I was not there. I was on island but did not go to the festival. However, I have listened to the whole thing and I love it.

I prefer audience recordings to stage so to counter the previous rating I am going to up it a bit...

Tropical K-wave bliss...

I've taken the liberty of quoting someone else here about this show:

-I was blessed to be part of the crowd at the Anahola Taro Patch that day. Without a doubt the kindest place on Earth to put on a show. Since that show, I've run into people and we've talked about that show. There is nothing like seeing that look in their eyes when they talk about the show.

-I asked a friend I made in Hawaii what he thought of Kimock (he'd not seen him before): "It's like, tiny little bubbles VERY fast."

This was a relaxed show in a fantastically beautiful setting for Steve Kimock between the blistering SKB show of 12/8/02 Yokohama and the 12/27-12/31/02 Colorado New Year's run. I think it compares favorably with the other non-SKB shows Kimock has played in 2002, in that he had limited rehearsal time with musicians not fully familiar with his tunes. Here he was able to stretch out and jam on his own tunes with a sympathetic backing band, including the legendary Bill the Drummer.

Highlights for me include a deliciously tropical psychedelic take on Tangled Hangers (those fast bubbles!), an extended It's Up To You that built up from a languid intro into a raging storm, Billy Kreutzmann's work, nice keyboard touches throughout, and the ambience of the audience and songbirds that can be heard between tunes. I also really dug watching Kimock play frisbee before his first set (the two sets were separated by other artists).

The Tropical Jam Fest was an all day affair, and Kimock and crew were sadly cut off over an hour after the intended closing time. 3 stars for that, and the fact that it is an AUD not stage recording. Perhaps the K's will let Arielle release her recording?