Photos and Review by Stephen Bloch

Fresh on the heels of Dead & Co. announcement of a return to the Sphere, Joe Russo’s Almost Dead made a return visit to Milwaukee (affectionately known as Milwookie to many for its jam band affinity).  This was their 3rd time here, with their last full show happening in 2015.  This sold out show was their first of their final leg of their tour (side projects have been happening for the past month and will continue into the new year).

A heady jazzy jam kicked things off before they launched into a fiery “Stagger Lee”.  From the outset, the band was clearly going to stretch their legs on every song.  In the end, they played 12 songs in almost exactly three hours.  Can you say jam?

As is customary with JRAD shows, the order of songs doesn’t necessarily follow the tried and true model of how the Grateful Dead did it.  Tonight was no exception.  Keeps us on our toes, I guess.  There was also plenty of teasin’ goin’ on.  “Scarlet”, “Terrapin”, “Tennessee Jed”, “Hell in a Bucket”, “Let it Grow” and others were in there too.  Tease or not, we got plenty of faves including “Shakedown”>>”Born Cross Eyed Jam”>>”Truckin’”>>”Fire” set one closer.  

There is no other Grateful Dead “cover” band doing what Joe Russo’s Almost Dead is doing.  They are taking the entire Dead catalog and turning it on its head with jams that drift into jazz, electronic, prog, etc.  It’s refreshing, creative, and nuanced yet keeps old Heads smiling from ear to ear and coming back for more.