild reverb and an outta-tune guitar. If anything, grab this for the stellar drumming and some high-energy fast numbers.”

The set list:

1. Intro 2. Break 3. Downed City 4. Back to Base 5. Exit Only 6. Closed Captioned 7. Blueprint 8. Instrument 9. Recap Modotti 10. Burning 11. Waiting Room 12. Floating Boy 13. Pink Frosty 14. Target 15. Bed For The Scraping 16. Place Position 17. Facet Squared 18. Do You Like Me 19. Long Division 20. Encore 1 21. Arpeggiator 22. Caustic Acrostic 23. Five Corporations 24. Two Beats Off 25. Long Distance Runner 26. Version 27. Outro

Photo © by John Falls

Fugazi, Kvarteret, Bergen, Norway 10/4/2000 (FLS #0977)

(Submitted by Antti Väärälä)

“For me this recording showcases Brendan's playing especially. A very nice mix throughout, except that in some songs I would've liked the bass a bit more prominent. Guitars clear on the front, vocals too. All in all this totally deserves the rating "excellent".

Check out the groovy Furniture! Very inspired sounding, full of fun little tricks. Other highlights for me were a beautiful No Surprise flowing into Argument and onto Blueprint. Also, the last trio of tunes rock the town real good!

Gotta wonder what the stuff about "there's one in every town" is when they turn on more lights on the audience. It does lead to a statement-like bunch of angry old songs. Funny banter later about something fishy going on in the town, which leads to an appropriate Long Division.”

The set list:

1. Intro 2. Break 3. Sieve-Fisted Find 4. Facet Squared 5. Guilford Fall 6. Furniture 7. Walken's Syndrome 8. Bed For The Scraping 9. Interlude 1 10. Oh 11. Closed Captioned 12. Arpeggiator 13. Interlude 2 14. Margin Walker 15. Waiting Room 16. Lockdown 17. Suggestion 18. Interlude 3 19. Target 20. Back To Base 21. Recap Modotti 22. No Surprise 23. Argument 24. Blueprint 25. Encore 1 26. Long Division 27. FD 28. Cashout 29. Interlude 4 30. Exit Only 31. Great Cop 32. Number 5

Photo © Geoffrey Nicholson

Fugazi, Blind Mellons, Buffalo NY 9/6/1993 (FLS #0578)

Performing in another rather intimate setting, in the presence of some 1200 patrons and headlining a remarkable bill with incredible Dischord affiliates Slant 6 and local hardcore heroes Snapcase, this one must have been right in Fugazi’s wheelhouse.

And since we can consider ourselves damn lucky that the recording presented here is complete, I am bumping this one up to the “highlight” category.

For further details and a spot-on write-up, check out the submission by fellow Fugazi enthusiast Antti Väärälä below.

Oh, and Brendan’s tom-toms sound phenomenal!

“Fugazi hits Buffalo for the second and last time, playing a gig at Blind Mellons. Judging by comments on the internet, the venue was a beloved place, holding many legendary shows in the 90's. Apparently the setting is quite unusual this particular evening, as Ian mentions in the opening remarks that the show was moved indoors due to the weather. The recording conveys this intimate and close quarters atmosphere very well. Ian's chat is casual and funny as usual and afterwards we dive straight into a fiery Smallbox Champion. 

As for the sound, there's some mix settling needed during the first few tracks, but after everything's set, this turns out to be a delightfully good recording overall. The low end is nicely in balance with everything and Brendan's drums sound powerful and clear. 

Vocals cut through just right. This is a strong tape throughout, representing the fiery level the band perform at during these times. 

The band has to take a long interlude right away to do some rather cooperative crowd control, but something else happens when they start Facet Squared and the whole show grinds to a halt. As you can read from the show's info, some actual renovation work is needed momentarily. It's amusing to try to listen to the proceedings, and of course some despicable comments are heard too, culminating in a downright barbaric ‘Who gives a shit if people get impaled?’ from someone. As you would guess, Ian counters appropriately. Eventually the band resumes Facet Squared but admittedly the performance now feels like they are on their toes, watchful for any more moving parts causing danger. 

Apparently everything seems to be in order and the band can raise the energy level to amazing heights. A few of the highlights include an inspired Stacks and a very brisky Repeater where Guy's guitar squeals extra nastily. 

The band pushes on with fire all the way through the evening. Apparently there's a problem with Ian's guitar rig, and while things get fixed, the rest of the band play a cool, shortened, jam version of Fell, Destroyed. Highlights follow, as Promises and Exit Only form a strong, seamless duo to finish the main set. 

Once again the encores take the cake. This time the band starts easy with Guy's Last Chance For A Slow Dance. To contrast this, Great Cop is as relentless as it ever gets. But all the weight comes down in the finale as Glue Man is the insane set closer. The performance is nothing short of crushing. As is basically always the case with Glue Man, the live renditions must be heard to be believed. This evening's version easily proves that point once again. 

Quote about the show found on the internet: 

‘Saw Fugazi there in 1993, memorable show as it was pretty overbooked, a railing fell and someone hit their head against the speakers while in the pit, also they had a peppers and sausage vendor across from a PETA booth. The thick fog created from people's body heat as they exited the venue after the show is a visual I've never forgotten.’ 

Another excellent entry from the amazing tour for the In On The Killtaker album. Recommended!”

The set list:

1. Intro 2. Smallpox Champion 3. Interlude 1 4. Facet Squared 5. Latin Roots 6. Interlude 2 7. Stacks 8. Rend It 9. Interlude 3 10. Instrument 11. Turnover 12. Interlude 4 13. Repeater 14. Public Witness Program 15. Interlude 5 16. Waiting Room 17. Margin Walker 18. Interlude 6 19. Long Division 20. Two Beats Off 21. Fell, Destroyed Instrumental 22. Promises 23. Exit Only 24. Encore 25. Last Chance for a Slow Dance 26. Great Cop 27. Glueman

Photo © by Jarek Goralczyk

Fugazi, Kazamaty, Wroclaw, Poland 9/21/1999 (FLS #0928)

(Words below submitted by Antti Väärälä)

“Fugazi in Poland after a long absence, and this would turn out to be their last show in the country. The band starts off in quite a pleasant mood and test drive a steamrolling Ex-Spectator as an intro. The show gets off to a really good start in general...

...Until problems ensue. There's some crowd control with the help of a local translating, and after that a double musical statement from the band in the form of Turnover and Reclamation. Ian seems to be losing his voice but still puts everything on the line in every song. In contrast, Guy is at his most sensitive sounding to me, which is just awesome. Later, Five Corporations is mostly cut in the middle. 

There's a really great flow of songs starting with a couple of Red Medicine tracks merging into a trio from the first EP. You can hear the crowd sing along and I can only imagine the party going on in the house. It seems that any problems with the audience are over. Another personal highlight is a groovy Recap Modotti. There's some funny banter further approving that the evening has turned into a friendly encounter. 

The encore is a nice catering from the In On The Killtaker album after Long Division jumps perfectly to Cassavetes. Ian has no mercy on his voice with the explosive performances of Great Cop and Repeater. A beautiful flow from Last Chance For a Slow Dance to Closed Captioned is up next as the evening draws to a close.

The sound rating is a bit problematic to me. As the mix is basically mono, listening on the headphones is not as rewarding as on a stereo, which in turn is a blast. Joe's bass and the drums sound surprisingly clear with the vocals being the most prominent element. 

All in all, this is another cool show with it's drama and performances.”

The set list:

1. Intro 2. Ex-Spectator Instrumental 3. Break 4. Place Position 5. Merchandise 6. Interlude 1 7. Turnover 8. Reclamation 9. Interlude 2 10. Nice New Outfit 11. Five Corporations 12. Interlude 3 13. Foreman's Dog 14. Interlude 4 15. Birthday Pony 16. Do You Like Me 17. Waiting Room 18. Bulldog Front 19. Suggestion 20. Interlude 5 21. Arpeggiator 22. Recap Modotti 23. FD 24. Argument 25. Interlude 6 26. Blueprint 27. Encore 1 28. Long Division 29. Cassavetes 30. Great Cop 31. Public Witness Program 32. Repeater 33. Encore 2 34. Last Chance for a Slow Dance 35. Closed Captioned 36. Number 5

Show ticket courtesy of Matt Zeleznik

Fugazi, Metropol, Pittsburgh, PA USA 8/20/1993 (FLS #0564)

(Words below submitted by Antti Väärälä)

Fugazi in Pittsburgh, PA, during the first part of the fall 1993 US tour, coming from a pair of shows in Trenton, NJ, and a really cool show in Mechanicsburg. The band gigged in Pittsburgh generously over the years, and played three out of the seven times at the Metropol. After nearly 15 years as Pittsburgh's flagship music venue for small-scale live entertainment, Metropol closed its doors in 2002.

Ian cools down the very enthusiastic and stage-rushing crowd with his friendly opening remarks, and speaks highly of the Pittsburgh show two years earlier. Pretty soon the music rolls on with the ominous guitar noises of Smallpox Champion.

The sound is a bit lackluster to my ears, as the rhythm section of Brendan and Joe feels a tad distant and thin. On the other hand, the guitars are prominent, and the vocals cut through nicely most of the time. The rating "good" is just right for this in my book, and there are stronger sounding recordings from this era. The most positive thing about this tape is how well the room's atmosphere is felt, and the band's amazingly unified playing.

The initial flow is denied as the band has to stop a couple of times at the start of the show. Smallpox Champion barely makes it to the end as crowd surfing has to be addressed. Latin Roots stops abruptly at the start to Joey Picuri's alarm calls, as people keep pushing against the soundboard. After some still friendly pleas from the band the show is allowed to properly continue. Poor Latin Roots never picks up, but what we get instead is a crushing rendition of Reclamation and a fiery, Brendan-led Turnover.

Burning is a fine additon to the set, and this is the first of only three times the song got played during the whole fall 1993 tour. Another delightful rarity comes back to back with Burning as the band hits Song #1 with force. The band push onwards to play new songs with passion, and throw in classic tracks for good measure.

The encore banter is quite funny here, as there's a lot of enthusiastic requesting from the crowd, including one for Blueprint which was played just minutes before. In hindsight it can be said in the requester's defence that the performance was in fact a bit sloppy occasionally. Luckily it's all friendly fun in the end, and Ian proceeds to dedicate Great Cop to himself after having further explained the band's attitude towards stage diving. The song gets a properly raging treatment as is usual with Fugazi encores. Promises is another highlight with a fantastic, noisy jam in the middle.

Sound-wise this entry left me a bit cold, but there are a lot of good things to balance it out. The banter and other shenanigans are entertaining and it's interesting to hear the band perform at the early stages of the tour, having the fresh In On The Killtaker album to promote. There are some slips and whoopsies in the playing but the amazing energy easily makes up for it.

The set list:

1. Intro 2. Smallpox Champion 3. Interlude 1 4. Facet Squared 5. Latin Roots 6. Interlude 2 7. Reclamation 8. Turnover 9. Instrument 10. Public Witness Program 11. And The Same 12. Exit Only 13. Interlude 3 14. Waiting Room 15. Burning 16. Interlude 4 17. Song #1 18. Interlude 5 19. Returning The Screw 20. Interlude 6 21. Cassavetes 22. Repeater 23. Blueprint 24. Encore 25. Great Cop 26. Walken's Syndrome 27. Promises 28. Sweet and Low 29. Outro

Photos © by Rene Vanes - flyer courtesy of Henrie van Valkengoed

Fugazi, Effenaar, Eindhoven, Netherlands 5/4/1995 (FLS #0655)

(Words below submitted by Antti Väärälä)

“First show of the 1995 summer European tour takes place in Eindhoven, Netherlands. The band start off in high spirits and bash out some classic punk rockers right off the bat.

The audio quality is pretty good, I personally wouldn't rate this as ‘excellent’. I think this may have been recorded with room mics only, but I may very well be wrong. As such, the band seems a bit distant and everything's kind of boomy with the low end. The sound to me lacks detail which make the quieter songs suffer, ie. Fell, Destroyed. On the other hand, the heavier songs are more like an onslaught. There's quite a bit of chatter coming through from the audience on the more somber moments which can get distracting.

A confident and heavy By You is a highlight for me here. There's some nice sing-along going on during Suggestion. Give Me The Cure has the intro cut.

A killer Killtaker duo of Returning The Screw and Smallpox Champion finish the main set in a fiery manner. Brendan #1 as an encore is quite a surprise for me here, because the overall feel of the show is more on the confrontational side. It rules nonetheless, so no complaints! Definitely a highlight. Sweet And Low merging into Repeater is awesome, although I'm pretty sure there is a small cut in the bridging jam moment. How Repeater explodes from the toned-down moment is just so beautifully intense.

If you want a show that has the feel of a very good audience recording and some angry performances, then grab this. The band is on fire here in a tumultuous period of MTV-instigated stage diving and moving to a much more dynamic style in their playing.”

The set list:

1. Intro 2. Turnover 3. Facet Squared 4. Public Witness Program 5. Reclamation 6. Interlude 1 7. Do You Like Me 8. Bed For The Scraping 9. Runaway Return 10. Long Division 11. Fell, Destroyed 12. Birthday Pony 13. Cassavetes 14. Interlude 2 15. By You 16. Suggestion 17. Give Me The Cure 18. Interlude 3 19. Styrofoam 20. Blueprint 21. Interlude 4 22. Back To Base 23. Target 24. Returning The Screw 25. Smallpox Champion 26. Encore 1 27. Brendan #1 28. Latest Disgrace 29. Long Distance Runner 30. Promises 31. Sweet And Low 32. Repeater 33. Outro

Photo © by Michael Koenig

Fugazi, 40 Watt, Athens, GA USA 12/18/1999 (FLS #0959)

This recording documents the last out of eight times Fugazi performed in Athens, Georgia, which played out at the 40 Watt Club as it did every single time since their first show in Athens on June 3, 1988.

As per Ian, “until recently, I think there were two cities in the country that we had played like numerous shows but always at the same place, one was in Austin, Texas at the Liberty Lunch, and the other one is right here at the 40 Watt, and we’ve gotten word that the Liberty Lunch has been shut down or it’s all over […] but the 40 Watt is still here so, here’s one, I guess we just wanna say thanks to the 40 Watt for having us some many times over the years.”

Clocking in at 1 hour and 55 minutes, this recording surely preserves one of the longest, perhaps even the longest performance in the live history of the band.

During the introductory remarks, Ian addresses someone in the crowd, asking if he is “the guy that played the 3 hours of Fugazi today”, adding: “Well, thanks. I am surprised you’re here actually, I’d think you’d be fucking sick of us by now…” while towards the end of the show, Ian reiterates that “it just occurred to me, if you played Fugazi songs for 3 hours today, you’re working on your fifth fucking hour of us” and grants him a request by way of “reward” which results in Great Cop. It appears that the “DJ” in question is John Farrar, current co-host of the Live On 4 Legs podcast which pays tribute to the Pearl Jam live repertoire.

While the recording sounds excellent overall, as noted (see submission below), I find that a good part of the set is a bit of a hodgepodge and it is not until Break that it really starts grabbing my attention. But those last nine songs are pretty much perfect and elevate the overall performance.

It certainly offers really good live versions of a number of songs, yet absolute highlights in my book include KYEO, a song “particularly appropriate given the fact that people in Seattle try to make us think about a somewhat dubious World Trade Organization, so-called civilized American police force shot them with rubber bullets, and a so-called truthful American media portrayed it as a bunch of fucking thugs breaking windows but the thugs are on the other side of the badge, so just when you though it was safe… the troops are quiet tonight, but it’s not alright cause they are planning something…”, as well as an early live rendering of Ex-Spectator in instrumental form and a standout performance of Sweet and Low which features various nice additional yet subtle touches and embellishments on guitars and drums (accentuated by sound-man Nick Pellicciotto) and unusually ends with some drawn-out guitar feedback.

While the set list draws from all available work at the time (or even the Argument album and Furniture EP unreleased at the time), note that it includes just one song off of Margin Walker EP and 7 Songs debut EP each, as well as just two songs off of Repeater.

(Words below submitted by Antti Väärälä)

“I gotta say, this is definitely one of the best sounding FLS offerings I've had the pleasure to listen to so far. There's some mix settling going on during Number 5, but after that it's a breeze. So I would easily rate this as ‘excellent’. The mix breathes, the stereo field is fully utilized and every instrument and vocal is clear. The drum sound is as good as it gets. The added effects are not over-used, but instead add some very nice color and atmosphere.

Be prepared that there is some minimal digital crackling here and there. It didn't really bother me though, as it's only a few times.

The band start off with some amusingly casual chatting. A pretty classic show structure follows at first in the form of flowing rockers with Place Position being a personal highlight. As a sidenote, I'm pretty sure you can hear Brendan yelling in delight behind the kit on a lot of songs which is a lot of fun.

Stacks is a perfect addition to the set and after that it's all a highlight for me, as the band practically flies through awesome performances one after another. A psychedelic Floating Boy merging seamlessly into a superbly dynamic Argument is just pure Fugazi bliss for me. Another really cool seamless merge is from Oh to Closed Captioned. More of these merges follow but I don't want to spoil them all.

The band play a really long set, representing basically their whole repertoire. A lot of tight rockers are balanced with some sweet moments. The final encore shows this especially well with punk fury, rocking wit and tenderness all thrown into play. Ex-Spectator is starting to be very confident albeit still instrumental here. Sweet And Low is definitely one of the coolest versions I've ever heard.

I gotta give a special mention to how amazingly Fugazi utilize dynamics in their performance at this point. A recording of this caliber really shows that off.

A highly recommended mammoth of a show!”

The set list:

1. Intro 2. Number 5 3. Cassavetes 4. And The Same 5. Place Position 6. Styrofoam 7. Public Witness Program 8. Interlude 1 9. Stacks 10. Recap Modotti 11. FD 12. Furniture 13. Floating Boy 14. Argument 15. Give Me The Cure 16. Song #1 17. Arpeggiator 18. Oh 19. Closed Captioned 20. Runaway Return 21. Interlude 2 22. Five Corporations 23. Interlude 3 24. Turnover 25. Bed For The Scraping 26. Caustic Acrostic 27. Break 28. Forensic Scene 29. Pink Frosty 30. Target 31. Interlude 4 32. KYEO 33. Encore 34. Ex-Spectator Instrumental 35. Interlude 6 36. Great Cop 37. Do You Like Me 38. Sweet and Low

Photos © by Tamaki Obuchi

Fugazi, Sun Hall, Osaka, Japan 11/14/1991 (FLS #0415)

(Words below submitted by Antti Väärälä)

“Now, here's a hard-nosed recording for sure. The band is close to the end of the tour and firing on all cylinders. This is the final date in Japan on their first tour of the country, and judged by the opening remarks it seems the band has had a very enjoyable stay there. 

Some crowd control with the help of a local translator ensues at first, but things seem to settle to a more peaceful level soon. Not that the playing would get mellow, quite the contrary in fact. The band rocks real hard song after song. 

The sound is pretty aggressive and there's a little distortion when things go to red during the loudest moments. Not too badly though. Overall this recording works better on a stereo for me, because with the headphones it feels very pushed. The guitars and vocals are prominent. Joe's bass tends to drown, which is a pity. The drums on the other hand sound really powerful. This is a soundboard recording of the totally-in-your-face kind. There's a touch of added reverb which adds a little air. 

Reclamation is as strong as it gets here. Another highlight is a bombastic Bad Mouth flowing into an attitude-filled Burning. 

Last Chance For A Slow Dance is coming along nicely and is closer to the album tempo here. Repeater is a total contrast to that peaceful moment exploding the roof off the place. Finally, Reprovisional turns to a huge, noisy jam to close the evening. 

This show practically flies by in flames with only a few breathers, and it's recommended especially for fans of the band's hardcore roots.”

The set list:

1. Intro 2. Steady Diet 3. Exit Only 4. And The Same 5. Sieve-Fisted Find 6. Reclamation 7. Interlude 1 8. Nice New Outfit 9. Merchandise 10. Margin Walker 11. Bad Mouth 12. Burning 13. Waiting Room 14. Interlude 2 15. Blueprint 16. Styrofoam 17. Two Beats Off 18. Shut the Door 19. Encore 20. Last Chance For A Slow Dance 21. Repeater 22. Reprovisional 23. Outro

Photo © by Dave Fisher

Fugazi, Peter Clark Hall University of Guelph, Guelph, ON Canada 9/8/1993 (FLS #0579)

(Words below submitted by Antti Väärälä)

“Fugazi start their fall 1993 Canadian stint in the vibrant Ontario town of Guelph. This is their second time playing the city, returning after almost exactly 4 years later. And judging by the feelgood atmosphere of this recording, I'm sure they wanted to come back many times. Ian starts the show with the usual, friendly opening remarks and then launches into the always anthemic Reclamation. 

Sound-wise this tape is ok, but a bit muddier than usual regarding the era. The drums do sound powerful and detailed, and especially the toms and snare are quite pleasing. Steady quality throughout, and the added effects are very tasteful. As muddy as the tape sounds, what's good is that the mix is very nicely in balance. So you can grab your EQ, hit up some high frequencies, crank the volume and it gets better, at least to my ears. 

The band is allowed to fire away with a great flow of tracks. Exit Only sounds exceptionally riveting here, as Guy does some subtle, enjoyable changes to the vocal delivery. The flow doesn't really stop until there's something going on after Greed. Not much crowd control is needed, but I think you can hear Ian tell somebody to behave themselves. Smallpox Champion then follows with the same power, but there's some guitar tuning issues that slightly disturb the performance. 

A few highlights to mention are a deliciously heavy Instrument and a very inspired take on Turnover where the whole band seems to radiate the pure joy of playing music, led by Brendan's driving beats. 

Later in the set we can listen to Ian disclose the band's troubles while crossing the border from US to Canada. As disgruntled as the band must have been due to these mishaps, they channel this into strong performances as the main set draws to a close. Rend It feels both very gentle with Guy's toned down verses, and really explosive as the band hits the chorus. To follow the intensity, Repeater rattles and rumbles as hard as ever. 

The encore starts with a very cool jam by Brendan. This is passed on to the performance of Long Division where the drums are a step more technical, relaxed and jazzy even. With the dynamic playing by the whole band this is one of the show's highlights for me. 

To top off a very enjoyable recording, Shut The Door gets a downright mighty performance. Someone shouts a request for the song, and Ian starts the riff right that second, making it seem very much that he took the request to heart. The band joins in for an exceptionally powerful rendition that includes one of the most nightmarish jam sections I've heard so far. Guy uses his tuner minimalistiically, but to a great dramatic effect. Ian and Joe are equally spacey and weird with their noises and Brendan keeps the pulse going. The effects from the soundboard add perfectly to all the pandemonium. Totally amazing performance. And to contrast this with an absolutely impeccable version of Sweet and Low must have left the audience most positively stupefied, as I know it left me. 

All in all, this is a very enjoyable recording that I can easily recommend. The sound is a bit underwhelming but there are many good things to make up for it. The crowd is cool for the duration of the whole evening and this shows in the band's flow and strong, all-out performances with more than a few highlights.”

The set list:

1. Intro 2. Reclamation 3. Exit Only 4. Facet Squared 5. Public Witness Program 6. Interlude 1 7. And The Same 8. Nice New Outfit 9. Greed 10. Interlude 2 11. Smallpox Champion 12. Interlude 3 13. Instrument 14. Turnover 15. Interlude 4 16. Promises 17. Give Me The Cure 18. Waiting Room 19. Interlude 5 20. Blueprint 21. Great Cop 22. Rend It 23. Repeater 24. Encore 25. Long Division 26. Cassavetes 27. Interlude 6 28. Shut The Door 29. Sweet and Low 30. Outro

Fugazi, Jacob’s Run, Wilmington, NC USA 2/6/1993 (FLS #0493)

(Words below submitted by Antti Väärälä)

“Fugazi in Wilmington, North Carolina, at the early stages of their epic 1993 tour schedule. This is the band's first time playing in the city, and they would return only once years later. This first show take's place at a Wilmington venue called Jacob's Run. We get some good-humoured soundcheck hey-hey's and a little opening remark from Ian. Soon enough the show opens with a rocking Reprovisional. 

The recording sounds brighter than on average from the era, but also a bit thin and Joe's bass tends to drown out. Overall this recording is still very good, and as is usual, the best thing about it is how the band's unified power and energy comes through. Other than wishing for some more low end, the mix balance is adequate. Brendan's kit has power and some nice detail. 

The show moves onwards with fast rockers. The band can't quite get to a state of flow, but the playing is fierce throughout. Some guitar tuning issues persist and there's a long interlude as Ian tries to fix things while Guy does a little chatting. A highlight early on is a strong and explosive Rend It. 

I really like how on these older recordings you can hear the shouts from the crowd between songs really well. It makes you feel like you are there. This is good since there's some quite funny and over the top confrontation regarding Ian's guitar troubles. After the banter we get another highlight in the form of a riveting Long Division. The band is in a high energy mode, and it gives the song a curiously funky and fast-paced edge. 

Explosive performances continue with an angry rendition of Bulldog Front, and the classic Waiting Room. You can hear the singalong from the crowd pretty well on this tape, especially on the oldies. The room's atmosphere is excited and enthusiastic. The crowd welcomes still unreleased tracks, such as the muscular Instrument, with delight too. Another goosebumps-inducing singalong can be heard during the huge, slow Shut The Door. 

The band pumps out Facet Squared as the first encore, and I can only imagine how cool it was to hear that bassline rumbling under the beeping feedback live for the first time. Dear Justice Letter could be called a rarity on the 1993 tour, especially this winter US leg. The song's vibe and attitude never fail to pull the listener in. Finally, another crushing version of Reclamation ends the evening. 

The show feels like it just flies by, as everything is played with amazing levels of energy. The band did mostly 60-70 minute sets around this time, and I'm sure the enthusiastic crowd was once again left hungry for more. This is another classic tape from the interesting era where the band was on its way to arguably their biggest album so far. They are clearly excited to present the new material, and it's great to hear such a vivid response from the crowd. 

You can watch an almost complete recording of the show on Youtube.”

The set list:

1. Intro 2. Reprovisional  3. Great Cop 4. Interlude 1 5. Sieve-Fisted Find 6. Styrofoam 7. Interlude 2 8. Rend It 9. Interlude 3 10. Long Division 11. Blueprint 12. Interlude 4 13. Instrument 14. Interlude 5 15. Bulldog Front 16. Waiting Room 17. Interlude 6 18. Walken's Syndrome 19. Merchandise 20. Two Beats Off 21. Interlude 7 22. Shut the Door 23. Interlude 8 24. Facet Squared 25. Dear Justice Letter 26. Reclamation 27. Outro